skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, December 8, 2023

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Some South Dakota farmers are unhappy with industrial ag getting conservation funds; Texas judge allows abortion in Cox case; Native tribes express concern over Nevada's clean energy projects.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The Colorado Supreme Court weighs barring Trump from office, Georgia Republicans may be defying a federal judge with a Congressional map splitting a Black majority district and fake electors in Wisconsin finally agree Biden won there in 2020.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Texas welcomes more visitors near Big Bend but locals worry the water won't last, those dependent on Colorado's Dolores River fear the same but have found common ground solutions, and a new film highlights historical healthcare challenges in rural Appalachia.

Poll: The EPA, Not Congress Should Determine Air Pollution Standards

play audio
Play

Friday, October 21, 2011   

ST. PAUL, Minn. - A new poll suggests Congress should butt out when it comes to air pollution standards in America. J. Drake Hamilton, science policy director with Fresh Energy, says the survey found that 75 percent of voters believe the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) should be in charge, as it has been for decades.

"For 40 years in the U.S., we've been implementing better standards that keep lead out of our air and out of our kids, that stop acid rain – and now, that are going to regulate the dirtiest of the coal-fired power plants, which is one of our top sources of pollution in Minnesota."

She says public health protections are currently under attack by some in Congress who want to delay requirements that coal plants get updated pollution control equipment. The poll found that clean air is not a partisan issue.

"Eighty-eight percent of Democrats, 85-percent of Independents and 58-percent of Republicans oppose Congress stopping the EPA from setting new limits to control air pollution from coal plants."

Some of Minnesota's coal plants were built at least a half-century ago, and Drake Hamilton says they are sending mercury, carbon dioxide, ozone and particulate pollution into the air and water. That has health impacts in the state, where 240,000 suffer from asthma. One-fourth of them are children, she adds.

"And the pollutants from these coal-fired power plants are triggering more asthma attacks, hospital visits, and then for people with respiratory disease, in some cases, premature death. We think this is unacceptable and it turns out that the voters overwhelmingly support stronger health-based rules."

She notes the Clean Air Act was last updated 21 years ago. At that time, every member of Minnesota's Congressional Delegation supported the legislation.

Information about the poll is on the Fresh Energy website, fresh-energy.org. It was conducted on behalf of Ceres, a nonprofit environmental group.



get more stories like this via email

more stories
More than 2,000 patients with intellectual or developmental disabilities have received dental care in group home day center settings across North Carolina, according to Access Dental. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Most people probably never give a second thought to their visits to the dentist, but not everyone can navigate this process with ease. People with …


Social Issues

play sound

Christmas is a little more than two weeks away, and toy drives around the country are in full swing. A North Dakota organizer shares some things to …

Social Issues

play sound

A federal judge in Nevada has dealt three tribal nations a legal setback in their efforts to stop what could be the construction of the country's larg…


A new KFF analysis of government data estimates nearly 1 in 10 adults - 9%, or roughly 23 million people - owe medical debt. This includes 11 million who owe more than $2,000 and 3 million people who owe more than $10,000. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Reports from the Insurance Commissioner's office and the state Attorney General reveal an analysis of what they call "the true costs of health care" i…

Health and Wellness

play sound

The holiday season is filled with recipes passed down from years before, and feasting with family and friends. But think again before you have …

In 2008, Connecticut passed the Global Warming Solutions Act, which established its climate goals. This means getting greenhouse-gas emissions 10% below 1990 levels by 2020, and 80% below 2001 levels by 2050. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Connecticut lawmakers are reluctant to approve new emission standards that would require 90% cleaner emissions from internal-combustion engines and re…

Social Issues

play sound

Another controversial move in Florida's education system is a proposal to drop sociology, the study of social life and the causes and consequences of …

Social Issues

play sound

There are at least three victims after a shooting incident that happened at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas campus on Wednesday. By afternoon…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021