Publication Summary

The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) declared Wallula, Washington a nonattainment area for particulate matter air pollution in August 1987 because it has experienced ongoing problems with particulate matter. As required by the 1990 Amendments to the federal Clean Air Act, the state submitted a plan in 1991 to bring the area into attainment with federal standards. This plan required the area to attain the standard by 1994. Due to continuing exceedances of the standard, the state requested and received a waiver of the attainment date from 1994 to 1997. This waiver allowed the state to work with Washington State University, the Agricultural Research Service, and the agricultural community on controlling agricultural dust in the Columbia Basin.