According to the EPA, over 180 million Americans -43% of the population - live with unhealthy air.
The reason is due largely to the utility industry's aging fleet of coal-fired power plants that operate with virtually no pollution controls, making them a major cause of health and environmental damage.
These "grandfathered" power plants are exempt from the Clean Air Act, despite reasonably priced technologies that could dramatically reduce their pollution levels.
* Power plants emit more deadly soot (sulfur dioxide) than any other source, causing asthma attacks, respiratory disease, and premature death.
* Power plants are the single largest source of acid rain-forming pollution (sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides).
* Power plants are the second largest source of the pollution that triggers "ozone smog alert" days, asthma attacks, and lung disease (nitrogen oxides) - second only to the combined emissions of the 200 million vehicles in the US fleet today.
* Power plants emit more global warming pollution (carbon dioxide) than any other source.
* Power plants emit more toxic metals that harm pregnant women and children (mercury) than any other source.
The best plan to clean up these power plants for good has been introduced in the US Senate by Senators Jeffords, Collins, and Lieberman. It's called the Clean Power Act.
Companion legislation has been introduced in the House of Representatives as the Clean Smokestacks Act, by Representatives Boehlert and Waxman.
Power plants are the single largest stationary source of air pollution emissions in the U.S. While progress has been made in cleaning up our air since the Clean Air Act was enacted in 1970, there is substantial unfinished business. Dirty air is linked to rising rates of asthma in children, global warming,and alarmingly high levels of mercury in pregnant women.
Senator Jeffords' Clean Power Act requires electric power plants to reduce their emissions of nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide by more than 80 percent, mercury by more than 90 percent and carbon dioxide by 23 percent from today's levels, all by 2008. It provides a clearly better approach than the Administration's Clear Skies proposal.
Nationwide, power plants create or contribute to smog, soot, acid rain, mercury contamination and global warming. Senator Jeffords' bill provides a clear solution to this problem and I am proud to cosponsor this important bill.
The Clean Power Act of 2005 is to amend the Clean Air Act to reduce emissions from electric powerplants, and for other purposes.
Mr. JEFFORDS (for himself, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. LIEBERMAN, Ms. SNOWE, Mr. SCHUMER, Mr. BIDEN, Mrs. BOXER, Mrs. CLINTON, Mr. CORZINE, Mr. DODD, Mr. FEINGOLD, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. KERRY, Mr. LAUTENBERG, Mr. LEAHY, Mr. REED, and Mr. SARBANES) introduced the following bill.
Let's support these Senators in their efforts to save our planet!