EPA cites nearly 500 counties for bad air
The Washington, D.C.-based Environmental Protection Agency has cited 474 counties in 31 states for “having too much smog-causing pollution in violation the federal clean air law,” according to The Associated Press (AP). The cited counties are concentrated in California and the eastern United States, the AP says. The agency has told “state and local officials to develop new pollution controls to reduce ground-level ozone, a precursor to smog,” the AP reports. “Some 159 million people, more than half the U.S. population, live in areas singled out by the government for contributing to unhealthy air.” The deadlines to reach compliance depend on the severity of the pollution. For more information, visit http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=513&ncid=718&e=4&u=/ap/20040416/ap_on_go_ot/epa_smog.