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Mr. Synar. Thank you, Ms. Backiel. Ms. Nichols. 



STATEMENT OF MARY NICHOLS, ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR, 

 OFFICE OF AIR AND RADIATION, U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PRO- 

 TECTION AGENCY 



Ms. Nichols. Thank you. It is a pleasure to be here today and 

 I would like to acknowledge and appreciate your leadership, Mr. 

 Synar, on this issue, and the committee's long-time interest in pre- 

 serving the natural beauty and splendor of our national parks. 



As you know, the Clinton administration is committed to fully 

 implementing the Clean Air Act and to improving the air quality 

 in our parks, forest, wilderness areas, ana other public lands. I 

 would also like to comment that this is an issue about which I per- 

 sonally feel very strongly as well. 



If I may indulge the committee, when I was in a comparable po- 

 sition in California State government during the late 1970's and 

 1980's, California set long-range visibility air quality standards. 

 We also set a fine particle standard prior to the Federal Govern- 

 ment moving on that, and explicitly made protection of visibility 

 one of the factors that we used in setting that standard. 



I am pleased to announce here today that based on the conclu- 

 sions of the national academy study, as well as my assessment of 

 other provisions of the Clean Air Act and its requirements that are 

 statutory obligations under sections 169 (a) and (b), EPA is begin- 

 ning the process to develop rules to address regional haze. 



As I will discuss, this effort will incorporate the recommenda- 

 tions of the Grand Canyon Visibility Transport Commission 



Mr. Synar. This is a major announcement, right? 



Ms. Nichols. It is. You heard it here. I think it represents a 

 shift, Mr. Synar, in what you have heard. 



Mr. Synar. That is the widest turn I have ever seen. 



Ms. Nichols. The map that I have brought with me today indi- 

 cates and highlights the kinds of air quality problems that are fac- 

 ing parks and wilderness areas. And I think, although obviously 

 the print is way too small to see the names of the parks that are 

 included there, the. major point is that the broad reddish areas on 

 the map represent areas affected by regional haze, as far as we un- 

 derstand them today. 



The yellow area over the East is affected both by regional haze 

 and by acid deposition. And the purple areas cover those class I 

 areas that are primarily affected by damage from ground level 

 ozone. 



Most of these conditions are not caused by one single source or 

 group of sources near each park or wilderness area but by the mix- 

 ing of emissions over a broad region. We believe it is important to 

 protect those areas that currently have good air quality from the 

 increasing influence of regional emissions that are not already ad- 

 dressed by the programs which examine emissions from new major 

 sources. 



My written testimony covers in some detail all the programs that 

 EPA has under way that will help to protect and improve air qual- 

 ity in parks and wilderness areas. The S0 2 reductions resulting 

 from our acid rain program will certainly have the largest bene- 

 ficial effect on sulfur-related air quality in class I areas, particu- 



