Dark Bilious Vapors

House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi issued the following statement on US News Wire about the release of the Bush Administration's regulations on mercury pollution from power plants:

"Instead of making polluters pay to clean up the mercury pollution they caused, the new Bush Administration regulations will make children pay with their health. We should be acting quickly and responsibly to reduce toxic mercury pollution from power plants, but the Bush Administration's regulations will drag out mercury cleanup for decades, putting several more generations of children at risk of mercury's dangerous health effects.

"On behalf of its industry supporters, the Bush Administration has turned the Clean Air Act on its head. The law directs the Environmental Protection Agency to look at the best technologies available for reducing mercury emissions and scientifically determine the level of reductions that can be achieved. Instead, the Bush Administration asked the utility industry what level of mercury reductions would be acceptable, and then ordered the EPA to justify that purely political decision. The Bush Administration has also ordered the EPA to use an approach that is not legal under the Clean Air Act, further delaying mercury reductions.

"In the past month, two of America's watchdogs -- the Government Accountability Office and the EPA's Inspector General -- have criticized the EPA for failing to conduct the scientific analysis that is needed to protect the public and to develop sound regulations on cutting mercury pollution. Sadly, these misplaced prioirites are business as usual at the Bush White House."

"For more information about today's rule, go to: http://www.epa.gov/mercury/air/mercuryruleFor more information about mercury in fish, go to: http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/fishadvice/advice.htmlFor more information about FDA's fish advisory go to: http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/"

Karen on 03.20.05 @ 07:23 AM CST