December 29, 1998
Ned Crabb
Editor
Wall Street Journal
200 Liberty Street
New York, NY 10281John Fialka's article "EPA Probers Find Big Flaws in Major Clean-Air Effort" (Dec. 28) is based on a questionable premise -- "According to EPA, billions of pounds of air pollutants moving with the nation's weather patterns, cause as many as 3,000 cancer deaths in the U.S. each year...".
This estimate is from a 1990 EPA report which states "[This] estimate, however, does not necessarily give a realistic prediction of the risk. The true value of the risk is unknown, and may be as low as zero."
What is known is EPA science is famously suspect. According to a 1992 audit of EPA by an independent blue-ribbon panel of scientists, the agency "adjusts" science to fit policy. Here, the estimate is based on speculative, worst-case scenario assumptions that predetermine the existence of risk -- not science.
Fialka should know that the newsworthy "big flaws" are likely to be found in the EPA science underpinning its multibillion dollar clean-air efforts. Bureaucratic bungling is standard fare.
Steven J. Milloy
Publisher, Junk Science Home Page
Comments on this posting?
Click here to post a public comment on the Trash Talk Bulletin Board.
Click here to send a private comment to the Junkman.
Copyright © 1998 Steven J. Milloy. All rights reserved on original material. Material copyrighted by others is used either with permission or under a claim of "fair use." Site developed and hosted by WestLake Solutions, Inc.
Material presented on this home page constitutes opinion of Steven J. Milloy.