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Department of Ecology News Release - March 10, 2005
05-052
SPOKANE - After several years, a small town in south-central Washington may now be able to get off the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) dirty-air list, and the public is being asked to comment on the change.
A public hearing is being held to change Wallula's air-quality status from "non-attainment," which means it does not meet health-based air quality standards, to "attainment," which means it meets the standards.
The hearing will take place at 7 p.m., Thursday, March 17, at the Burbank-Wallula Fire Station 51, 460 W. Humorist Rd. in Burbank.
In 1990, EPA designated the Wallula area as a non-attainment area for PM10, or particulate matter 10 microns or smaller in size, because air-quality monitors showed too much PM10 in the air on some days. When an area in Washington is classified as nonattainment for not meeting air quality standards, the Department of Ecology (Ecology) must develop a plan to bring the area back into compliance with the standards. This is an important process because non-attainment areas can lose federal highway funds.
A non-attainment area can be re-designated to attainment once the state can show that the area meets the standard, and that reductions in particulate matter are both permanent and enforceable. In addition, the EPA must approve both the plan to meet the standard and another plan to maintain clean air for at least 10 years.
The PM10 standard was set to protect public health. The particles are small enough to enter the lungs causing structural and chemical damage.
With a single exception, the violations of the standards for PM10 in the Wallula area were the result of windblown dust.
Other sources of particulate air pollution include agricultural tilling and large and small industrial sources.
EPA determined that Wallula was again meeting the PM10 standard in 2001. The only violations that occurred after 2001 were four uncontrollable natural events caused by windblown dust. Natural events such as these are no longer considered by EPA when determining whether the area is in attainment.
"Ecology was instrumental in changing federal policy so that natural events like wind storms didn't penalize communities," said Ecology's Doug Schneider, who has worked on the Wallula attainment issue for more than 10 years. "We are continuing to work with other agencies to develop practices that farmers can use to minimize windblown dust."
Copies of the new plan are available for review at the Benton Clean Air Authority in Richland, at the Kennewick and Pasco branches of the Mid-Columbia Library, and at the Burbank Library in Burbank.
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Media contact: Jani Gilbert, public information manager, 509-329-3495; cell, 509-622-3073
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
