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CLEAN AIR PLANS IN FIVE MAJOR METRO AREAS TO BENEFIT CHILDREN
Release Date: 10/19/2001
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Environmental News
FOR RELEASE: FRIDAY, OCT. 19, 2001
CLEAN AIR PLANS IN FIVE MAJOR METRO AREAS TO BENEFIT CHILDREN
CLEAN AIR PLANS IN FIVE MAJOR METRO AREAS TO BENEFIT CHILDREN
Martha Casey 202-564-7842 / casey.martha@epa.gov
Residents of five major metropolitan areas--Houston, Milwaukee, Chicago, Baltimore and Philadelphia--will be able to breathe cleaner air because of smog-reduction plans that were approved recently by the Environmental Protection Agency. Working in close partnership with the states, EPA has approved plans that include a number of innovative programs and strategies to reduce ground-level ozone, the primary constituent of smog.
Smog aggravates many respiratory conditions, including asthma. It also affects healthy children and healthy adults involved in outdoor activities.
October is Children’s Health Month, and improving air quality in urban areas will reduce respiratory problems such as asthma for everyone, especially children. Asthma affects more than 15 million Americans, including almost five million children. According to data released this month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, young children (ages four and under) have the highest rate of hospitalization for asthma.
“These plans are proof of how federal, state and local governments can work together to solve problems,” said EPA Administrator Christie Whitman. “Each has done its share, cutting air pollution and improving public health for asthmatics, children and other sensitive individuals. I am particularly proud of the market-based programs and other strategies in these plans that will help bring cleaner air to these cities in low-cost, innovative ways.”
State Implementation Plans, or SIPs, are a cornerstone of efforts to improve air quality across the nation. SIPs outline the measures that states and local governments will take to reduce air pollution. EPA provides technical assistance to states and local air districts. The plans approved this week are the culmination of years of technical work to determine what emission reductions will be needed to meet the national one-hour ozone standard The plans include the detailed modeling efforts to show the level of reductions needed and the adopted programs and commitments to achieve the needed emission reductions.
Innovative and voluntary measures are playing a growing role in improving air quality in these major cities. For example, these plans include incentives for diesel equipment operators to install cleaner equipment, new energy efficiency standards, voluntary mobile emissions programs, and cap and trade programs that allow industries to find the most cost-effective way to achieve the required reductions by trading allowances between sources.
EPA has extended the deadline for approving the New York City SIP in light of the tragic events of Sept. 11. Our goal is to approve that plan by the end of the year.
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