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323150952
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Pepco Power Plant 3/13/90 [OA 4728]
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323150952
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document
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Pepco Power Plant 3/13/90 [OA 4728]
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13523-015
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Records of the White House Office of Speechwriting (George H. W. Bush Administration)
Speech Draft Files
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Originally Processed With FOIA(s):
FOIA Number:
S
S
FOIA
MARKER
This is not a textual record. This is used as an
administrative marker by the George Bush Presidential
Library Staff.
Record Group/Collection:
George H.W. Bush Presidential Records
Collection/Office of Origin:
Speechwriting, White House Office of
Series:
Speech File Draft Files
Subseries:
Chron Files, 1989-1993
OA/ID Number:
13523
Folder ID Number:
13523-015
Folder Title:
Pepco Power Plant 3/13/90 [OA 4728]
Stack:
Row:
Section:
Shelf:
Position:
G
26
16
2
1
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
March 14, 1990
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
DURING VISIT TO PEPCO POWER PLANT
Chalk Point, Maryland
10:30 A.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: I want to first thank Ed Mitchell and
Hula Edmonds who have shown us around this plant -- Ed being the top
executive and familiar with all the economic dimension of this
tremendous utility, and Hula running the plant here -- described by
his leader as one of the best in the business.
A few months ago, we sent to Congress -- it was in July
of last year -- a very comprehensive Clean Air Act bill -- Clean Air
Act amendment. And these amendments had as their goal cleaning up
the smog in our city, reducing the toxic chemicals that are being
emitted into our atmosphere and halting the damage that's caused by
acid rain.
Now those proposals, which were the, I think most
dramatic proposed revision of the Clean Air Act in history, are
subject to debate and compromise forged with the Senate leadership.
And I am grateful to Democrats and Republicans alike who have come
together with what we think is a very sensible approach. The
Dole-Mitchell compromise substitute is now under consideration, and
my appeal again would be to urge all members to move forward on it
within the parameters hammered out in compromise by Senator Mitchell
and Senator Dole.
The bill is consistent with the need to balance
environmental benefits and to sustain economic growth for this
country. And Hula, I would put that in more personal terms -- that
means jobs for the men and women that you have under you. We cannot
let this country screech to a halt, but I am determined to clean up
the air. And we're going to work hard for the passage of this bill.
I am confident now that it will remain intact, and that I am
confident that it will prevail in the Senate. And the same time,
we're pursuing an equally-balanced measure in the House of
Representatives.
So to get this balance, we're going to rely on market
forces -- incentives for technological innovation, provide the
private sector with the flexibility to make emissions reductions in
the most cost-effective manner possible. Ed was telling me there's
megabucks involved in all of this. And we want to be as helpful as
possible in making these changes as cost-effective as possible while
still meeting our environmental goals.
Now PEPCO, your company, sir, like most, is committed to
take these additional steps to meet these even tougher standards
under the Clean Air Act, and for that we're very grateful. Under the
Act, we try to provide these utility companies with flexibility to
meet the new and tougher standards. We give them options -- burning
coal with a lower sulfur content or switching to other fuels,
installing new emmission control technologies, or utilizing some of
the emerging clean-coal technologies. Providing this flexibility, we
can ensure that the environmental benefits are gained at the least
cost to the guy that pays the bill -- the consumer.
And I'm confident that a good-faith attitude toward these
envirnomental goals prevail on the part of most of the companies, and
we've seen evidence that today in projects it is going forward. We
see this evidence now.
MORE
- 2 -
And I also must say I am very impressed with this fish
culture here, because raising over a million stripers to replenish
the Chesapeake Bay is a significant environmental contribution, not
just for fishermen such as myself, but I think it's good for the
entire environmental background of the Chesapeake Bay. You've got a
wildflife sanctuary here. That's good citizenship, very good
citizenship. And in our new Clean Air Act we're going to be
challenging PEPCO and these other great companies to do even more in
terms of the environment.
So, I think we're on the road to a balanced,
environmentally aggressive, economically responsible piece of
legislation. And this has given me an example to get a really --
feeling of how this energy is produced, and a feeling for the kinds
of people that are producing the energy, and then also to have a
broad look at an environmental dimension that has not always been a
part of the equation; and today it is.
And I salute you, Ed, and your associates in this company
for carving out some new ground here. I hope it will serve as an
example to others all across this country. So we've had a good day
here.
Q
Mr. President --
THE PRESIDENT: Hey, listen, I had a press conference
yesterday.
This is a one-way street, where I do the talking and you
guys --
Q
About that news conference, though, yesterday, Mr.
President --
Q
Three hundred million dollars at this plant alone.
Q
-- there are some conflicting signals coming out of
there and out of Mr. Darman's briefing yesterday on taxes. Is that
something that's negotiable?
THE PRESIDENT: -- got to read all the tea leaves and
listen to the nuances. I mean, it's out there, very clearly.
Q
How about the lips?
THE PRESIDENT: Keep reading.
Q
What about the cormorants?
THE PRESIDENT: Are you a cormorant lover?
Q
No comment.
THE PRESIDENT: Come on, Ellen, you've seen those guys.
THE PRESS: Thank you.
END
10:35 A.M. EST