Douglas Alexander: “I want my Senate colleagues to know I have decided to join Senators Carper, Chafee, and Gregg as cosponsors of the Clean…”

“I want my Senate colleagues to know I have decided to join Senators Carper, Chafee, and Gregg as cosponsors of the Clean Air Planning Act. I have studied major clean air proposals before the Senate and have concluded that this legislation is the best balanced proposal because it would reduce pollution emitted by powerplants while permitting the maximum possible economic growth and energy efficiency. I hope other colleagues will come to the same conclusion as the debate about how to clean America's air becomes front and center. Cleaner air should be the urgent business before the Senate. The condition of the air in my State of Tennessee is completely unacceptable to me and ought to be completely unacceptable to every Tennessee citizen. My home is 2 miles from the boundary of the Great Smokey Mountains National Park, which has also become the Nation's most polluted national park. Only Los Angeles and Houston have higher ozone levels than the Great Smokies. Only a few miles away from the Great Smokies is Knoxville, which is on the American Lung Association's list of top 10 cities with the dirtiest air. Memphis and Nashville--our two largest cities--are on the top 20 list. Chattanooga barely escapes the top 25 list. This polluted air is damaging to health, especially that of the elderly, small children, and the disabled. It ruins the scenic beauty of our State, which is what most of us who grew up in Tennessee are proudest of.”