The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was yesterday (24th February) ordered to review its limits on particulate air pollution, Dow Jones reports.

Under the terms of the federal Clean Air Act, the EPA must look at air-quality standards regularly using the latest scientific data, but it has failed to do so since 2006, when it decided to keep them the same.

However, the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has ruled that the agency did not provide satisfactory reasoning for leaving the standards unchanged, backing up protests from states and environmental groups.

The three-judge panel was quoted by the newswire as saying: "The EPA failed adequately to explain why, in view of the risks posed by short-term exposures and the evidence of morbidity resulting from long-term exposures, its annual standard is sufficient 'to protect the public health (with) an adequate margin of safety.'"

The EPA will now be required to amend its annual assessment of particulate pollution, which comes from coal-fired power plants, industrial facilities and diesel engines.



Source:

US Court Orders EPA To Review Limits On Particulate Pollution (24/02/09)
http://news.morningstar.com/newsnet/ViewNews.aspx?article=/DJ/200902241400DOWJONESDJONLINE000568_univ.xml