Mercury Risk Overstated, (GOP controlled) House Panel Says

Where do they get "mercury levels in fish have remained constant or declined slightly since the 1970s"???

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/health/AP-Mercury-Pollution.html

Mercury Risk Overstated, (GOP controlled) House Panel Says
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: February 16, 2005



WASHINGTON (AP) -- Dangers of toxic mercury pollution in the environment have been overstated, the House Resources Committee says in a report issued in anticipation of new regulatory proposals from the Bush administration.

The report, written by aides to the committee's majority Republicans and being released Wednesday, also says no link between mercury from coal-burning power plants and levels of mercury in fish has been scientifically established.<snip>

Instead, EPA now favors an industry-backed alternative that would order a reduction in mercury pollution nationwide with individual plants permitted to meet their allowance by buying pollution rights from companies already in compliance.

``With a more restrictive, unnecessary regulation we could see a large portion of this country's coal supplies become useless,'' said Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., chairman of the resource panel's energy and resources subcommittee. ``A cap-and-trade approach will reduce mercury emissions while maintaining coal as a viable source of energy.''<snip>

There was a great mercury (Hg) problem in Florida seafood. Environmentalists and the food and restaurant industries teamed up to eliminate trash incinerators as a source of Hg (they closed them). That may be a reason for a cited decrease in Hg levels in fish.

This bush plan of 70% reduction still allows three times as much mercury as the Clinton EPA plan.

As a heavy metal that doesn't mix into the atmosphere and is deposited, the effects of Hg are more localized than other pollutants(i.e SO2). A cap & trade policy would allow for the development of "hotspots"; say a plant in NH emits Hg at levels far under the cap, it would then ba able to trade (sell) its 'excess' cap room to a plant in Detroit that could then far exceed the cap. Nice for the folks in NH but not so good for the fine citizens of Detroit. You can be sure that the low income, non-white communties are the ones that will feel the brunt of this policy.

For Hg regulations to be equitable and effective, there must be mandatory caps at each and every smokestack.