[Environment Report]:Pollution Rule Eased for Older


This is the VOA Special English Environment Report.

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The administration of PresidentBush has eased an air pollution rule for about seventeen-thousandolder power stations and factories. Operators will have greaterfreedom to make changes without the need to add pollution controlequipment.

The administration eased a rule established in a law called theClean Air Act. Environmental groups say the new rule will damage theenvironment and threaten public health. They also accuse the Bushadministration of acting to please its political supporters in theenergy industry. The acting administrator of the EnvironmentalProtection Agency, Marianne Horinko, signed the new rule. She saysit will increase fairness and dependability. She says it will notaffect the protections of the Clean Air Act. President Bush'snominee to head the E-P-A, Utah Governor Mike Leavitt, awaitsconfirmation by the Senate.

Industry officials said the old rule was unclear about whenoperators had to add pollution controls while making changes. Thenew rule is based on the cost of repairs, replacements orimprovements to production equipment. This will be true even if thechanges increase pollution. But the pollution still has to remainwithin current limits.

Industry officials say operators will now be able to makeimprovements that had been too costly under the past requirements.The energy industry say such work will make power stations cleaner,and this will be good for the environment. Energy producers sayelectric service will also be less costly and more dependable. Lastmonth a huge power outage affected New York City and other parts ofthe eastern United States and Canada.

But the attorney general of New York State, Eliot Spitzer, callsthe new rule illegal. He says it means Americans will breathedirtier air and get more lung diseases. And he says it will increaseenvironmental damage. Mister Spitzer said he would fight the changein court.

The head of the American Lung Association, John Kirkwood, alsocondemned the new rule. He says huge amounts of scientific studyhave shown that air pollution causes health problems. He said E-P-Apolicy should be based on protecting public health, not improvingindustry profits.

This VOA Special English Environment Report was written by CatyWeaver.

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