55

314. See, e.g., Barrows v. Jackson, 346 U.S. 249 (1953).

315. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. v. EPA,

512 F.2d 1351, 1358 (D.C. Cir. 1975).

316. National Resources Defense Council, Inc. v. EPA, 507 F.2d 905, 910 (1974). The court might have added, but did not, that the second branch of the APA test was also satisfied; for there can be no doubt that a principal purpose of the statute was to protect against injuries to the public health.

317. United States ex rel. Marcus v. Hess, 317 U.S. 537, 541 n.4 (1943). Whether such a provision would withstand serious analysis is another question. While the monetary stake should guarantee an adversary presentation if sufficiently substantial, I doubt that such an artificial interest should overcome the policy against unnecessary intervention in the affairs of other branches of the

319. E.g., Sierra Club v. Morton, 405 U.S. 727, 733 (1972).

320. E.g., Simon v. Eastern Ky. Welfare Rights Org., 96

Sup. Ct. 1917 (1976).

56

321. United States v. Students Challenging Regulatory

Agency Proceedings, 412 U.S. 669, 686 (1973).

322. Ibid.

323. Id. at 689 n. 14.

324. Sierra Club v. Morton, supra n. 319 at 739-40.

AMERICAN PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION 1015 Eighteenth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036 ● (202) 467-5000

GEORGE PICKETT, M.D., M.P.H., President

Edmund S. Muskie

Chairman

Subcommittee on Environmental

Pollution

Committee on Environment and

Public Works

4204 Dirksen Building Washington, D.C.

Dear Chairman Muskie:

The American Public Health Association wishes to submit its comments on the amendments to the Clean Air Act detailed in S.252. The attached comments delineate this Association's position on several issues. Briefly stated, APHA believes

that:

1.

2.

3.

Significant deterioration provisions should be extended
to other pollutants in addition to sulfur dioxide and
particulates.

Automotive emission standards must not be further
relaxed. The 1982 compliance deadline of 0.4gpm of NOx

should be restored.

Non-essential uses of aerosol products utilizing fluorocarbons should be banned as of a certain date.

4.

The training of air pollution control personnel should
be made mandatory.

5.

6.

The National Commission on Air Quality should have
adequate consumer and public health representation.

More emphasis should be placed on health effects research.
APHA wishes to comment on the interrelationship between
energy and air pollution. While it is clear that these two
problems are to some extent intertwined, it is not true, as
some suggest, that the energy situation provides a rationale

Edmund S. Muskie
Page 2

for abandoning our air quality goals.

Many, if not most, air pollution control strategies are associated with a saving of energy. Thess include limitations in the use, and increases in the efficiency, of energy-intensive devices such as the automobiles.

Thank you for your consideration of our comments on the
Clean Air Act amendments.

American Public Health Association

Comments on

S.252-Clean Air Act Amendments

Submitted February 15, 1977

Significant Deterioration

The concept of identifying and preserving clean air areas is one of the most critical issues in S.252. The maximum pollution increments for sulfur dioxide and particulates which can be added to existing levels of these pollutants in areas where levels are better than secondary air quality standards should insure protection of these "pristine" areas. Additionally, EPA should be required to set standards for pollutants in addition to sulfur dioxide and particulates which will prevent significant deterioration.

The requirement that pollution sources wishing to locate in these areas must apply "Best Available Control Technology" (BACT) must be supported. Federal new source performance standards should provide a guideline only for minimum levels of control. Any definition of BACT must be reviewed frequently in order to take into account new advances in control technology. Such an approach will allow for the greatest development of these areas with the least impact on air quality.

Automobile Emissions

The automotive emission standards sections of S.252 represent a considerable weakening of time tables and health-related standards which have already been relaxed by Congress and EPA. The American Public Health Association is opposed to any effort to relax these standards further.

Evidence is increasing that even short-term exposure to nitrogen oxides during peak rush-hour concentrations may endanger public health. The relaxation of the NOx standard, as proposed in S.252, could make it difficult to lower rush-hour exposure to NOx. Therefore, S.252 should be amended to restore the 1982 compliance deadline of 0.4 gpm of NOx•

Historically, automobile emission standards have resulted in full savings. In the 1975 EPA publication, "Clean Air and Your Car, the agency reports that 1975 models achieved 13.5% better fuel