NPCA statement on Administration Clean Air ruling

- "Despite a hot and hazy summer, no relief is in sight for our polluted national parks. While President Bush spent part of his summer visiting parks and public lands, his administration worked to release the largest assault on our clean air protections in record time. The changes signed today leave national parks behind by giving the oldest, dirtiest power plants and industries blanket protection from installing modern pollution controls--even though our national parks need these controls to reduce the hazy skies and unhealthy air that plagues them.

"Just over a week ago, the president spoke of our national parks as America's crown jewels and of the importance of conservation and 'wise stewardship.' But the administration's decision to abandon the original intent of the new source review program makes the goal of clean air for our national parks seem all the more distant. Last year, our nation's most visited national park, Great Smoky Mountains in North Carolina and Tennessee, ranked as America's most polluted. Coal-fired power plants from the Ohio and Tennessee valleys are responsible for much of the haze ruining scenic vistas, creating acid rain, and unhealthy air days affecting park visitors, staff, plants, and animals.

"We've already seen how parks and people suffer from the effects of pollution. Now is the time to strengthen, not weaken our park's clean air protections."