Madison’s Dirty Little Secret

MADISON, Wis. – The Milwaukee, Madison and Green Bay areas do not meet tough new air quality standards designed to protect public health and may need additional regulations, federal regulators said Tuesday.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s announcement drew criticism from a top state air official, who warned it could hurt economic development and do little to improve air quality.

The EPA said its review found Brown, Columbia, Dane, Racine, Waukesha and Milwaukee counties have unacceptable levels of fine particulate matter in the air or contribute to problems in neighboring areas.

The pollution is largely caused by coal-fired power plants and diesel engines and creates health problems such as asthma, lung disease and heart problems. The EPA estimates tens of thousands of premature deaths are linked to sooty air every year.

–  Chicago Tribune

Well thank God they have a smoking ban on places where individuals have the choice as to what sort of air they breathe. 

This goes back to externalities vs. the legal assumption of risk.  People living in these five counties would otherwise have a choice as to whether or not they’ll enter a place that allows smoking, but they don’t have a choice as to what sort of air they breathe in the out-of-doors.

It’s also quite shocking that the ‘top state air official’ is concerned about harming economic development and is using this argument as an excuse not to push for cleaner outdoor air, yet when tavern owners cite economic harm from smoking bans, they’re being ‘greedy’ and don’t ‘care about their patrons’.

Again, it’s all about whether you have a choice and what government has the duty to protect us from.  The government does have a duty to protect us from externalities (like polluted outside air), not our own choices.