Bills
would require reduction in toxic emissions
Austin, Texas
–Exposure to dangerous toxic pollution from industrial facilities threatens
communities in Texas
and across the country, according to a new report released today by Environment
Texas. A coalition of groups called on the Texas legislature and congress to take steps
to protect the public’s right to know and to reduce emissions.
The report, Toxic
Pollution and Health, uses information from the federal Toxic Release
Inventory (TRI) to analyze toxic pollution linked to serious health problems
such as cancer, birth defects or neurological damage. Due to a recent EPA
action restricting the public’s right-to-know, today’s report may provide one
of the last complete pictures of toxic pollution in Texas.
In 2004, Texas
ranked number one for total air and water releases of toxic pollution known to
cause cancer. The largest source of this
pollution is the BP Texas City Refinery in Texas City, which released more than 2,086,
948 pounds of carcinogens to the air and water.
“This report confirms that communities across Texas are routinely put
at risk by toxic pollution linked to serious health impacts,” said Liz Wilfong
of Environment Texas. “These toxic
pollutants are the worst of the worst and pose tangible threats to public
health that must be addressed.”
The federal Toxic Release Inventory is a public
right-to-know program that requires industrial facilities to publicly disclose
their toxic releases. In 2004, EPA
reported that the TRI has helped to reduce toxic pollution by 57% nationwide
since its inception in 1988. Despite this success, the EPA recently weakened
the program by authorizing industrial facilities to withhold previously
reported pollution information.
“To address the potential health threats from toxic
pollution, we need full information about what toxics are being released,
where, and in what amounts,” said Wilfong.
“Unfortunately, EPA’s attack on the public’s right-to-know means that Texas communities will
be left in the dark about toxic pollution.”
State Legislators have already begun to take steps to reduce
emissions in Texas.
Representative Hernandez has recently filed House
Bill 2363 which would require that the Texas Commission on Environmental
Quality (TCEQ) implement an Air Pollution Watch List, which would identify
areas of the state in which levels of known air contaminants may cause adverse
health effects. A public notice system and public meetings would then supply
the affected residents with information about air toxins in their area. "The
public has a right to know what is in the air they breathe” said Hernandez, “and TCEQ, as the state's regulator of clean air, has a duty to make
air quality data available to residents in a timely fashion."
Senator Ellis and Representative Hochberg have
filed a related bill, (HB 2475 and SB 1906), which would regulate toxic
hotspots under the Texas Clean Air Act. Such a bill would require that areas
which exceed Interim Ambient Toxic Air Standards
for priority toxic air contaminants be designated and publicized as hotspots,
and require TCEQ to enforce emissions reductions until the standards are met. "Nobody should have to live in an
environment where the air she breathes can increase her risk of getting cancer
or other illnesses. By focusing on the particular areas where pollutants
are concentrated, we can get the most benefit for the efforts that industry
makes," said Representative Hochberg.
At the federal level, Senators Lautenberg (D-NJ) and Boxer
(D-CA), recently challenged EPA’s rollbacks by introducing the Toxic
Right-to-Know Protection Act (H.R. 1055 and S. 595). This legislation, which has already been
cosponsored by Texas Representatives Sheila Jackson Lee and Gene Green, would
reverse the rollbacks to restore the lost data and ensure that communities have
full and complete access to toxic pollution information.
“We call on Congress to support the public’s right to know
and protect Texas’s
communities by cosponsoring this legislation.”
- 30 -
Environment Texas
is a statewide non-profit, non-partisan environmental advocacy organization.
