BLUE RIDGE ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE LEAGUE PO Box 88 ~ Glendale Springs, North Carolina 28629 ~ Phone (336) 982-2691 ~ Fax (336) 982-2954 ~ Email: BREDL@skybest.com PRESS ADVISORY MARCH 24, 2000 CONTACTS: LOUIS ZELLER (336) 982-2691 JANET M. ZELLER (336) 982-2691 NC GROUP TO SUPPORT PENNSYLVANIA CLEAN AIR RULE  Today, representatives of the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League will travel to Harrisburg to testify in support of Pennsylvania's proposed clean air regulations.  The new rule would limit North Carolina's nitrogen oxide emissions to 10,737 tons per year.  NC and other upwind states would have a choice to meet the NOx caps or to comply with Section 126 of the federal Clean Air Act, which limits interstate pollution transfer.   The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection is holding today's public hearing to receive comments on its comprehensive rule and a study entitled, "Interstate Pollution Transport Reductions: Assuring All States Do Their Fair Share."  The proposal seeks to reduce dangerous levels of ozone in Pennsylvania which are caused by pollution from Virginia, North Carolina, and other states.  The Hunt administration has failed to exercise NC's authority under the Clean Air Act to restrict NOx transfer from Tennessee and the Ohio Valley.  Instead, NC has challenged EPA's authority to mandate pollution reduction.  The 14 large coal plants operated by Duke and Carolina Power and Light emit over one billion pounds of NOx per year. -end- More info: BREDL's Comments to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection