American,
Bush may not have any conscience, but at least he is starting to sense some political danger.
Thursday April 19 2:21 PM ET
U.S. to Sign Treaty Curbing Toxic Chemicals
Photos
By Steve Holland
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Stung by criticism that he is anti-environment, President Bush (news - web sites) made another pre-Earth Day announcement on Thursday, saying the United States will sign a global treaty aimed at curbing toxic chemicals.
``The risks are great and the need for action is clear: We must work to eliminate or at least to severely restrict the release of these toxins without delay,'' Bush said during remarks in the sun-splashed Rose Garden, blooming crabapple trees behind him.
The United States played a leading role in negotiating the Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, so it was no surprise that Bush announced U.S. plans to sign it at a Stockholm conference on May 22-23. More than 100 nations participated in the final negotiations for it in December.
The United States already has banned or restricted the use of the ``dirty dozen'' pesticides and other industrial chemicals covered under the treaty and most have not been produced or used here for years.
But the announcement was significant in that it came as Bush tried to shore up his environmental image ahead of the 31st anniversary of Earth Day on Sunday.
In recent weeks, Bush has withdrawn from talks on a global-warming treaty; declined for now to implement tougher standards for arsenic in drinking water; reneged on a campaign pledge to require power plants to control emissions of carbon dioxide; and taken other actions critics say shows he is more interested in helping industry than protecting the environment.
Trying to combat that image, Bush has this week announced he will uphold rules from the Democratic administration of former President Bill Clinton requiring thousands more businesses to disclose potentially toxic lead emissions.
And to try to limit the damage from the arsenic controversy, the EPA on Wednesday said it has asked the National Academy of Sciences (news - web sites) to review the issue and that a new rule would call for a reduction of arsenic in drinking water of at least 60 percent from current allowable levels. A Clinton plan would have reduced levels by 80 percent.
U.S. Third Nation To Back Cpop
The United States is the third nation to announce its intention to sign the Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, after Canada and Sweden.
The treaty, which must be ratified by the U.S. Senate, is aimed at eliminating or significantly reducing releases of Persistent Organic Pollutants, or POPS.
Photos
Reuters Photo
These are highly toxic chemicals that are among the most dangerous pollutants released into the environment. They persist in the environment for decades without breaking down and accumulate in the food chain.
They can circulate globally through the atmosphere and oceans to regions far from their source of origin.
Scientists say they cause serious harm to the environment and can have an array of adverse health affects in humans, including links to reproductive failure and cancer.
Bush was joined by Secretary of State Colin Powell (news - web sites) and Environmental Protection Agency (news - web sites) Administrator Christine Todd Whitman (news - web sites), who hailed Bush ``for his vision in putting the United States squarely on the side of protecting human health and the environment.''
Bush said the treaty was the product of the combined work of his administration and that of Clinton. ``This is the way environmental policy should work,'' he said.
The treaty would initially cover a dozen pesticides including DDT and chlordane, three industrial chemicals like PCBs and unintentional byproducts of industrial and combustion processes such as dioxins.
All countries that sign the treaty would be required to stop production and new uses of persistent organic pollutants, with limited exceptions. One exception is to allow the use of DDT in Africa to combat malaria.
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