The Environmental Protection Agency has released upbeat
information about the quality of America's air: It has improved
dramatically during the last quarter-century.The Kansas City area has benefited, along with many other large
cities where air pollution is declining.But around the nation, the air could be even cleaner with certain
improvements on vehicle emission-control systems and in the electric
power industry.If those improvements are made, many more Americans
could breathe air that won't harm their health.The elderly and
children would reap the most benefits.The EPA's recent air-quality report should please
environmentalists as well as many companies that have tried to trim
their pollution-creating operations.Emissions of five of the six principal pollutants have declined
markedly since 1970.Only emissions of nitrogen oxides have gone up. That part of the
story is unfortunate because nitrogen oxides are a prime contributor
to smog.In addition, the EPA report said up to 107 million Americans
still live in counties where air pollution exceeds national
standards.Skeptics continue to question whether these standards are based
on reasonable science, or whether they are simply unattainable in
some of the largest cities.Keep in mind, however, that similar questions have been asked for
many years by too many business leaders.Many industry
representatives declared incorrectly in the 1970s that significantly
reducing pollution would carry prohibitive price tags.Automakers, coal-fired power plants and many U.S. industries
actually have made tremendous strides in slashing air pollutants,
often at minimal costs to their customers.More improvements should be ahead, especially if the EPA promotes
reasonable guidelines, based on good scientific work, that prod
companies to reduce harmful emissions in the years ahead.
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