Bush administration officials will be taking a major gamble if they go through with a planned weakening of the Clean Air Act this week, as sources have reported. They also will ensure that in parts of America, the air will be dirtier than it is today.
According to leaked reports, the Environmental Protection Agency is planning to release a version of its "new source review" rule that will make it easier for older plants to upgrade without reducing the amount of pollutants they pour into the atmosphere. Under the rule as it is now, older plants that make extensive renovations must add pollution controls to meet Clean Air Act standards.
But if the sources are correct, the new rule would allow companies to do extensive work without upgrading their emission controls. In other words, the older plants, many of them coal-burning factories, would be able to improve facilities without adding pollution controls, which would mean more pollutants in the air.
This would be a huge mistake for the EPA and the White House. The administration already is under fire for its stances on environmental issues, and sacrificing cleaner air will only add to the opposition. It will be difficult for President Bush and his nominee to be the new EPA director, Utah Gov. Michael Leavitt, to gain any positive spin from this move.
Although the new source review rule has been blatantly violated over the years, more than a few big polluters have been caught through lawsuits. In Central Texas, Alcoa's aluminum plant in Rockdale was sued for ignoring the rule and was ordered to pay $4 million in penalties.
What the Alcoa case and other examples prove is that new source review works to clean the air. Industries may hate it and want to upgrade without adding pollution control equipment, but they have an obligation to improve air quality, not degrade it.
Removing the teeth from the rule is a risky move politically because the country wants clean air. Congress also should be upset if the president abrogates the Clean Air Act passed in 1977 by revising a rule on grandfathered plants that are still polluting.
The effect of the EPA change won't matter too much in Central Texas. Alcoa was the biggest air pollution problem in the region, and that has been effectively taken care of. Of the other polluting plants in Texas, most are under other federal regulations that require them to reduce harmful emissions.
But there are older operations, coal-fired plants and the like, that would escape air control measures if the EPA rule is changed. A change approved last year already allows plants to pump more polluting emissions into the air when they upgrade before triggering the requirement to meet Clean Air Act standards.
Under the rule expected this week, the EPA would change what qualifies as a major modification to a grandfathered plant. In effect, the EPA would allow more extensive renovations before requiring emission controls to reduce pollutants.
The administration is taking a real risk in attacking clean
air standards and increasing pollution levels. It could harm the environment,
endanger the nation's health and haunt Bush politically.