Attorney generals from Kentucky and West Virginia are leading 24 GOP states in a lawsuit challenging a new rule from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) setting more stringent regulations against soot pollution, citing concerns that higher limits will force American companies to have to outsource manufacturing jobs overseas.
The new standard, announced on Feb. 7, reduces the maximum level of permissible soot pollution from the Obama-era’s 12 micrograms down to 9 micrograms per cubic meter of air. According to the EPA, the rule is predicted to save lives and estimated to help prevent up to 4,500 premature deaths and 290,000 lost workdays in 2032.
The stricter rule won support from environmental group leaders, such as non-profit Earthjustice President Abigail Dillen, who believes that soot is a “killer” that is helping to drive up cases of heart disease, asthma, and other serious illnesses. According to Ms. Dillen, the new federal standard will save thousands of lives and avoid 800,000 asthma symptom cases each year....
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