Ohio may set its own air-pollution limits

By Randall Edwards Copyright 1999 Columbus Dispatch January 16, 1999

The Ohio EPA is disregarding a federal mandate and is moving forward with its own plan, which will allow the state's power plants to continue putting out air pollution that exceeds new federal limits.

The mandate gives states until September to develop a plan to reduce by 85 percent the nitrogen oxides from power plant and smokestack emissions. The cuts were ordered last October by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as part of a national plan to combat the transport of smog-producing ozone from the Midwest to downwind states with serious urban smog problems.

Ohio and other Midwestern states - saying the reductions will cost millions of dollars and have little impact on Eastern smog - went to court last month to fight the federal rules. In a letter last week, the Ohio EPA's top air-pollution officials said the state agency will further challenge the federal authority by creating a plan to reduce emissions by only 65 percent.

Ohio's plan reflects a proposal made last year by governors of six states who asked the U.S. EPA to consider a 65 percent reduction and additional studies to determine whether more cuts are needed.

Nitrogen oxides, byproducts of coal combustion, mix with hydrocarbons in sunlight to create ozone, a principal ingredient of urban smog. Studies have shown that better controls on Midwestern smokestacks would have a significant impact on East Coast smog. The pollutants would be reduced by a small percentage, but in some cases it would be enough for cities to meet federal standards.

In some cities closer to Ohio, the reduction could be substantial.

''We feel that this is a strong commitment to address the transport issue, while protecting the health of Ohioans and our neighbors in western Pennsylvania and other Eastern states,'' Robert Hodanbosi, chief of the Ohio EPA's division of air-pollution control, wrote.

Hodanbosi's letter was mailed to industry, environment and government representatives who were planning to participate in public debate on the new rules. Because ''policy decisions have been made,'' however, and the federal deadline is looming, those debates won't take place, an EPA spokeswoman said yesterday.

The decision to fight the federal limits was made by former Ohio EPA Director Donald Schregardus, former Ohio Gov. George V. Voinovich, Hodanbosi and other top agency officials before Voinovich left office, spokesman Carol Hester said.

''We don't think the rule complies with the Clean Air Act, and we don't think the U.S. EPA has the authority to dictate to the states how they should control emissions,'' Hester said.

U.S. EPA officials could not be reached for comment late yesterday afternoon, but environmental groups were incensed, by both the decision to fight the federal rule and the cancellation of a series of planned meetings to discuss the rules.

The Ohio EPA has bowed to the utility industry's pressure from the beginning of the ozone transport debate, said Kurt Waltzer, energy program director for the Ohio Environmental Council.

''We have been trying to work with the Ohio EPA and the utilities to come up with a plan that is made for Ohio,'' Waltzer said. Led by Voinovich's outspoken opposition to new air-pollution controls, however, the state has consistently opposed efforts to reduce smog-producing pollutants from power plant smokestacks, he said.

If the state fails to meet the federal mandate by September, the U.S. EPA could impose its own plan on Ohio, Waltzer said, and environmental groups would be supportive.

''We want to see an effective Ohio-based plan because it makes sense for Ohio, but if the Ohio EPA ignores the federal rule, we would support U.S. EPA intervention.''

Federal intervention is possible, Hester said, but state officials say they will wait for the results of the court appeal before they worry about the U.S. EPA. Ohio Attorney General Betty Montgomery filed the petition in U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington in December, joining Michigan and West Virginia in asking the court to overturn the rules.

Comments on this posting?
Click here to post a public comment on the Trash Talk Bulletin Board.
Click here to send a private comment to the Junkman.

Material presented on this home page constitutes opinion of Steven J. Milloy.
Copyright © 1998 Citizens for the Integrity of Science. All rights reserved on original material. Material copyrighted by others is used either with permission or under a claim of "fair use." Site developed and hosted by WestLake Solutions, Inc.