Paul Marsden MP
1B St Mary's Street,
Shrewsbury,
SY1 1EG
30 September 2004
Dear Paul,
The fiscal prudence of reducing industrial PM2.5 pollution
I should be grateful if you would ask the Chancellor of the
Exchequer, whose name has been associated with fiscal prudence,
why the Treasury has not forced UK industry to reduce the
deadly industrial emissions of PM2.5s [particles of 2.5 microns
diameter and below, which are small enough to get into lungs]
despite the proven savings of $193 billion over the ten years
1992-2002 from reduced hospital visits and fewer days off
work in the US. The USEPA enforced PM2.5 standards from 1997,
so savings will increase.
The above savings were calculated by the White House Office
of Management and Budget and reported, at length, in the Washington
Post article "Study finds net gain from pollution rules"
dated 27 September 2003, which I've enclosed.
For every £1 spent on reducing emissions of PM2.5s,
there is a £6 saving in reduced NHS costs and £4
saving in social security costs. Most people in the UK understand
the BOGOF concept, ie "buy one, get one free" when
shopping and would love the opportunity of getting £10
back for every £1 spent. They would look askance at
any Chancellor, or government, who ignored such good sense
as reported in the above Washington Post article [also OKOPOL
EC Report 1999] especially when the savings would be accompanied
by less illness, longer lives and higher productivity.
I should be grateful if you would put the following questions
to the Chancellor of the Exchequer:
1. Is he aware of the massive, proven savings from reducing
industrial emissions of PM2.5s?
2. Does he propose to copy the US emission controls, and
if so when?
3. If the UK government has no intention of effectively reducing
industrial emissions of PM2.5s, could he please detail the
financial mechanism(s), including excess taxation, he has
in place to:
i) make up for the loss of approx. £24 billion a year
in health costs
and
ii) provide adequate compensation for avoidable illness from
the millions of UK citizens harmed by government neglect,
despite the 1985 commitment to the World Health Organisation
to reduce mortality inequalities in the UK.
Yours sincerely,
Michael Ryan
|
bluemoon
