### US EPA Carbon Pollution Standards Public Hearings Thursday, May 24, 2012 Chicago Illinois

Testimony ofTheodore Carrington
Theodore Carrington earringtontcdrii:ao !.com 732.991.7790



### Good afternoon. My name is Theodore Carrington; I 

### am a resident of Franklin Park, New Jersey, located near the middle ofthe state. I 

### am the Chairperson ofthe Environme:1.tal and Climate Justice Program for the New Jersey State Conference of

### the NAACP, the nation's oldest and largest civil rights organization.

Let me start by stating that everyone ofus has the right to breathe clean, healthy air·-

• air rhat is not saturated with 

### :;arbon dioxide,



### • clean air that will not make you sick each day when you take a brez.tl,.,

o 

### clean 

### ai:- that does not irnr**ar~** 

### your health because ofaccumulated effects ofbreathing in carbon dioxide, over a lifetime

... in a year

... every single day. We have**f~,~** 

### right to breathe c,ean air, free ofcarbon dioxide and other**pollut~mt>.**


### The propm;ed rule will reduce the harmful impacts ofcarbon dioxide, a major contributor to global warming: that makes our cities hotter and

causes increases in asthma attacks and respiratory complications. Carbon dioxide has a**~reat** 

### impact on a state like New Jersey which is ranked the 41'· 

### smallest state in the Jl1 1 0'1, 

### yet 

### 11th in population. New Jerse:' is ranked fifth in the naticn for new cancer cases each year.

New Jerse;' has five (5) power ;"Jla'lt'**th~t** 

### emit tons ofcarbon dioxide into the 

### av each year, plus**wear~** 

### impacted by the power plants locatedin Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio. Data from 

### 2005 indicates that Penns:rlvania has 

### 78 coal-fired generating units' emitting carbon dioxide**in~o** the air and the eastedv wind currents blow carbon dioxide • and other pollutants into New Je:·sey every day. Because ofthe dense population in New Jersey, over 7 midion people are exposed to power plant pollution each year and that includes more than one and a half million children ofwhich 

### 244,225 are in poverty conditions and 

### 99,488 suffer from asthma. This is a devastating combination for our communities wheP our childre'l ':llust compete on a world market and they**s~art** offlife poor and sick.

Two**:~fNJ** 's power plants are lo:;atcd in dense 1y populated areas ofthe
state wh;:rr:' large numbers ofBlacks and Latinos 1ive. The Hudson generating statioP and the Mem:r facility have recently reduced the
amount ofharmful emissions they emit into the air each year. The two facilides nid not reduce the emissions because they were concerned that he**emis~;ilms** were casing harm :o Le community. They were not concemed d18X our children were gruwing up with illnesses that would prevent**th~m** rrom panicipatmg :n simple playtime activities or cause them lC JlaVC difficult) 1 in schcol. rhe tuv,l facilities were forced to**reducl~** toxic Cc·nissions**'Jecaus~** ofJawsuits and the threat cflawsuits. The rf.:der"' government had to step in and make the companies do what they 'Here :;upposed to do in the 

### '1rst p'ace. The corporations were**suppos~l~** l'J reduce the emission; bcr·ause it wa.s the right thing to do. This;:,**anJt~w:** example oftre nnwer ;;!ant ir.dus+ry putting profits over the hr:-<Jlth )ft11e most vulnerable.

Altlw·1g:. i1e**(~missions** frorr,**:.1c~ t,<)~er**  plams have been F:-duced, the poJlut'ng :r)rLinues to assaul"t co·nm.nnies th2t w;ll be**affi~cted** for 

### m8ny year'; 

### w come. That is wtly we; need nr;;w source performance standBrd:. ··1itiatea 

### by the 

### EPA;**vi~** v,dl**b~ scm.;;vr~at** **satisi~ed** to know f(]at rww r•.1W :-r plants will nu. add signif;cant amounts Gfcarbon 

### cioxine to the air. ·rnere woulG o..: a greater sense ofsatistaction ifwe

were aJle 

### w do accunulatea h**.:~::lth** impact analysis and decermine what**ccmrru:rr~** :=:; :.·mve l·,l!:h !eves y'nit:·· us**cxic'~** ·m•:i 5uifut ci-::;,xide.

### These are :)recursors to particulate m::1tter, a microscopic unit that is causing coronary havoc in Blacl: and Latino communities.

Finally, last Saturday I**attended·:~** 

### three mile community walk in Central 

### NJ and had the opportunity to communicate with one ofthe**walk~~s.** 

### I no:iced she was distr::_cteJ 

### from our conversation; she exclaimed she wasn't bei!lg rude, Dut she was concentrating on her child. It 

### sf'emed the young girl 

### wanted to do more than walk; she wantf'd to rur 

### and play with )·,r.r 

### tfer-:ls, hut her parent knew that any overexertion could cause her to experience 2 

### life threatening asthma attack It was all**t~e** 

### mother**~auld** 

### do to keep her child contained when she 

### shol'ic be in the active prime ofher young life. Despite the parent's effors to contain he:r 

### d> ilrL the young girl still had to leave the walk**,·.ufferin\~** 

### a mild**::1sthm~ att~:Kk.** 

VII

### e 

### shouk nu 

### have to suffe1 J·,s**t1ec~·us ~we**  

### b:·eathe. EPA's proposed carbon**poi'~Jbm** 

### stan<.hrd fw Lt·N r'JO\ver**plar:t~ i~**  

### a s1en in the right direction.