A | WOBURN, Mass. -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday proposed banning the cancer-causing chemical trichloroethylene, which can be found in consumer products including automobile brake cleaners, furniture care and arts and crafts spray coating. The move would end a nearly four decade battle to ban the chemical known as TCE, which can cause sudden death or kidney cancer if a person is exposed to high levels of it, and other neurological harm even at lower exposure over a long period.EPA’s recent risk-evaluation studies found that as much as 250 million pounds of TCE are still produced in the United States annually. One of the first places the chemical raised concern was in Massachusetts, where it was linked to contaminated drinking water in the city of Woburn. Two locations there were ultimately designated as massive Superfund sites. Monday's news conference was held at one of them, a location which now serves as a transportation center.“For far too long, TCE has left a toxic legacy in communities across America," said Michal Freedhoff, the EPA’s assistant administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. “Today, EPA is taking a major step to protect people from exposure to this cancer-causing chemical.” Massachusetts Sen. Edward Markey, who has led the effort to ban TCE, welcomed the move. “With this rule, we can see a future where we will no longer be manufacturing, processing and distributing a chemical known to be deadly,” Markey said. “We will no longer be exposing American families, communities and workers to a toxic chemical legacy that leaves questions, cancer and catastrophe in its wake.”Markey called the effort personal, citing his long-time work with Anne Anderson, a resident-turned-activist whose son Jimmy died in 1981 of leukemia.“Since Anne and I met in 1980, we have been partners in the effort to clean up Woburn, to get justice for her son, and to save other families from seeing their children fall sick as a result of contamination,” Markey said. "Thanks to the advocacy of Anne Anderson and the action of the EPA, the era of corporations using communities like Woburn as dumping grounds for toxic TCE is over.” A 1982 lawsuit over the contaminated water supply involved eight Woburn families, including the Andersons. The case garnered national attention and led to the book and movie titled “A Civil Action.” The American Chemistry Council said in a statement that TCE has several important uses in packaging and in formulating products. The proposed rule “is inconsistent with the underlying science,” the council said, calling on the EPA to avoid unnecessarily restricting valuable industrial uses for the chemical. “EPA must base its risk management proposals on best available science, including accurate assessments of exposure," the industry group said. “Where uses of chemistries have decreased over time, this must be reflected in EPA’s underlying risk assessment, because decreased use reduces potential exposure.”Meanwhile, environmental groups praised the proposed rule, which would take effect in a year. “EPA followed the science, listened to impacted communities, and proposed one of the strongest chemical regulations in recent history,” Earthjustice Senior Attorney Jonathan Kalmuss-Katz said in a statement. “Some chemicals are simply too harmful to remain on the market." TCE is used to make refrigerants and in solvents that remove grease from metal parts. It is also used in carpet cleaners, laundry spot removers and hoof polish for horses. The chemical presents an “unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment” in 52 of 54 uses in industrial and consumer products, the EPA has found.“I am overwhelmed that all of you are here to acknowledge everything that has happened and everything that was bad has turned good,” Anderson said. “I owe so much to you people to keep the fight going, making sure that everybody is safe and that toxic chemicals like TCE will no longer exist.”The proposed ban stems from a major expansion of EPA's regulatory powers under a landmark 2016 law that overhauled rules governing tens of thousands of toxic chemicals in everyday products, from household cleaners to clothing and furniture.The statute authorized new rules for tens of thousands of toxic chemicals found in everyday products, including substances such as asbestos and TCE, that for decades have been known to cause cancer but were largely unregulated under federal law. Known as the Frank Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act, the law was intended to clear up a hodgepodge of state rules governing chemicals and to update the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976.The 2016 law required the EPA to evaluate chemicals and put in place protections against unreasonable risks. The agency moved to ban asbestos last year and has also proposed banning methylene chloride, perchloroethylene and carbon tetrachloride.__ Associated Press writer Matthew Daly in Washington contributed to this report.。1月17日，据外媒报道，北美国际汽车开业。汽车制造商在展览会上发布了大量的电动汽车。关键问题是，消费者会选择电动汽车吗？在汽车开之前，《纽约时报》就讨论过。这篇文章是这么说的：就在感恩节前，肯·韦斯特曼几乎买了他的第一台全电动特斯拉3型。韦斯特曼是一位退休的音乐教师，他对保护环境很感兴趣。他一直在寻找替代他多年来一直驾驶的红色丰田普锐斯混合动力车的方案，并且已经驾驶了一辆3型电动汽车。这辆车让他眼花缭乱，但韦斯特曼最终得出结论，全电动汽车的续航里程有限：它一次充电只能行驶不到500公里。这将使他从安娜堡到东海岸和阿肯色州的旅程复杂化。韦斯特曼和他的新普锐斯混合动力车。他想买3型车，但目前里程和收费方面的问题最终导致他放弃了这个想法。”这是一个6到8小时的旅程，如果你必须停止充电，它将增加两个小时的单程旅程，”韦斯特曼说。我很喜欢这辆车，但是里程很难走。”最后他买了一辆普锐斯，而不是3型。韦斯特曼的决定应该成为底特律北美国际汽车展的一个警告。电动汽车将是本次车展的热门话题。新闻媒体和行业高管将乐于向公众展示他们的电动汽车。在世界各地，汽车制造商正准备在未来三年推出数十款全电动汽车和插电式混合动力汽车。现代、起亚、宝马迷你、日产和奥迪今年将在底特律贝克汉姆国际站展示他们的电动汽车，因为许多主流车主都渴望摆脱汽油的影响。但要顺利销售电动汽车，汽车制造商必须能够吸引新客户。2017年上海车展凯迪拉克CT6插电式混合动力车。
B | 通用汽车计划使所有电动汽车成为凯迪拉克品牌产品的核心。许多电动汽车迷争相购买特斯拉电动汽车，有效地促进了特斯拉销量的增长。但是主流汽车消费者可能比富有的买主、环保主义者和早期的电动车消费者更难吸引，特别是在美国中部。这里的充电站远远少于沿海地区。例如，韦斯特曼先生说，他想要一辆行驶里程近1000公里的电动汽车，其行驶距离与装满一箱油的价格相当。
C | 市场咨询公司伊利咨询（Erie Consulting）的总经理马克•韦克菲尔德（Mark Wakefield）表示，汽车制造商正在开发如此多的电动汽车，主要是为了在中国和欧洲市场竞争。在美国，电动汽车的销售是不确定的，因为它们仍然很便宜。”韦克菲尔德说：“在美国，一辆电动汽车能卖出10万辆汽车是不可能想当然的。”“你不（像特斯拉一样）把整个工厂都贡献给电动汽车。”电动汽车媒体Insideevs.com估计，去年美国市场共售出36.1万辆电动和插电式混合动力汽车，仅占全部购车量的2%，其中特斯拉电动汽车占一半。但汽车制造商是雄心勃勃的。
D | 明年，福特计划推出一款类似野马跑车的小型电动SUV。在未来五年内，该公司还将花费110亿美元开发16辆全电动汽车和24辆其他类型的电动汽车。”福特爱迪生团队的负责人泰德·坎尼斯说：“它还处于初级阶段，但我们认为人们会来购买我们的电动汽车。”我们认为我们在正确的时间来到这里。”通用汽车也在做出类似的努力。上周五，首席执行官玛丽T.巴拉（MaryT.Barra）表示，通用正在增加雪佛兰螺栓电动汽车的产量，并计划将电动汽车作为凯迪拉克产品线的关键组成部分。汽车制造商相信，电池技术的进步和电池价格的下降将使他们能够生产出里程数更长的电动汽车。
E | 尽管韦斯特曼所期望的1000公里里程可能不会很快实现，但充电时间较短的电动汽车正在成为现实。对于电动汽车来说，最大的问题是充电站的可用性。虽然在购物中心和停车场有更多的加油站，但在美国大约有20000个加油站，但在美国有150000个加油站。尽管房主可以选择在车库安装充电设备，但居住在公寓里的数百万人没有选择的余地。克里斯·托雷拉是一名大学生，住在安娜堡的一所出租房子里，没有自己的车库。他的解决方案是相对罕见的：他说服房东花费大约8000美元改造房子前面的人行道，并在路边安装一个公共充电站。
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