The Patriot-News
Just when praises from environmentalists and concerned citizens were being laid upon the IRRC and Gov. Ed Rendell for their foresight and upholding the public trust, a little rain is falling on that parade.
State Sen. Mary Jo White, R-Venango, said the state Environmental Quality Board cannot publish the regulations in the Pennsylvania Bulletin -- the final step before they become law -- until her committee approves them.
Her statement had state Department of Environmental Protection lawyers scrambling yesterday to see if she is legally correct.
"It becomes clear, however, that the committee's leadership may have reverted to back-room deals and procedural tricks during the lame-duck session to help them accomplish what they could not do in the light of day," DEP spokesman Kurt Knaus said yesterday. "This sudden and surprising action is breathtaking in its audacity to undermine the public will."
As Hg-ATME said in earlier posts, no state has battled over this issue like Pennsylvania. It just won't go away. Read the latest in this on-going debate.
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3 comments:
I'm appalled that Sen. White could have the audacity to continue to oppose the stronger mercury regulations. Do the voices of Pennsylvanians mean nothing to her? How can she ignore that almost 11,000 citizens of the state weighed in in favor of the tighter regs, versus about 30 against? That she heads the Senate Environment Commmittee is an irony almost too painful to bear.
Joy - Yeah, I was surprised to see this article come along. It seemed the only block would have been in the state legislature, Rendell would veto any changes and there weren't enough votes to override. But we will have to see how this plays out.
Mary Jo White's dogged support for higher mercury emissions is just the kind of nonsense that marginalizes the R party. Maybe she didn't notice the election a few weeks ago and its take-home message that Republicans are too right-wing for the electorate. Other Rs in the Legislature, esp. in SE Pa., did notice and will pull the plug on White's misguided crusade for more toxic pollution.
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