ABSTRACT
This chapter analyzes the status of the Clean Air Act (CAA) vis-a-vis the acid precipitation problem. A few commentators admittedly have analyzed the extent to which proposed acid precipitation control programs would fit into existing CAA programs. The 1970 CAA was based on contemporaneous perceptions of present and future economic and environmental conditions. A new set of proposals for using existing CAA provisions is being explored by Eugene M. Trisko, a Washington attorney and consultant on energy/environment issues. Many participants in the legislative debates seem to view acid rain as an issue-area separate from other air quality matters. Legislatively, the review of CAA provisions has consequences for the positions of both proponents and critics of regulating acid precipitation pollutants. If the effectiveness of the CAA and New Source Performance Standards in controlling future emissions is to be assessed accurately, one must estimate those future trends.
