ར COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND COMMERCE JOHN D. DINGELL, Michigan, Chairman JAMES H. SCHEUER, New York EDWARD J. MARKEY, Massachusetts DOUG WALGREN, Pennsylvania AL SWIFT, Washington W.J. “BILLY” TAUZIN, Louisiana THOMAS J. MANTON, New York NORMAN F. LENT, New York WILLIAM E. DANNEMEYER, California BOB WHITTAKER, Kansas THOMAS J. TAUKE, Iowa DON RITTER, Pennsylvania THOMAS J. BLILEY, JR., Virginia JACK FIELDS, Texas MICHAEL G. OXLEY, Ohio SONNY CALLAHAN, Alabama F2" WM. MICHAEL KITZMILLER, Staff Director MARGARET A. DURBIN, Minority Chief Counsel/Staff Director RAI (BRA SUBCOMMITTEE on Health and the EnvironMENT Testimony of: Abraham, Rick, Texas director, National Toxics Campaign, Texans 461 Abrams, Robert, attorney general, State of New York. 119 Bergstrom, Robert B., Jr., counsel, Iowa Southern Utilities Co. 356 Crowley, Eileen, T., president, Greater Houston Chamber of Commerce 428 211 Doniger, David D., senior attorney, Natural Resources Defense Council, on behalf of National Clean Air Coalition..... 288 Elder, Jane, Midwest representative, Sierra Club. 358 Finkel, Adam M., research fellow, Center for Risk Management, Resources for the Future.. 279 Forney, Robert C., member, Board of Directors, Chemical Manufacturers 153 Fox, Carter V., on behalf of the American Furniture Manufacturers' 353 Holden, Melvin "Kip", Louisiana State Representative. 121 428 Maillet, Bruce K., on behalf of State and Territorial Pollution Program 123 318 Pfenning, H.W., Houston Regional Monitoring Corp....... 438 Poje, Gerald V., Environmental Quality Division, National Wildlife Federation, on behalf of National Clean Air Coalition 223 Reilly, Hon. William K., Administrator, Environmental Protection 564 Rosenberg, Ernest S., chairman, Hazardous Air Pollutants Work Group, 448 Rosenberg, William G., Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation, 564 Swain, Wayland R., vice president, Eco Logic, Inc. 398 Yosie, Terry F., vice president of Health and Environment, American 253 Material submitted for the record by: Chemical Manufacturers Association, letter dated August 2, 1989 from Timothy Burns to Chairman Waxman re further comments on questions at hearing...... 345 Environmental Policy Institute, Friends of the Earth, and Ocean Society, statement 480 Material submitted for the record by-Continued Correspondence by the subcommittee with Environmental Protection Letter dated November 30, 1989 from John Dingell to William Reilly re letter of John Bryant to extend the study period on H.R. 3030. Letter dated December 21, 1989 from John Dingell to Hon. Matthew Rinaldo re outline of a draft proposal for discussion purposes... Levine, Hon. Mel, a Representative in Congress from the State of California, statement Motor Vehicle Manufacturers Association, letter dated July 10, 1989 from Thomas Hanna to Chairman Waxman re comments on H.R. 4 and H.R. 2585. New York State, Department of Law, letter dated July 7, 1989 from Attorney General Abrams to Chairman Waxman re comments on H.R. 4 and H.R. 2585... United Steelworkers of America, statement. Page 662 621 876 477 496 145 533 CLEAN AIR ACT AMENDMENTS Toxic Air Pollutants THURSDAY, JUNE 22, 1989 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND COMMERCE, SUBCOMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT, Washington, DC. The subcommittee met pursuant to notice at 11:20 a.m. in room 2123, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Henry A. Waxman (chairman) presiding. Mr. WAXMAN. The meeting of the subcommittee will come to order. I am pleased this morning to begin our hearing on a very important aspect of the debate over the Reauthorization of America's Clean Air Act, toxic air pollutants. Today's hearing will focus on legislative proposals to control air toxics. We are fortunate to have before us two proposals for reducing toxic air pollutants: H.R. 4, introduced by Congressman Dingell, and H.R. 2585, introduced by Congressmen Leland and Molinari. In addition, we had asked EPA to join us this morning to discuss the administration proposal; however, our invitation was declined. The failure to control hazardous air pollutants is a very real and very serious public health threat. The EPA Toxic Release Inventory data, which the subcommittee released last March, indicates that some 2.7 billion pounds of toxic air contaminants are released into America's air each year. While it is very difficult to definitively demonstrate the health effects of such high emission levels, there are numerous indications that they are grave, and surprisingly widespread. In preliminary data, EPA has associated more than 200 industrial facilities in 37 States with cancer risks of greater than 1 in 1,000. Numerous facilities were associated with a 1 in 100 cancer risk, and one with an incredible 1 in 10 risk. Other studies have reaffirmed the health risk from such facilities, finding cancer rates far above the national average in areas near chemical production facilities. Serious public health risks are also associated with smaller air toxic sources, especially in the Nation's urban areas. The Agency has found that cancer risks from air toxics. Some urban areas have risks as high as 1 in 1,000. Such high risks are the result of not just major industry, but also of areas sources, such as cooling towers on (1) apartment buildings, degreasers and motor vehicles, especially those with diesel engines. Another important aspect of the air toxics problem is the accidental release of toxic air pollutants which, according to EPA records, occurs with disturbing frequency. The Agency reports that more than 4,700 accidental releases to the air-more than 2 a day-occurred between 1980 and 1987. The worst 120 releases killed 145 people, injured over 5,000 and caused nearly a quarter of a million people to evacuate their homes. Fortunately, we have not yet had an accident nearly so serious as the one in Bhopal, India, in December 1984, when the rupture of a storage tank unleashed thousands of pounds of deadly methyl isocyanate gas. More than 3,000 helpless citizens died as a result, and more than 200,000 were injured. Even today, EPA has yet to regulate this deadly gas. Nevertheless, a recent EPA study concluded that since 1980, 17 different chemical accidents in the United States had the potential to produce toxic effect more serious than those in Bhopal. According to EPA, were it not simply for good luck-accidents occurring at remote locations, the wind blowing the right direction-any one of those 17 accidents could have produced results more deadly than those in Bhopal. Toxic emissions are also contaminating fish in the Great Lakes and poisoning the people who eat them. I think it important that we enact legislation that we can be sure will deal with the full array of toxic air pollution problems. For this reason I strongly support H.R. 2585, the Leland-Molinari bill. This legislation offers a fair and effective program to control both routine and accidental releases of dangerous chemicals from major industrial sources, and includes programs for the control of air toxics from motor vehicles and area sources. H.R. 2585 also offers a vitally important program to stop the toxic assault on our Great Lakes. Congressmen Leland and Molinari deserve tremendous credit for their leadership in assembling this excellent bill. I also want to commend Congressman Dingell for recognizing the importance of this problem and introducing legislation to provide for better control of air toxics. I support many of the programs in H.R. 4. Unfortunately, I am concerned that H.R. 4 allows EPA too much discretion to continue to do nothing about many air toxic source, and does not provide adequate assurance that public health will be protected, especially from accidental releases. Even so, our differences in this area are relatively limited, and I hope that we can work together to develop a bill that will provide public health protection from all toxic emissions. I look forward to hearing more about H.R. 4 and H.R. 2585 from our witnesses in today's testimony. We are fortunate to have with us this morning an excellent group of witnesses including State and local officials, union leaders, environmental organizations and industry spokesman. Thank you all for joining us today. [Testimony resumes on p. 99.] [The text of H.R. 4 and H.R. 2585 follow:] |