ENVIRONMENTAL
NEWS
S UMMA R Y APril 19»1974
Office of Public Affairs U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Washington. D.C. 20460
AIR POLLUTION MAY CAUSE LUNG CANCER
Herman Meek, assoc, dir., USC Cancer Surveillance Program, reports study to
American Cancer Society science writers' seminar showing that lung cancer rate among
men living in south-central Los Angeles County, a heavily polluted industrial region,
ranges from 70-75 per 100,000 population, compared to 43 per 100,000 rates in other
areas(Detroit Free Press, 3/28/74). Meek says lung cancer cases reported from said
area in '68, '69, '70, '72, number 380 more than would be expected from population that
size. Strong evidence rules out smoking as main cause of excess cases. Probably first
U.S. study providing "firm foundation" for pollution-lung cancer link; similar findings
reported from Japanese, English research.
IN OTHER AIR DEVELOPMENTS. More reaction to Clean Air Act amendments; Train
and EPA support bulk of plan, says Wash. Star-News(4/8/74), "which, taken as a whole, is
far from being a pattern for atmospheric disaster. Some of its major provisions are, in
fact, essential to any rational balancing of environment against energy. Most notably
..proposals to extend...transportation control deadlines...and to freeze next year s
auto emission standards for two additional years...But Train is right in his insistence
that power producers be required to install 'scrubber1 depollution equipment...Train is
on shakier ground, though, in resisting even minor degradation of air standards in re-
mote regions...some leeway is needed...for development of far-flung facilities to pro-
duce cleaner sources of fuel...As to the whole package, a careful weighing-of specifics
is essential on Congress1 part, so that no unnecessary environmental costs will be paid
...Train has won some major fights within the administration in recent weeks against
plans that could have been drasticllly detrimental to the environment. The ones finally
presented are mostly defensible, and the degree of independence Train has claimed...is
heartening indeed." Many environmentalists wondered about Train's backbone when
appointed to EPA, says Newsdav(3/29/74), but "recent events indicate they need not have
worried about the state of Train's spine...[He] emerged unbowed last week" when the
Administration introduced amendments which "were considerably milder than had been
feared," and Sen. Muskie(D-Me.) "gave full credit to Train for that. ...Train's neck and
his job are still intact and—more important—so are key provisions of the Clean Air Act
—probably the most enlightened legislation ever enacted. [EPA] is obviously in good
hands." "WHILE CONCESSIONS NO DOUBT MUST BE MADE as the nation shifts toward less
industrial dependence on oil and gas," feels St. Paul Pioneer Press(3/26/74), "the re-
laxations should not go so far as to. jeopardize protection of human health and the
general environment."
IN RELATED DEVELOPMENTS. "Clean air is essential, yes. But to our society, so
is electricity. Trade-offs are undoubtedly necessary, in a spirit of compromise; enough
electricity, but not excess electricity; clean air, but not necessarily perfect air"
(Lincoln, Neb. Evening Journal. 3/28/74) "INEVITABLY, THE ENERGY CRISIS is once
again being invoked as the pretext for kicking holes in the Clean Air Act," says Wash.
Post(4/9/74). "This time the mischief is attached to ...the Standby Energy Emergency
Authorities Bill...If it should be enacted in anything approaching its present form,
this bill would greatly loosen the restrictions on the toxic fumes that coal-burninj?
power plants are permitted to emit into the atmosphere. Sulfur oxides in these fumes do,
in fact kill people. They demonstrably affect the death rates in several large cities
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ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS SUMMARY
...Last winter's experience shows that fiddling with the air quality rules cannot con-
tribute substantially to resolving the fuel shortage. But it can do great harm to
people who breathe the plants' exhaust. Whatever Congress decides to do with the rest
of this bill, it can best protect the health of Americans by deleting those ill-consid-
ered cuts at the Clean Air standards."
ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT PARALYZED?
Rep. Udall(D-Ariz.) tells National Wildlife Federation convention that environ-
mentalist clout in national policy decisions less than at any time in last decade, and
"there are still millions of Americans who view the conservation movement as a group of
anti-everything fanatics who care more about bird life than human life." (Chicago Sun-
Times, 3/31/74).(Kansas City Star, 4/7/74).(N.Y. Times, 3/31/74). There have been some
skimpy successes in the last year, says Udall, "but on the big national issues that will
decide the shape of life in the decades ahead, we are not making headway." Says some of
blame must be accepted by movement itself, which has been negative, elitist, naive, and
politically impotent. Movement missed chances to forge alliances during '60's with blue
-collar America, enlightened industry and urban minorities--"and we predictably find few
friends around to sustain us during the dark days of the energy crisis." Recalls that
the word "environment" attached to legislation four years ago virtually assured passage,
but, he says, "Four weeks ago I went before the Rules Committee with my land planning
bill and found that the same word stirred resentment and contributed to defeat." This,
he said, is a reflection of waning public interest in the movement. Udall feels envir-
onment virtually abandoned by White House: "Someone ought to say that...Nixon is doing
this nation a disservice by caving in on environmental issues for the sake of his im-
peachment politics. Someone ought to call him on his backtracking and yes, double-
crossing on basic policies such as land-use reform. There is simply no decent rationale
for such behavior, and we ought to let him know it." Names Train, Peterson, Morton as
good men, "but when crunch comes they are left frequently, to borrow a notorious phrase,
'twisting slowly, slowly in the wind.1" Says movement shouldn't be nonpartisan and non-
political: "In this system policies are not pursued unless there is political pressure
behind them." Says "most Americans will never see a wilderness area, park or wildlife
refuge, and unless they are brought into the fold when the crunch comes they can be ex-
pected to opt for power, light and heat at any cost, even if the price is wall-to-wall
power plants and refineries." Demands total opposition to any Administration attempts
to turn EPA duties over to FEO. "There is one compelling fact that the conservation
movement had better come to terms with," adds Udall. "In this democracy the key to pol-
itical success is organization...Conservationists have no central policy institutions,
no annual convention where they are packed into a room and work out their differences...
In my opinion, this the conservation movement must do or perish."
IN OTHER "ENERGY VS. ECOLOGY" DEVELOPMENTS. "Immediately in prospect," says
N.Y. Times (3/29/74) article, "are some potentially critical confrontations between pro-
ponents of environmental constraint and forces—notably industry and the White House--
that would relax or abolish them. But in longer-range terms, qualified observers see
the environmental movement as having not only 'weathered the storm' of the energy bind,
but also as having made gains u xpected only a year or so ago.. .Indications are that
despite countercurrents among industrialists and politicians, grass roots support for
environmental quality remains strong." Cites 1/74 Gallup Poll showing only 2% blame
ecolegists for energy crisis, National Audubon Society membership increase of 28,350
from Nov.-Jan.—biggest three-month jump in organization's history. Quotes Quarles:
"Inmost respects the., .movement has weathered the storm. Misgiving over environmental
commitments have eased. Efforts to blame the energy crisis on environmental regulation
have fallen flat." "AT THE MOMENT the country appears to be winning the gasoline
battle and losing the environmental war," opines N.Y. Times(4/7/74) ed. "The temporary
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ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS SUMMARY
price and availability of a gallon of gasoline have become more important than the per-
manent cost of destroying the country's resources and heritage. And the greater tragedy
is that so much of a once-aroused public has apparently ceased to care. The foes of en-
vironmental controls...are trying to undo the progress of the past five years in the
name of an energy crisis that...has become a convenient handle to flout, ignore or even
repeal important environmental regulations." "ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTIONS WILL
HAMPER the availability of energy only if the United States, which alone uses more than
30 percent of the world's energy, continues its massive squandering" (Dayton Daily News.
3/26/74). "The proposals for lowering environmental standards actually are proposals
for additional energy consumption and for increased reliance on oil and coal. Far from
solving the energy problem, that would bring on its worst effects fast." Cincinn-
atti Enquirer(3/31/74) runs Sierra Club editorial which cites above-mentioned Gallup
Poll and concludes: "The public knows who made the key mistakes, and it was not the
environmentalists. They know the basic mistakes are rooted in decisions made by Ameri-
can industry and government agencies allied with it." "THERE IS LITTLE QUESTION,"
says Dayton Journal Herald (3/26/74), "that environmentalists are facing a stern battle
to consolidate the legislative gains of recent years though the environment is continu-
ing to deteriorate despite these gains...Some temporary compromises have to be accepted
...to avert massive unemployment...The present trend, however, is not toward changing
consumption patterns. It is rather toward emergency actions designed to produce the
energy required for the wasteful, profligate lifestyle that has produced the present
crisis—both in energy and in environment." England's The Economist(3/30/74), com-
menting on environmental situation in America, says movement "no longer exactly the huge
popular fashion that it briefly was in the early 1970's... but still has substantial
intellectual and emotional roots. It remains a force, but its effective influence fluc-
tuates. Just now it is going through a patch of adversity." Story implies that Nixon's
modification of strong environmental stand began in '71 when John Connally was in Wash-
ington and the threatened competitive position of the American economy in world markets
became a matter of prime concern; then industry, agriculture complaints of environmen-
tal roadblocks began to get more sympathetic hearing.
EPA DEMANDS RESERVE MINING SHUTDOWN
Justice Dept., on EPA request, asks Fed. Judge Miles Lord to issue injunction
against Reserve Mining to stop daily dumping of 67,000 tons of taconite ore tailings
into Lake Superior. After examining company, government testimony Train concludes "that
there is a substantial risk to human health presented by the company's present opera-
tions ."(WaJJL_^t.__Journal, 4/1/74), (Chicago Daily News. 3/30/74). However, Lord grants
Reserve time to submit formal reply to EPA (Milwaukee Journal. 3/31/74).
IN RELATED DEVELOPMENTS. Reserve Pres. Edward Furness admits responsibility for
company's withholding of vital evidence from judge, plaintiff, and also providing evi-
dence that Lord says misled him and prolonged trial(N.Y. Times. 4/3/74), (Minneapolis
Tribune. 3/30/74) LORD ORDERS DULUTH and other Minn, communities on Lake Superior
to install filtration facilities to remove injurious asbestos fibers (found in Reserve's
taconite wastes) from drinking water, or face possibility of increased cancer and other
diseases (N.Y. Times. 3/25/74).
TRASH-INTO-ENERGY MAY INCREASE POLLUTION
Union Electric Co. of St. Louis, which plans to harness all that city's solid
waste for energy by mid-'77 (see 3/8/74, News Summary), conducts study which finds poll-
ution emissions increased threefold after utility started burning trash along with coal
—exceeding federal air standards almost every day plant operated. (Louisville Courier-
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ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS SUMMARY
Journal). Robert Holloway of EPA Solid Waste Office says simultaneous tests by agency
did™t sh^ significantpollution increase, but accuracy of Union Electric report can t
be de^rmined for several weeks. Journal says impact of study s findings on other cit
ies considering similar arrangements "could be significant" unless recheck indicates
stu y erre j^^^ DEVELDPMENTSt Demanding a commitment from Montgomery County, Ohio
commissioners to institute trash-to-energy system like St. louis', Dayton Journal Herald
(3/29/74) says of it: "However the economics are worked out, the public should be the
principal beneficiary. Its solid waste disposal problem is disposed of in an environmen-
tally attractive fashion, and costs for electricity should ultimately reflect the sav-
ings realized by the utility in fuel costs. Moreover, the low sulphur content of refuse
makes it an attractive boiler fuel in a nation confronted with limited supplies of low
cost clean fuels TRASH-TO-ENERGY stories also appear in St. Louis Post-Dispatch
(3/25/74), Baltimore Sun(3/31/74), Business Week(3/30/74).
'75 AUTOS CLEANER. SHOULD GET BETTER FUEL ECONOMY. SAYS TRAIN
Train tells National Press Club that preliminary EPA testing of 75 prototype
cars shows "vastly improved gasoline mileage" over '74's, probably surpassing original
estimate of 7% increase. Improvement due to catalytic converters supplementing engine
changes used to control pollutants Mall St. Journal. 3/26/74). Story also gets coverage
in Detroit News(3/26/74), Chicago Tribune(3/26/74). Chicago Today(3/26/74).
GRAND CANYON DAM A POSSIBILITY
L A Dept. of Water and Power, Arizona Power Authority, "are giving serious con-
sideration to the idea of building a dam in the Grand Canyon" to meet peak energy de-
mands in the two regions by early '8Q's(N.Y. Times. 3/31/74). Companies insist their
only action thus far has been lobbying U.S. House to protect proposed dam site at edge
of Canyon for possible future development.
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