 The Providence Journal July 20, 2000 So much for clean air The U.S. House has blocked the Environmental Protection Agency from identifying about 300 regions -- and not just urban ones -- with dangerously high ozone levels. The aim is to prevent federal regulations from enforcing (gasp!) tough new clean-air rules. As Carmine DiBattista, chief of the Connecticut Bureau of Air Management, noted: "[The House move] conflicts with the government's fundamental obligation to provide its citizens with the information to make responsible health-protective choices." Oh well, haven't gasoline prices risen enough already to reduce emissions? All this comes as 117 million Americans continue to breathe unhealthy air, according to the Clean Air Network. Meanwhile, ceaselessly complaining about the cost of gasoline, but with few hints of curbing their purchases of gas-guzzling, environment-killing SUVs, citizens do not talk of long-term solutions. They do not discuss mass transit, improving fuel economy, or alternative energy sources. Little do people seem to realize that even when fuel prices eventually do go back down, in the long run they will continue to rise as oil becomes scarcer, and maybe even one fine day runs out. Marvel at our fearless leaders. Take such Midwestern governors as Frank O'Bannon, of Indiana, who has suspended the state's 5 percent gasoline sales tax for up to 60 days, forsaking $11 million in revenue for transportation-infrastructure improvements just when those improvements are needed most. Back to Rhode Island state page
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