Cement Americas provides comprehensive coverage of the North and South American cement markets from raw material extraction to delivery and tranportation to end user.
Issue link: https://cement.epubxp.com/i/119488
FEATURE PCA PRESIDENT we've settled that and are now moving forward with what we hope will be a NESHAP rule that the industry can live with and meets everyone's goals. And if we've done that, I think we've achieved something very positive and not simply a battle with EPA; it's a discussion and accommodation and acknowledgment of both sides' interests. EPA and our members want to use alternative fuels to reduce our emissions. We agree with that, and many of our members are aggressively pursuing alternative fuels instead of coal. There needs to be rational regulations governing the use of alternative fuels in order for our members to continue to use those options. We think that our conversations with EPA over the last couple of years has led to a better understanding by EPA on what each side is looking for and what the challenges are. I don't think we're going to see an end to the pattern of one rule after another. There's a PM [Particulate Matter] standard that EPA put out in December that impacts the cement industry; there's a new ozone standard coming out; and probably a new sulfur dioxide standard as well. What I do hope we have seen is perhaps a shift in the relationship and the dialogue between the cement industry as a regulated party and EPA as the regulator, and more of an understanding of the core issues each side is pursuing and how both sides might be able to achieve their goals in way that isn't a wewin/you-lose proposition. CA: As a result of President Obama winning his bid for re-election, are you expecting his second term to be more or less tough on the cement industry? GS: My viewpoint is that neither President Obama nor the Republican Party achieved much of a mandate out of this election. Quite frankly, I think even if Mr. Romney had won the White House, I'm not sure that you could realistically say that there was a 16 mandate from the American people. Mr. Obama is trying to claim a mandate regarding taxes and that sort of thing, and I won't dispute him on that. But there is still a relatively even divide in the U.S. Senate and the Republicans still control the House. Because there wasn't a tremendous shift in power in Washington, you have to start wondering what Mr. Obama's agenda is for his last four years in office. I think he will pursue a fairly aggressive agenda of environmental protection, but he is also now saddled with the economy. He can no longer look back at President Bush and say, "You handed me this economy." Now, it's his economy, and he's going to need to develop jobs and get the economy moving again or he – and ultimately the Democratic Party – will be blamed in four years at the polls, or maybe even in two years at the mid-term election. CA: Wasn't it shortly after the election that the President said that until the economy was thriving again, he wasn't going to put as much emphasis on regulating industry? GS: I think I heard the same thing. He is correctly saying that the biggest thing on the average American's mind is jobs and the economy. We've seen a lot of rules hung up over at EPA during the election year, and I think we'll now see several of those rules start to make their way to actually being published. We'll see more regulatory activity on the environmental front in the next few months than we saw in the six months leading up to the election. But I don't see a strong charge toward environmental protection by the Obama Administration in the coming couple of years. While we're on the subject of government and policy, can you talk about the potential impact on or importance to the industry of EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson's and Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood's respective retirement announcements. I don't believe that the retirements of Administrator Jackson or Secretary LaHood will have a significant impact on the domestic cement manufacturing industry over the next four years. What will be important for PCA members will be to build on the cooperative, as opposed to confrontational, dialogue established with EPA during Administrator Jackson's tenure during the term of the individual nominated to be her successor, Gina McCarthy. With respect to DOT, we look forward to working with the next Transportation Secretary and leaders in Congress to devise and enact a long-term financing mechanism to fund national transportation infrastructure improvements over the coming decade. The next four years will be challenging ones for PCA and its members, but there also will be opportunities embedded in those challenges if we can take advantage of them. CA: In the entire time I've known [PCA Chief Economist] Ed Sullivan and seen him speak, I don't think I've seen him as optimistic as he was at World of Concrete this year. You were in the room as well. What was your reaction to his new and improved forecast for 2013 and beyond? Do you agree with his assessment, and is the industry ready for the type of growth he is talking about? GS: Ed's revised forecast for 2013 reflects the fact that President Obama and federal legislators proved that there was room for compromise and a common commitment to avoid driving over the "fiscal cliff" at the end of 2012. That year-end compromise avoided the significant harm that would have been visited on the U.S. economy should the Bush-era tax cuts have been allowed to expire. It's also important to remember that Ed's most recent forecast is for modest growth from historically low levels of cement demand; it's an improvement, but we still have a long way to go. PCA members are fully prepared to meet increased cement demand in the coming years as the housing market recovers and investment in infrastructure expands. CEMENT AMERICAS • Spring 2013 • www.cementamericas.com