EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson visits lab at Children's Mercy Hospital in KC/EPA photo
EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson toured Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City today, highlighting Asthma Awareness Month.
Jackson says the Environmental Protection Agency has a role to play in the battle against asthma.
“It’s EPA’s job to enforce our country’s landmark Clean Air Act,” Jackson says in an interview with the Missourinet. “And that act has saved millions of lives over the 40 years it’s been in place. We still have work to do. We have to reduce levels of smog and fine particles and soot in our air which trigger asthma, bronchitis, lung disease, heart disease and premature death.”
Jackson says that for the Midwest, air pollution primarily comes from vehicle emissions and the emissions from coal-fired power plants. Jackson says the cause behind Asthma Awareness Month is personal for her, because her youngest son suffers from asthma and she understands the struggle both the child and the parents have in dealing with the ailment.
AUDIO: Brent Martin interviews EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson [4:30 MP3]