ALBANY, N.Y. -- The head of the Environmental Protection Agency lauded President Bush's "Clear Skies" plan Friday as a quicker way to both save the Adirondacks from destructive acid rain and improve residents' health. 

EPA Administrator Christie Whitman insists the president's proposal would reduce smog, acid rain and mercury faster than the current Clean Air Act alone. 

"We have something that works," said Whitman at the University at Albany's Atmospheric Sciences Research Center, a stop on her national tour touting the plan's benefits. "We need to do more, and we need to do it faster." 

In New York alone, she said, the proposed emission caps would reduce acid rain-causing sulfur dioxide by an additional 25 percent, smog-causing nitrogen oxide by 45 percent and mercury _ a toxic chemical that contaminates waterways _ by 70 percent over the next 10 years. 

That will translate not only into a better environment, Whitman said, but also fewer hospital trips for asthma attacks and heart and bronchial ailments. 

The Adirondack Council, a longtime acid rain fighter, shared Whitman's podium, praising "Clear Skies" as a realistic way to reverse the damage caused by polluting power plants. 

More than 20 lakes in the 6 million-acre Adirondack Park post mercury warnings, and 500 already are too acidic to support life. At the current rate, half the park's 2,800 lakes will be dead by 2040, according to EPA estimates. 

Much of New York's pollution problems stems from power plants in other parts of the country, Whitman said. 

"The Adirondacks are hundreds of miles from the nearest coal-fired power plant ... and yet we are suffering the worst damage in America," said Bernard Melewski, The Adirondack Council's acting executive director. "Good science shows that the deeper the cuts, the faster the recovery. The same science says the sooner we act, the better." 

Other environmental groups, however, condemned Bush's proposal to abolish "new source review" for utilities as a step backward. The Clinton-era enforcement program requires power plants, refineries and industrial sources to install state-of-the-art pollution controls when making significant improvements or expansions. 

Those that don't can be sued. 

"The loss of teeth in the program seriously compromises it," said Neil Woodworth, of the Adirondack Mountain Club. "You have to have both carrots and sticks." 

But federal and state governments have sued more than 50 power plants in the last few years, with little success, said John Sheehan, Adirondack Council spokesman. 

New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer sued four Midwestern power plants in 1999. So far, none of the lawsuits has resulted in actual settlements. 

"You can't go power plant by power plant," Sheehan said. "You have to cap the whole country." 

Whitman said new source review for utilities would be redundant if Congress passes Bush's proposed mandates. The annulment would affect utilities only. 

"You don't need to keep a bureaucracy in place just to have one," she said. "If they're not meeting their targets, we could come in and enforce. We would have the same ability to sanction as we do now." 

John Stouffer, of the Sierra Club, believes Bush's proposed cuts could go even deeper. "We're not satisfied," he said. 

Annie Reynolds, of Environmental Advocates, is unhappy "Clear Skies" doesn't address utilities' carbon dioxide emissions. Whitman said that's a separate issue, not regulated by the Clean Air Act. 

"But the big gorilla in the closet is global warming," Reynolds said. 

"Clear Skies" sets a cap on total industry output for three pollutants and lets companies earn and trade credits, reducing emissions overall. 

"(Opponents) are trying to add everything under one bill," Sheehan said. "But we'll all be old and gray before that's passed. The Adirondack Park doesn't have that kind of time left." 

Bush wants to cut the current 11 million tons of sulfur dioxide emissions each year to 4.5 million tons by 2010 and 3 million tons by 2018; the 5 million tons of nitrogen oxide emissions annually to 2.1 million tons by 2008 and 1.7 million tons by 2018; and mercury emissions from 48 tons a year to 26 tons by 2010 and 15 tons by 2018. 

Copyright © 2002, The Associated Press