By Alison Hawkes
HARRISBURG - Despite strong protests from state lawmakers and industry
groups, the state's environmental protection agency is moving forward
with final regulatory approval on two controversial measures to curb
automobile pollutants and mercury emissions from power plants.
Environmentalists
say the new regulations would be among their most important victories
in recent years. And if the regulations get final clearance, they
expect Pennsylvania could start tipping the scales nationwide in favor
of environmental issues.
"We're getting a lot of attention nationally for both of these
proposals," said Nathan Willcox, a spokesman for PennEnvironment.
"Pennsylvania has a large population. Politically other states look to
Pennsylvania as a bellwether state on environmental issues. It's not
like Massachusetts or California passing something because environmental
regulations come about much more slowly in Pennsylvania."
The proposed regulations would buck the federal government's standards
in favor of stricter state emissions controls. On mercury, the state
Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has designed a state plan
that's supposed to achieve faster and more substantial reductions in
levels of the developmental neurotoxin than the federal plan.
It also wouldn't allow the federal plan's market-based trade of mercury
emissions credits out of concern that Pennsylvania, with its sizable
power industry, would be a net importer of those credits bringing about
areas of concentrated mercury "hot spots."
On auto emissions, the DEP is seeking a two-year extension to
implementing California's smog-reduction standards. But many see the
move as the DEP's affirmation in favor of California over the federal
government's higher allowable levels, a move the DEP believes will allow
it to better conform to Clear Air Act requirements.
"We have federal air quality requirements we have to meet and the
federal (emissions) standard isn't strict enough to help us get there," said DEP spokesman Kurt Knaus.
Both regulations still must clear a lengthy regulatory process in the
next two months, involving approval from the 20-member Environmental
Quality Board and review from the five-member Independent Regulatory
Review Commission. Both of them are composed, in part, of legislative
appointments.
There's a potential either measure might be still derailed along the
way. For some lawmakers, that would be a blessing.
Backed by industry groups and the United Mine Workers of America, Senate
members of the Environmental Resources and Energy Committee have been
mounting formidable offenses to the measures. On the car emissions, they
say they fear Pennsylvania would be abdicating its authority to the
California Air Resources Board, which sets emissions standards for
California and nine other participating states.
On mercury, opponents have questioned the extent to which mercury
emissions are a public health issue and the costliness to Pennsylvania
power companies, and thus consumers, in meeting the standards.
They have harangued DEP Secretary Kathy McGinty at hearings this spring,
wading through fairly technical and scientific issues on how mercury
from coal-fired power plants disperses.
Upset at their lack of traction with the DEP, opposing senators pushed
bills through their chamber that would revert to the federal standards;
both have been bottled up in House committees.
With the legislative approach stalled, opposing senators led by
committee Chairwoman Mary Jo White, a Venango County Republican, are now
looking into ways to use the regulatory process to their favor.
According to Patrick Henderson, executive director of the Senate
environmental committee, opposing senators are considering filing
legislative resolutions against the measures. The only apparent way
those resolutions would survive a gubernatorial veto is with a
subsequent legislative override.
A legislative override of a regulation has rarely, if ever, happened,
according to several sources.
"It makes it unlikely for that to occur but it's a possibility," said
Henderson. "At a minimum we can delay finalization of the regulation."
Besides differences of opinion with the DEP, senators have been
particularly perturbed that they've been shut out of drafting major
environmental policy.
"My boss (White) has been insistent that especially on mercury these
underlying policy decisions should be made by elected officials and not
by a bureaucratic agency," said Henderson. "The thing with legislation
is you can find a middle ground and put it in there."
But Rep. William Adolph, a Delaware County Republican who chairs the
House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee, said the DEP has
been taking his feedback on the mercury standards.
"We have been working, negotiating, offering ideas, different versions
than what's been introduced and we'll see what happens," Adolph said.
He said he doesn't plan on letting the Senate's mercury bill out of his
committee.
The DEP, too, says it's received quite a bit of public support on both
measures. It received the highest number of public comments ever on its
mercury proposal, nearly 11,000 comments. All but three dozen were
supportive. Its second highest response ever was for the car emissions
standard at 4,800 comments. Fewer than two dozen were opposed, according
to DEP spokesman Kurt Knaus.
Still, Knaus said he doesn't believe the agency is in the clear on these
regulations yet. The Clean Vehicles program goes before the Independent
Regulatory Review Commission Nov 2. The Environmental Quality Board must
approve the new mercury standards on Oct. 17 and in time for a Nov. 17
federal deadline to submit a state-specific plan. If the DEP fails to
meet that deadline, Pennsylvania must default to the federal standard.
"We are fast approaching the Nov. 17 deadline," said Knaus. "If we don't
meet that none of the other things matter."
Charles Territo, spokesman for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers,
said he's not throwing in the towel yet on derailing the DEP's car
emissions plan. That plan requires car manufacturers to sell different
vehicles to the Pennsylvania market with changes to their catalytic
converters.
Territo said the changes aren't supposed to cost consumers more, but
requires manufacturers to produce two different cars for the U.S.
market: ones that meet federal standards and those meeting the
California standards.
"It's a very important issue for the auto industry," he said.
