FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
September 30, 2004

CONTACT:
Eric Antebi 415-977-5747


MEDIA ALERT: Inspector General Report on New Source Review

The Inspector General for the Environmental Protection Agency today issued
a scathing report on the Bush administration's implementation and
enforcement of New Source Review, a provision of the Clean Air Act that
requires America's oldest and dirtiest power plants, refineries, and
factories to install modern pollution-saving technology when they expand in
ways that increase soot and smog.  The Inspector General concluded that the
Bush administration had no basis for weakening New Source Review, that its
changes to the program have severely hampered enforcement efforts against
existing polluters, and that the rule change would have an even more
disastrous impact over time.  Said Nat Mund, Sierra Club Air Quality
Expert, "This report confirms that the Bush administration recklessly put
polluters before the public when it rewrote the rules for America's oldest
and dirtiest power plants.  America's families deserve much better."

To access the full report, visit:

http://www.epa.gov/oigearth/reports/2004/20040930-2004-P-00034.pdf

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