Reviewing EPA ozone standards should be regular activity

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency boss Lisa Jackson this week announced plans to take a closer look at the science behind smog standards set by the Bush administration.

It’s nice to hear the EPA isn’t sitting idly while the smog rolls in, but it’s also a little unsettling to find out such standards aren’t constantly reviewed, tweaked and updated.

Jackson’s well publicized words only back up my point. She said: “Reconsidering these standards and ensuring acceptable levels of ground-level ozone could cut health care costs and make our cities healthier, safer places to live, work and play.”

But don’t throw away your asthma inhaler just yet. Even if the EPA finds the science behind the current standards is faulty, the agency doesn’t plan on making any changes for 11 months. Hopefully this means the EPA is really doing they’re homework. On top of that, states’ individual compliance plans aren’t due until December 2013.

According to Jackson, the EPA plans to review 1,700 scientific studies as well as the findings of the EPA’s independent Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee. This committee recommended higher standards.

Here’s the EPA’s explanation of why this is important: Ground-level ozone forms when emissions from industrial facilities, power plants, landfills and motor vehicles react in the presence of sunlight. Scientific studies have linked ozone exposure to respiratory health problems ranging from decreased lung function and aggravated asthma to increased emergency department visits, hospital admissions and even premature death. Seasonal ozone exposure has also been linked to adverse effects on sensitive vegetation, forests and ecosystems.

Obviously, it’s important to manage ozone levels, especially for the U.S.’s major cities. After the EPA announced this plan, news sources across the country found how many counties now have too much smog.

In Ohio, it’s 31 – including 12 in the Cleveland area alone, according to the Columbus Dispatch. Thestate.com in South Carolina said increased rules could push five metro areas out of compliance. Businesses in noncompliant areas have to spend big bucks trying to clean up their acts.