The Albuquerque Journal has a solid editorial today on the EPA’s impending decision on tightening the standard for ozone. Writing for CNBC earlier this year, Sens. Jim Inhofe (R-OK) and John Thune (R-SD) averred that the regulatory ratcheting “could be the most expensive regulation in history and place undue burden on counties still working to comply with existing obligations, as well as impose costly regulations on new communities.” The Journal notes that “the state’s high elevation, where increased interaction of sunlight, heat and pollutants create excellent conditions for producing smog,” is sure to push many New Mexico counties into noncompliance.
The National Association of Manufacturers predicts that the tighter standard will hammer New Mexico’s gross state product, kill jobs, and cause a big drop in average annual household consumption. The benefits? Not much. In June, the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the U.S. House of Representatives pointed out that the EPA’s own data show that “ozone concentrations have declined over 30 percent since 1980 and will continue to do so under the 2008 standard.”
Has anyone fact-checked the EPA’s perennial claim that draconian energy restrictions will save thousands of lives from asthma? A quick web search suggests the biggest factors in asthma incidence are genetics and allergies. Air pollution, other than secondhand smoke, gets scant mention on the asthma information sites. And if ozone is a factor in asthma, why has asthma incidence gone up slightly while ozone concentrations are going down?
Nullify the EPA!