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Federal mandates under the 1970 Clean Air Act have produced cleaner cars, fuels and factories, significantly improving the air Americans breathe. Yet the underlying standards setting limits on ground-level ozone, the main component of harmful smog, have remained unchanged since 1997 -- even as science has made it abundantly clear that the standard is still not strong enough to protect public health. The Environmental Protection Agency has drawn up new and tighter rules, but the final decision rests with President Obama. The White House is under relentless pressure from industry and some legislators to keep the current rules. Mr. Obama should support the agency. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

To the Editor: ''A Major Setback for Clean Air'' (editorial, July 16) implied that Duke Energy sought to overturn the Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Air Interstate Rule. But, as we spelled out in legal filings, Duke Energy ''supports many aspects of CAIR.'' [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]