Working together, we can leave our children a living planet.




From the increase in asthma emergencies and cases of premature death to the devastating effects of global warming, air pollution is causing a public health crisis. Automobiles are a leading source of the air pollution that threatens our health.

It is a well known fact that automobiles, including cars, trucks, and sport utility vehicles (SUVs), are the largest non-industrial source of air pollution on the planet. This is especially true because current regulations allow SUVs and other light trucks to emit as much as three times more smog-forming nitrogen oxide (NOx) and use 33% more gas than small cars.

According to the American Lung Association, at least 117 million Americans live in areas where it is unsafe to breathe the air due to ozone or "smog" pollution. During the 1998 smog season, there were more than 5200 violations of EPA's health standard for smog in 41 states across the nation.

In the 1970s, when pollution and miles-per-gallon standards were created, light trucks were used as work trucks for hauling heavy loads and were exempted from passenger vehicle pollution and miles-per-gallon standards. Today, light trucks, minivans and sport utility vehicles (SUVs) serve as family vehicles, just like cars. In 1998 nearly half of all passenger cars sold were light trucks, minivans or SUVs. There is no longer any reason to allow these vehicles to be highly polluting gas guzzlers. Cars must get 27.5 miles per gallon, while SUVs need to get only 20.7 miles.

America’s love affair with the SUV is threatening both the health of the children being transported in it, and the planet being explored in it.




For Immediate Release
Tuesday, October 5, 1999 10 a.m. EDT

Smog Sends 53,000 to the Hospital Each Summer, Causes Over 6 Million Asthma Attacks.

Summer smog (ground-level ozone) sends an estimated 53,000 persons to the hospital, 159,000 to the emergency room and triggers 6,200,000 asthma attacks each summer in the eastern half of the United States, according to a study released today by Clear the Air: National Campaign Against Dirty Power, a new joint project of the Clean Air Task Force (CATF), National Environmental Trust (NET), and U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG).

"These numbers show that ozone smog is a public health crisis affecting hundreds of communities," said Conrad Schneider, Technical and Policy Coordinator of CATF, one of the founders of Clear the Air: National Campaign Against Dirty Power. "Despite popular impression, this is not just a Northeast problem. From Texas to Illinois and from Georgia to Maine, and everywhere in between, people are admitted to the hospital for serious, prolonged respiratory distress due to ozone smog."

Out of Breath: Health Effects from Ozone in the Eastern U.S., authored by Abt Associates, the consulting firm under contract with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to analyze air pollution damages, looked at the 37 Eastern states affected by U.S. EPA's summer smog rule, estimating a range of health impacts for 34 cities within the region as well as for each individual state. Among the report's findings for states and metropolitan areas are:

Texas had 4,600 hospital admissions, 1,700 emergency room visits for asthma, and 660,000 asthma attacks. The state of New York had 4,100 hospital admissions, 1,200 emergency room visits for asthma, and 510,000 ozone-caused asthma attacks. The Washington, D.C. metropolitan area had 800 hospital admissions, 340 emergency room visits, and 130,000 ozone-caused asthma attacks. The Atlanta metropolitan area had 800 hospital admissions, 340 emergency room visits, and 130,000 ozone-caused asthma attacks. "An accident or national disaster that sent this many people to emergency rooms would be front-page news," said Rebecca Stanfield, Clean Air Advocate for U.S. PIRG "Although the effects of ozone are spread out over the course of the summer, the suffering of people with respiratory problems is no less real."

Ozone is a highly reactive gas that is the main component of summer smog. Ozone is capable of destroying organic matter, including human lung and airway tissue, by essentially burning through cell walls. Coal-fired power plants are the single largest industrial contributor to ozone pollution, emitting more than one-quarter of the nation's ozone-forming nitrogen oxides.

Last year, U.S. EPA directed 22 states to cut smog-forming pollution from power plants by approximately 85% below 1990 levels. Several Midwestern states sued to block the reductions, and a panel of the D.C. Circuit Court delayed implementation of the EPA plan. Recently, the New York state attorney general's office announced that it would sue 17 coal-burning power plants.

"The easiest, most cost-effective thing we can do to reduce this misery is to cut smog-forming pollution from old, dirty power plants. As the Out of Breath study shows, our lungs are depending on it," said Phil Clapp of National Environmental Trust.

"The Clean Air Act needs to be strengthened to protect the health of millions of Americans. Congressmen Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY) have introduced legislation to accomplish that goal, and their bill should be a central part of Congress' next reauthorization of the Act."

Last month Congressmen Waxman and Boehlert introduced The Clean Smokestacks Act of 1999, which would close an existing legal loophole that allows old power plants to emit as much as ten times more pollution than a new plant may emit, while setting national caps for the four main power plant pollutants.

Senator James Inhofe (R-OK), chairman of the Senate subcommittee with jurisdiction over the Clean Air Act has indicated that he will soon begin hearings leading to an overhaul of the Act by his panel in January, 2001.



Lethal Loophole-PRESS RELEASE

Thursday, June 25, 1998

LETHAL LOOPHOLE IN CLEAN AIR ACT EXPOSED U.S. PIRG Report Shows Exemption for Older Power Plants Threatens Public Health Ranks Nationâs Worst Plants and States for Excess Power Plant Pollution The U.S. Public Interest Research Group (U.S. PIRG) released a new study showing that a loophole in the Clean Air Act allows older, mostly coal-burning power plants to pollute many times more than new power plants, making them the nationâs largest industrial source of smog- and soot-forming air pollution, toxic mercury and carbon dioxide which is causing global warming. The report is the first to analyze 1997 data reported by the electric power industry to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The report concludes that due to the loophole in the clean air act, electric industry air pollution is tripled.

While the public breathes dirty air, eats toxic fish, and faces the threat of global warming, the electric industry's biggest polluters enjoy an exemption from the very law that is supposed to protect public health. "This lethal loophole triples electric industry air pollution", said Rebecca Stanfield, Staff Attorney for U.S. PIRG. "We urge Congress to make all power plants play by the same rules," said Stanfield.

The report, ãLethal Loophole: A Comprehensive Report on Americaâs Most Polluting Power Plants and the Loophole that Allows them to Pollute,ä analyzes EPA data on Americaâs 559 dirtiest power plants, each of which emits more than 20 tons of pollution in excess of what would be permitted if the plant were meeting current, new source pollution limits. The report finds that in 1997, these 559 plants emitted:

5.9 million tons of smog-forming nitrogen oxide (NOx) pollution. At least 4.2 million tons of this pollution, or 70%, would not be allowed if the plants were required to meet modern emission standards currently met by new plants. Today an estimated 117 million Americans live in areas where the air is unsafe to breathe due to ozone or smog pollution.

13 million tons of sulfur dioxide (SO2), which forms deadly fine particulate air pollution, and causes acid rain. At least 10 million tons of this pollution, or 77%, would not be allowed if the plants were required to meet modern emission standards currently met by new plants. Today an estimated 70 million people live in areas where the air is unsafe to breathe due to fine particulate air pollution, of which SO2 is a major component.

2 billion tons of carbon dioxide, which causes global warming. Global warming threatens devastating climate change, bringing rising sea levels, increased spread of infectious disease, loss of agricultural productivity and more severe and frequent weather events. There are currently no limits on emission of carbon dioxide for any power plants, old or new.

Additionally, while coal-burning power plants are the nationâs largest source of toxic mercury pollution, electric companies are not required to monitor, report or limit mercury emissions. Based on EPAâs estimates, coal plants emit 100,000 pounds of toxic mercury each year. Due to mercury poisoning, fish in 50,000 US. bodies of water are unsafe to consume.

ãClosing the lethal loophole will go a long way toward making the air safe to breathe for millions of Americans who suffer from asthma and other respiratory disease,ä said Stanfield. ãElectric companies must also be required to report all mercury emissions, and limit emissions of both mercury and carbon dioxide,ä said Stanfield.

The new report ranks the worst 100 plants for excess NOx emissions, excess SO2 emissions, and total CO2 Emissions. It also ranks the 44 states having one or more of the 559 dirtiest plants within their borders. The top ten lists are:

States with most excess NOx emissions: Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, West Virginia, Illinois, Tennessee, North Carolina, Texas, Florida and Pennsylvania;

States with most excess SO2 emissions: Ohio, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Illinois, West Virginia, Kentucky, Florida, Texas, Alabama and Tennessee;

States with most total CO2 emissions: Texas, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida, Kentucky, West Virginia, Illinois, Alabama and Georgia.

The release of the report coincides with the last day of EPAâs public comment period on a new rule limiting smog-forming air pollution from power plants in 22 eastern states. The rule, designed to address smog that is transported between states, would place a regional cap on power plant NOx emissions. Although the limits in the proposed rule are significantly weaker than would be necessary to meet the new air quality standards in many eastern states, the rule has been the target of a coalition of coal and electric companies known as the Association for Constructive Air Policy (ACAP), and several Midwestern and Southern Governors, who would face the need to clean up power plants under the proposed rule.

ãEPAâs landmark clean air standards, adopted one year ago today, will not protect a soul unless they are implemented,ä said Stanfield. ãWe urge EPA to stand firm in the face of this self-serving attempt to gut the Clean Air Actâs basic public health protections,ä said Stanfield.

U.S. PIRG is the national lobbying office of the state Public Interest Research Groups (PIRGs). PIRGs are non-profit, nonpartisan consumer and environmental advocacy groups, active across the country.