alt.politics.gw-bush

A neurotoxin linked to learning disabilities, mercury is most
dangerous to fetuses, infants and small children, usually when
pregnant women or children eat mercury contaminated fish.

The National Academy of Sciences estimates that 60,000 newborns a year
could be at risk of learning disabilities because of mercury their
mothers absorbed during pregnancy.

"There was an extraordinary degree of aggressiveness by EPA in
pressing states to abandon a more protective mercury program. EPA
devoted enormous effort to preventing states from doing more," said
Vickie Patton, a lawyer for Environmental Defense.

The group obtained the documents through a Freedom of Information Act
filing.

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Officials involved in developing state restrictions on mercury
pollution said the pressure from Washington was considerable.

The EPA made it clear it was prepared to reject state plans that
limited emissions trading and administer the program from Washington
if the states did not back off.

"The administration circled the wagons in fighting the states," said
William Becker, executive director of the National Association of
Clean Air Agencies, which represents state and county air policy
officials.


From The Associated Press, 2/16/08:
/news/politics/wire/sns-ap-epa-mercury,0,

Feds Nip State Efforts to Slash Mercury

By H. JOSEF HEBERT | Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON -

While arguing in court that states are free to enact tougher mercury
controls from power plants, the Bush administration pressured dozens
of states to accept a scheme that would let some plants evade cleaning
up their pollution, government documents show.

A week ago, a federal appeals court struck down that industry-friendly
approach for mercury reduction.

It allowed plants with excessive smokestack emissions to buy pollution
rights from other plants that foul the air less.

Internal Environmental Protection Agency documents and e-mails,
obtained by the advocacy group Environmental Defense, show attempts
over the past two years to blunt state efforts to make their plants
drastically reduce mercury pollution instead of trading for credits
that would let them continue it.

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"There's so much pollution in the air now that if it weren't for our
lungs there'd be no place to put it all."

Robert Orben

Harry