Clinton accepts new clean air proposals.Last week, President Clinton sided with his Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), independent agency of the U.S. government, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1970 to reduce and control air and water pollution, noise pollution, and radiation and to ensure the safe handling and chief, but against his White House advisors, when he announced his formal backing for tough--and highly controversial--new regulations to cut allowable concentrations of smog ozone and airborne particles. His support for these rules to protect human health now all but assures they will be adopted next month as part of a major revision of federal air standards. The Clinton administration Noun 1. Clinton administration - the executive under President Clinton executive - persons who administer the law is under a court order to issue the rules by July 19. Ozone, formed by the interaction of hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides, is the primary irritant ir·ri·tant adj. Causing irritation, especially physical irritation. n. A source of irritation. irritant, n 1. an agent that causes an irritation or stimulation. 2. in urban smog. Studies have shown that it can temporarily reduce lung capacity and aggravate respiratory disease Noun 1. respiratory disease - a disease affecting the respiratory system respiratory disorder, respiratory illness adult respiratory distress syndrome, ARDS, wet lung, white lung - acute lung injury characterized by coughing and rales; inflammation of the , notably asthma. Proposed last November, the first new regulation would limit ozone to 80 parts per billion (ppb ppb abbr. parts per billion ) in air, averaged over an 8-hour period, replacing the current 1-hour limit of 120 ppb. The second new standard would change the focus of pollution controls aimed at soot soot, black or dull brown deposit of fine powder resulting from incomplete combustion of fuel of high carbon content, e.g., coal, wood, and oil. It consists chiefly of amorphous carbon and tarry substances that cause it to adhere to surfaces. and dust. Numerous studies have linked the legally allowed concentrations of these airborne particles to increases in severe respiratory disease (SN: 7/1/95, p. 5). Current federal standards regulate particles 10 micrometers ([micro]m) or smaller, which are inhaled in·hale v. in·haled, in·hal·ing, in·hales v.tr. 1. To draw (air or smoke, for example) into the lungs by breathing; inspire. 2. into the lungs' passages. Their concentrations in air have been limited to no more than 150 micrograms per cubic meter Noun 1. cubic meter - a metric unit of volume or capacity equal to 1000 liters cubic metre, kiloliter, kilolitre metric capacity unit - a capacity unit defined in metric terms ([micro]g/[m.sup.3]), averaged over any 24-hour period, and to an annual average of no more than 50 [micro]g/[m.sup.3]. The new standard would instead regulate only those particles 2.5 [micro]m or smaller. This finer fraction, the majority of particulates in many industrial areas, is believed to pose the greatest risk to health by lodging most deeply in the lungs. The rules would set the maximum allowable 24-hour-average concentration to 65 [micro]g/[m.sup.3] and the annual average concentration to 15 [micro]g/[m.sup.3]. Industrial leaders have campaigned vociferously against the proposals, charging that they are based on incomplete science and would deter new firms from moving into industrial centers where pollution is already near the proposed limits. As a concession, Clinton postponed implementation of the new rules to 2003 for the particulates and to 2008 for smog ozone. However, some congressional leaders from the industrial belt have pledged to fight the rules by rewriting the laws upon which they are based. |
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