"If you want this town to grow, it has got to stink". This quote is attributed to a mayor arguing against the 1970 Clean Air Act's national air air quality standards and mandated deadlines for meeting them. After 30+ years we know better. We can have economic growth and clean air. Since 1970, aggregate emissions of EPA's six "criteria" pollutants (sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, lead, carbon monoxide, ozone and particulate matter) have gone down 25%. In the same period U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) went up 161%.

Not only does environmental protection not decrease economic growth, we now have data showing that it may actually benefit the economy as well as the environment. EPA data show that 1 million tons of sulfur and nitrogen oxides cause an average of 1, 543 premature deaths, 770 cases of chronic bronchitis, 730 hospital visits and over 200,000 lost work days each year. Even for a town with Columbia's modest power plant emissions (896 tons of sulfur and nitrogen oxides per year), that translates into an average of 1 death (probably involving a hospital stay) and approximately 1,800 lost work days. The Office of Management and Budget estimates that the U.S. saves $7 in health care costs and in lost worker productivity for every $1 spent to take sulfur out of the air. When environmental costs like acid rain are factored in, the cost benefit ratio becomes $11 to $95 of benefit for every $1 spent on pollution control.

The 1990 Clean Air Act's New Source Review (NSR) regulations covered about 17,000 power plants, incinerators, steel and paper mills, and chemical factories that were excused from having to reduce pollution until they upgraded or modernized their plants. The criteria for upgrading was set at a 40 ton increase in emissions over a company's existing levels. Using the 1990 NSR standards, the EPA negotiated settlements with four companies in violation of the Clean Air Act that would have removed 4.8 million tons of pollutants from the air. In addition, these settlements would have set the stage for compliance by nine other companies releasing another 7 million tons of sulfur and nitrogen oxides into the air. Altogether this would have eliminated 18,000 premature deaths per year and millions to hundreds of millions of dollars in health care and environmental costs.

However, EPA regulations issued in November of this year set new standards for requiring emission reductions, standards that will automatically increase the amount of pollution a factory can release before having to upgrade its pollution control equipment. These include setting higher plant emission standards instead of using the 1990 NSR equipment emission standards; using the highest historical level of pollution as a baseline for the 40 ton increase; avoiding updates on pollution controls for any plant evaluated in the last 10 years; exempting secondary contaminants produced as a result of pollution controls implemented to reduce other emissions; allowing "routine" maintenance to equal 15 % of the total capital cost of a facility; and allowing replacement of any piece of equipment with a similar piece. EPA Director Whitman argues this will give the companies more flexibility to reduce pollution, but few companies are likely to take advantage of that flexibility in a regulatory environment that relaxes standards whenever the companies say they have become too burdensome.

Of course the four companies with whom the EPA had already negotiated settlements withdrew because under the new standards they are no longer in technical violation of the Clean Air Act - even though they are producing just as much air pollution as before. In terms of speeding up compliance with the Clean Air Act and reducing pollution, this strategy looks like a non-starter. So what is the EPA, as part of President Bush's executive branch, hoping to accomplish? The real beneficiaries appear to be the 17,000 plants that were going to have to internalize the health and environmental costs of their production processes by paying to reduce pollution. Now for every dollar they save on their bottom line, the American public will have to offer up $7 to $95 of life, health, and environmental quality subsidies. This doesn't look like it is going to do much for economic growth, but it sure will stink.

Read More About it ....
Clean Air Act and Amendments- http://www.usbr.gov/laws/cleanair.html
NY Attorney General's Office lawsuit over new regs - http://www.oag.state.ny.us/press/2002/nov/nov22b_02.html
Construction Industry View - http://www.construction.com/NewsCenter/Headlines/ENR/20020614a.asp

BioRegional Quiz: Winter may seem like a time when nothing much is happening out of doors, but many animals still have to find food to get themselves through the cold winter months. What are 10 species of animals that you might expect to see in winter time in a suburban neighborhood?

Job Opportunity: Wildlife Biologist - Missouri Department of Conservation - Greenfield Missouri. Under the direction of a Wildlife Management Biologist, plans, implements and supervises wildlife management programs on state-owned conservation areas, including upland, forest and wetland management areas, leased or licensed lands, and private lands in assigned counties; plans and supervises an agricultural crop program; establishes and native warm-season and cool-season grasses, food plots, green browse plots, lespedeza/clover plots and sunflowers; supervises salaried personnel and hourly employees; assists with inter-agency coordination to implement the conservation features of the Federal Farm Program; assists in providing technical advice and training to landowners on wildlife management practices through tours, workshops, farm visits and other extension type initiatives; prepares annual and long-term management plans; assists with district reports; prepares and coordinates budget and purchasing needs; represents the Department and Wildlife Division at fairs, exhibits and local public meetings; participates in Department promotional events, i.e., Prairie, Eagle and Duck Days; prepares articles for the Conservationist magazine, local newspaper and other publications; conducts radio or TV programs upon request; attends Department-sponsored seminars, workshops and safety meetings; and performs other duties as required. Qualifications: Graduation from an accredited college or university with a Bachelor's Degree in Wildlife Management or closely-related subjects and one (1) year of professional experience in wildlife work. A Master's Degree in the above area will substitute for the one (1) year of experience. Approval as Certified Wildlife Biologist by The Wildlife Society is desired. Complete job description at: http://www.conservation.state.mo.us/about/jobs/2002-117.htm

Special Events/Classes/Programs/
Talks CITIZENÕS RIDE: Ped Net Coalition - Sunday Dec 1, 2 pm at Flat Branch (unless temp drops below 45¡F)
WINTER HIKE: Sierra Club - Saturday Dec 7, 11 am Three Creeks Conservation Area, meet at the Missouri Department of ConservationÕs Research Center at College and Stadium. Call Tom Lata for details 442-5916
WINTER HIKE: Friends of Rock Bridge Memorial State Park - Saturday Dec 28, 3:30 pm http://rockbridge.missouri.org/events.html for location and meeting place
BIRDING AT EAGLE BLUFFS: Columbia Audubon Society - Saturday, January 5, 2002 10:00am. If weather permits, we will take short walks. Otherwise, from cars, checking for raptors and lingering waterfowl. Meet at the Katy Trail parking lot in McBaine. contact Jean Leonatti, 443-5123, jleonatti@cmaaa.net. for more info
WINTER HIKE: Missouri Native Plant Society - Jan 18 at Three Creeks State Forest - Meet at the North entrance of Three Creeks at 1:00 pm (Inclement weather date Jan 25)
SEEDLING ORDER FORMS AVAILABLE: Mid November through April, order seedlings of native trees through the Conservation Department. Information at http://www.conservation.state.mo.us/forest/nursery/seedling/
SHARE THE HARVEST: Missouri Department of Conservation sponsors a program to help hunters donate deer to local food banks. Have your deer processed at an approved facility, donate the processed meat to a local food bank and MDC helps with a $25 processing coupon. http://www.conservation.state.mo.us/hunt/deer/share/

MU Organization Meetings and Contact Informat
ion ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS COUNCIL 882-7116; Friday Dec 4, 1 pm 218 Schweitzer
ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES EXEC COM 882-7116; Friday Dec 14, 9 am 207 Lowry Hall
RECYCLING COMMITTEE 882-3091; 125 General Services Building
STUDENT SIERRA CLUB 882-7116; Thursdays 6 pm 316 General Class Room Building

Organization Meetings and Contact Informat
ion AUDUBON SOCIETY; 874-3904 / columbia-audubon.missouri.org Meet 3rd Wed 7:30 pm, USGS, 4200 New Haven
BONNE FEMME WATERSHED PARTNERSHIP; 874-1637 or email phoeniwolf@yahoo.com
CENTER FOR SUSTAINABLE LIVING; 875-0539 or http://peaceworks.missouri.org/
CHOUTEAU GROTTO; http://chouteau.missouri.org/, Meet 1st Wed, 7 pm, Community Room of the Boone Electric Coop
COLUMBIA FOOD CIRCLE; 882-7463 or email hendricksonm@missouri.edu for information.
COLUMBIA PUBLIC WORKS VOLUNTEER PROGRAMS; 874-6271 or http://www.ci.columbia.mo.us/dept/pubw/
FRIENDS OF ROCK BRIDGE STATE PARK; 474-7429 or http://rockbridge.missouri.org/ Meet 4th Tuesdays, 7 pm
GREENBELT COALITION; 442-4789 or http://greenbelt.missouri.org Meet 1st Tuesdays, 7 pm, Outdoors Bldg, 200 Old 63 S.
MISSOURI HEARTWOOD; 443-6832 or http://www.heartwood.org/MO/ Meet Tuesdays, 7:30 pm -1027 E. Walnut.
MISSOURI NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY; npshawth@hotmail.com Meet every other second Monday (Jan, Mar, May, July, Sept, Nov) at 7:00 p.m., and are usually held at Missouri Dept. of Conservation's Fish and Wildlife Research Center, 1110 S. College Ave., Columbia, MO.
MISSOURI RIVER COMMUNITIES NETWORK; 443-0292 or http://mrcn.missouri.org/
PEDNET COALITION; email: pednet@pednet.org or http://www.pednet.org
ROCK BRIDGE MEMORIAL STATE PARK; 449-7402 or http://rockbridge.missouri.org
SHOW ME CLEAN STREAMS COALITION; (573) 751-4115 ext 3169 or www.mostreamteam.org
SIERRA CLUB; 443-4401 or http://sierra.osage.missouri.org Meet 3rd Tuesdays 7:30 pm Hillel Foundation, 1107 University Ave
SMART GROWTH COALITION; tomvmoran@yahoo.com Meet 1st Wednesdays, 7:15 pm, Boone County Government Bldg.
WILD ONES; 499-3749 or email wildonesmo@yahoo.com, http://wildones.missouri.org Meetings 2nd Saturdays. Call for location

Answer to BioRegional Quiz:
Animals you might see in a suburban setting over the winter include: Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Blue Jay, Black-capped Chickadee, Starling, Cardinal, Dark-eyed Junco, Purple Finch, House Finch, House Sparrow, White-tailed deer, Eastern Fox Squirrel, Easter Gray Squirrel, Raccoon, Opossum, Mourning Cloak Butterfly, Comma Butterfly. For more information on birds-http://www.conservation. state.mo.us/nathis/birds/emobirds/seasonal.htm; mammals - http://www.conservation.state.mo.us/nathis/mammals/ lifehist/index.htm or butterflies -http://www.conservation.state.mo.us/nathis/insects/butterf/