E.P.A. Asks for Stricter Rules for Pollutants Causing Smog

When will the Obama administration start taxing Chinese products because they are produced by industries that foul the atmosphere in China and eventually impact the atmosphere in Los Angeles?

E.P.A. Asks for Stricter Rules for Pollutants Causing Smog

By JOHN M. BRODER

Published: January 7, 2010

WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency proposed a stricter new standard for smog-causing pollutants on Thursday that, if adopted, will impose large costs on industry and local governments but will also bring substantial health benefits to millions of Americans.

The proposed standard would replace one set by the Bush administration in March 2008, which has been challenged in court by environmental advocates as too weak to adequately protect human health and the environment.

The Obama administration’s proposal sets a primary standard for ground-level ozone of no more than 0.06 to 0.07 parts per million, to be phased in over two decades. The new rule would replace the standard of 0.075 parts per million imposed by the Bush administration. The agency is also proposing a secondary standard that will vary with the seasons to protect plants and trees from repeated exposure.

May as well tax the real culprits.