8. AIR POLLUTION: Poll shows voter support for EPA rules(10/13/2011)

Jean Chemnick, E&E reporter


Voters support U.S. EPA's plans to cut mercury, smog and soot emissions, even though they believe the rules will cost them money, according to a new poll released yesterday sponsored by the public interest group Ceres.

The poll, which was conducted jointly by Democratic polling firm Hart Research Associates and Republican polling firm GS Strategy Group, surveyed 1,400 Democratic, Republican and independent voters about their level of support for conventional air quality rules for electric utilities.

Seventy-seven percent of respondents said they believed the rules would increase electricity rates, but the majority expressed strong support for new emissions reduction rules, including the Cross State Air Pollution rule for sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides emissions (supported by 67 percent) and an upcoming mercury and air toxics rule (supported by 77 percent).

The poll showed that 75 percent of respondents think EPA should set new standards, rather than Congress.

Respondents were divided about the likely effect of the rules on jobs and the economy. A plurality of 41 percent said they would be good for job creation compared with 33 percent who disagreed, but a small majority of 52 percent said they would be persuaded by the argument that emissions rules would hurt the economy at the time of high unemployment, postponing an economic recovery.

Respondents broke down along party lines, with 91 percent of Democrats and 63 percent of Republicans favoring the mercury rule for utilities, while 85 percent of Democrats and 48 percent of Republicans supported the SO2 and NOx rule.

Gender and age also played a role, with women and younger voters consistently favoring EPA rules more than men and older voters. For example, 80 percent of women answered favorably to questions about the mercury rule, compared with 70 percent of men. Eighty-seven percent of voters under 35 and 68 percent of voters over 65 answered the same way.

Greg Strimple, a Republican pollster and president of GS Strategy Group bed in Boise, Idaho, said the poll showed that opposition to air quality rules is not a winning issue for Republican candidates.

"I advise my political candidates that you need to find issues that unite the Republican Party with the center of electorate and divide Democrats," he said. "And this issue does the opposite. This issue unites the center of the electorate with the left side of Democrats and divides Republicans."

"These are not the kinds of issues that Republicans should be picking up at the time when they have a chance to advance in their representation in Congress," he added.