EPA facts on AIR POLUTION

I came across this article this morning, it is reassuring to know that the State of North Dakota is looking out for the health or the residents. http://www.epa.gov/air/particlepollution/actions.html  

• The following States/territories failed to submit SIPs to satisfy the basic program requirements for managing PM_2.5  air quality: 
• Alaska, American Samoa, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Hawaii, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Vermont, Washington
• 
  

EPA Makes Findings of Failure to Submit State Implementation Plans (SIPs) -- 2006 PM2.5 Standard
May 28, 2010 - EPA issued findings that 29 states missed Clean Air Act deadlines for submitting plans, or elements of plans, for implementing EPA’s national air quality standards for the 2006 PM2.5.

• The following 29 states and territories failed to submit interstate transport SIPs:
  o Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan,
  Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania,
  South Dakota, Utah, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming,
  the District of Columbia, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the
  Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
• On September 21, 2006, EPA revised its NAAQS for PM2.5 by significantly
  strengthening the 24-hour standards from 65μg/m3 to 35μg/m3. Thousands of scientific
  studies have linked exposure to these tiny particles - approximately 1/30th the size of a
  human hair - with serious human health problems including premature death in people
  with heart and lung disease; nonfatal heart attacks; and increased hospital admissions and
  doctor and emergency room visits for respiratory and cardiovascular disease.
• Now with all the excess tax dollars in North Dakota, enough to set up a saving fund for the future, why is the State not  implementing EPA’s national air quality standards, one of our basic rights, and most important to have clean air to breath. No wonder we see so many obituaries of young people in the local area.