Lawmakers urge tighter smog rule; utilities say no change is justified

摘要

Twenty-two House lawmakers, including six Republicans, urged the Bush administration last week to strengthen the national air-quality standard for ground-level ozone, one of the primary components of smog.rnThe lawmakers' plea is noteworthy because any tightening of the standard could lead to more stringent regulatory requirements for coal-fired power plants, which contribute to the formulation of smog through emissions of nitrogen oxide. A tighter standard could also mean new regulatory requirements for the transportation sector, because motor vehicle emissions are the largest single source of smog.