Obama administration looks to curb air pollution around industrial factories

The Obama administration is looking to curb air pollution around industrial factories by implementing stricter soot standards.

Companies operating in the heavy industry will be subjected to stricter soot standards and more air quality controls under the Obama administration, who have looked to draw fire from the Republicans in the run up to the election.

New plans to tighten standards governing particulate matter or soot will be implanted under the proposal, which was released recently by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The proposal was in response to legal action from 11 states that forced the watchdog to reach a decision on tightening air quality standards.

Under the new law, the acceptable limit for fine particle soot would be cut from 15 micrograms per cubic metre to between 12 and 13 micrograms per cubic metre. Implementing the legislation is expected to cost between $2.9 million (£1.8 million) and to $69 million (£44 million) a year to comply with, while delivering reductions in healthcare bills worth between $88 million (£56 million) and $5.9 billion (£3.8 billion) a year.

The EPA said it plans to finalise the rules by mid-December following a public comment period, adding that any costs of compliance will be far outweighed by related healthcare savings.

In a statement they said: "Ninety-nine per cent of US counties are projected to meet the proposed standards without undertaking any further actions to reduce emissions."

Industry groups were quick to oppose the new rulings, and Republican lawmakers have also criticised the move saying that the new standards would impose unacceptable costs on businesses. The Republican party have long being opposed to the powers of EBA, and have looked to strip the EPA of its ability to tighten environmental protection rules in the past.

With the policy running through to December, it is likely to become a focal point of the US election, which will take place on November 6th.

Posted by Joseph Hutton