ounded in
    1906,
    the
    ~merican
    Lung Association
    IMetropolitan Chicago
    ~n’esChicago and
    00k County with
    lucation, research and
    Ivocacy programs.
    ‘ember of
    c’o;n~wnity
    I/ca
    ith
    harities
    Note:
    Attachments
    are in the Clerk’s
    file.
    ‘~t440
    W. Washington Blvd.
    Chicago, IL 60607-1878
    Phone: (312) 243-2000
    Fax: (312)
    243-3954
    www.lungchicago.org
    Joel J. Africk
    President
    Diana Hackbarth, PhD, RN
    President-Elect
    Manuel P.A. Claudio, MD
    Vice
    President
    Joan D. Boomsma, MD
    Treasurer
    Kevin B. Tynan
    Secretary
    John L. Kirkwood
    Executive Director
    When You
    Can’t
    ~reathe,
    ~othrng
    Else
    latters
    AMERICAN
    T
    ofMer
    oitan
    Chicagow
    0
    6
    Z000
    STATE
    OF
    ILLINOIS
    Pollution
    Control
    Board
    ILLINOIS
    P0LLu’noN CONTROL
    BOARD
    Springfield, Illinois (October 5, 2000)
    IN THE MATTER OF:
    )
    )
    NATURAL
    GAS-FIRED, PEAK-LOAD
    )
    ROl-lO
    ELECTRICAL POWER GENERATING
    )
    FACILITIES
    (PEAKER
    PLANTS)
    )
    Joint Testimony of the American Lung Association of Metropolitan
    Chicago (ALAMC) and the Illinois Environmental Council (IEC)
    At the hearing on October 5, 2000 American Lung Association of
    Metropolitan Chicago (ALAMC)
    and
    the Illinois Environmental Council
    (ZEC)presented testimony on ROl-lO. At that timetherewas
    a
    request
    from
    the Board to provide more information on the estimated number of
    premature deaths in illinois dueto the effects ofairborne
    particulate -matter.
    The following attempts to providethat relevant information.
    On October
    5th,
    I mentioned a report published by the
    Natural
    Resources
    Defense
    Council
    (NRDC)
    in
    1996
    as the source of the number of
    60,000
    premature deaths nationwide dueto particulate matter, as
    well-asbeingthe
    sourceofinformation on deaths inthe ChicagoMetropolitan-area. For the
    convenienceofthe Board,we have includeda copy of thisreport withthis
    testimony.
    The name of the report is BREATHTAKING:
    Premature
    Mortality
    due to Particulate Air Pollution in 239 American Cities
    and
    the
    figures quoted in our original testimony were approximations of the figures
    printed in this report.
    For the ChicagoMetropolitan Area (as definedby the Census) the estimated
    numberofpremature deaths
    was
    arange from 2075-4759, withamidpoint
    estimateof 3479.
    In our original testimony on October
    5th,
    ~
    stated
    that
    the
    number ofpremature deaths dueto particulate levels
    was
    over
    2000 annually
    for the Chicago metropolitan area.
    The report includes such estimatesfor
    eight metropolitan areas in Illinois andthe estimateoftotal premature
    deaths
    in Illinois is based on the totalfrom these eight metropolitan areas alone. It
    does not include
    any
    figures forruralIllinois counties that
    are
    not part ofa
    metropolitan area.
    Hence, any total forthe number ofpremature deaths in
    Illinois would count in theseruralcounties as well. Unfortunately, the report
    has
    no figures for these areas of the state, and if such numbers were
    available, theywould certainly increase thetotal
    numberof
    premature deaths
    statewide from
    particulate
    matter.
    Ourtestimony indicated that therewere over
    3000
    prematuredeathsstatewide. The
    actual total from the eightmetropolitan areas inthe report
    was a
    range
    of 3052-7020 with midpoint of 5124.
    The figures stated in our testimony on
    October
    5th
    were conservativein that they were
    at
    the extreme lowerend of therange of
    premature deaths and well below the point estimates as well.
    We would also like highlight a newreport released in mid-October,
    2000
    that documentsthe
    connection between premature deaths and emissions from power plants nationwide.
    This
    study, The Particulate-Related Health Benefits of Reducing Power Plant Emissions by Abt
    Associates also breaks down the estimates of premature deaths by state and metropolitan
    areas.
    We haveprovided the report as wellas asummary
    ofthisreporttitledDeath Disease
    & Dirty Power: Mortalityand Health Damage Due to Air Pollution from Power Plants.
    Power plantemissionsalone
    arc
    associated
    with
    1,700
    premature deaths annuallyin illinois,
    as well as 1,110 hospitalizations and 33,100
    asthma
    attacks. Numbers for the Chicago
    Metropolitan Area are 995 premature deaths, 648 hospitalizations
    and
    21,400 asthma attacks.
    The
    numberof
    deaths in Chicago rankedfourth for
    metropolitan areasaround
    the country,
    behind New York, Washington, D. C., and Philadelphia.
    Our testimony on October
    5th
    urgedtheBoard to beginan
    inquiry into the threat to public
    healthpresentedbyexisting coal-fired
    power plants.
    These plants are grand-fatheredout of
    evermeetingmodernemissionstandards andnowemit thevastmajorityof sulfurdioxide
    emissions statewide
    —
    emissions that form airbornefine particulate matter less than 2.5
    microns
    (PM
    2.5).
    It isimportant to notethatwhilethePM
    2.5 standard is the subject of litigation before the
    Supreme Court,the healtheffects ofPM2.5 are not at issue.
    Eventhe District of Columbia
    Circuit Court ofAppeals,the body that sent the caseto the Supreme Court, agreed that the
    science shows there is aproblem, and stated this in Court documents:
    The numerous epidemiological studies appearing in this-record, some of
    which EPA also used to support the 1987
    NAAQS, easily satisfy the
    standardarticulatedinthe statute
    and emphasizedrepeatedly
    indecisions of
    this
    court.
    Covering diversegeographic locationswith widelyvarying
    mixes
    ofairpollution, the studies found statistically significant relationships
    betweenair-borneparticulates signifiedby
    a
    variety ofindicators andadverse
    health effects.Given EPA’s statutorymandateto establish standards based
    on “the latest scientific knowledge,” 42 U.S.C. ss 408(a)(2), 7409(d), the
    growing empirical evidence demonstrating a relationship between fine
    particlepollution and adverse healtheffects amplyjustifies establishmentof
    new fine particle standards.1
    In thc early 1990’s theillinoisPollution Control Board openedarulemaking-on-controlof
    diesel vehicle emissions, andeventually adoptedregulations that set Illinois state standards
    fordiesel opacity. Dueto the leadership oftheBoard, two Illinois
    laws now govern the
    testing
    and
    enforcement ofthis standardfordiesel vehicles. The reporton thehealth
    impact
    tFrom
    Iunerican Trucking Assns.
    v.
    USEPA,
    175 F.3d 1055-56
    (D.C.
    Cir.
    1999)
    ‘
    4*
    of fine particulates released byAbt Associateson October 18 does estimate thehealth
    impact ofdiesel vehicles as well. Among airpollutionsources, thedeaths attributable to
    power plants
    are rivaled only by those dueto the fine particulate pollution from the
    combinedtotal of allthe
    dieseltrucks, buses,
    locomotives
    andconstruction
    equipmentin the
    US; These sources, according to the Abt analysis, are responsible for approximately 80
    percent of the deaths attributable to power plants.
    It is our firm belief that there is a great need to control emissions from power plants in
    Illinois,and that the Boardhas already taken the initiative to address-a-lesseremissionsource
    in the state by adopting regulations to control diesel emissions is encouraging.
    For the record,I
    would
    like
    to correct astatement onpage 105ofthetestimonyon October
    5,which states thenumber
    of people with lung disease in Cook County is
    “over 14,000
    people.”
    It should read “over 400,000 people.”
    Respectively Submitted
    Brian Urbaszewski
    Director of Environmental Health Programs
    American Lung
    Association
    of Metropolitan Chicago
    Dated: November 6, 2000

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