12 States Oppose Bush Plan on Pollution

[cal04]

Attorneys general in 12 states said Friday that the Bush administration's plan to ease rules on reporting legal toxin releases would compromise the public's right to know about possible health risks in their neighborhoods.

In a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the state officials say the proposals, which include raising some reporting thresholds and moving from annual to biennial reports, would have the greatest harm in low-income neighborhoods where polluting facilities are often located.

The Bush administration proposed the changes in September as a way to reduce the regulatory burden on companies by allowing some to use a short form when they report their pollution to the EPA's Toxics Release Inventory Program. ''This EPA move appears to be yet another poorly considered notion to appease a few polluting constituents at the expense of a valuable program,'' New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer said.

Also signing the letter were the attorneys general of California, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Vermont and Wisconsin. All are Democrats except Republican Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire. ''The public has a fundamental right to know what hazardous materials their children and families are being exposed to,'' said Wisconsin Attorney General Peggy Lautenschlager.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Toxic-Pollutants-States.html

[ck4829]

1. Attorney General of my State (Ohio), not to be found

Of course, what would you expect from a member of the 'christian' Right, they're so compassionate and Christ-like that they just don't have the time to care about toxins creeping in to babies, right?

[JudyM]

2. These reporting requirements are really intense, but that doesn't mean

companies wanting the privilege of emitting contaminants shouldn't be required to pay for the necessary equipment and personnel to figure out the cost to the environment of doing so. These costs should be internalized as part of the cost of doing business, as congress has mandated. Kudos to these state leaders for standing up for the environment and corporate accountability!

:headbang:

[realFedUp]

3. kick

[rainbow4321]

4. Once upon a time, chimp agreed there was global warming d/t pollution

Til his TX polluters jerked his $$ chain...


http://www.bushfiles.com/00_04_14/000414_bush_and_environment.htm

The height of Bush's environmental greenery came late in the '99 legislative session. He said during a press conference, "Yes, I think global warming is a problem." As it happens, Texas leads the nation in the emission of carbon monoxide, the principal greenhouse gas. But the American Petroleum Institute immediately declared itself "surprised" by this ferociously green stand. A spokesman for an industry-funded "grassroots" group complained of "a shock wave throughout the community." Sierra Club spokesman Neil Carman was driven to mix his metaphors: "But Bush's environmental track record -- you know he's running on empty," he told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Dan Quayle jumped fearlessly into the fray, claiming Dubya was "surrendering." So Bush retreated, saying a few days later that while his environmental advisers agree there is "some warming, they disagree about its cause and impact."

[BattyDem]

5. My asthma gets worse every year

If the rules are eased again, I won't be able to breathe at all!!! :grr:

[GoddessOfGuinness]

6. Only 12?

This number should be MUCH higher!

[genieroze]

7. NJ really needs to oppose it.

Kiss her where it smells, kiss her in NJ. Now I know why Whitman quit. She was a pro choice pro environment repub.