In February 2016, data generated through Forest Service moss studies and subsequent air monitoring popularized the understanding that Oregon has a serious air toxics problem. In response, Governor Kate Brown announced that the state would undergo a regulatory reform process called Cleaner Air Oregon. The Cleaner Air Oregon timeline calls for new, permanent air quality rules to be issued by the end of 2017 (see timeline below).
Since the process began, Neighbors for Clean Air has been working with many partners throughout Oregon to ensure that all Oregonians can breathe clean air all of the time.
Image Credit: CleanerAirOregon.gov – Click to enlarge
Advisory Committee
Neighbors for Clean Air is a member of the Cleaner Air Oregon Rulemaking Advisory Committee that will convene in October and November of 2016. Our goal is to advocate for a system that is protective of human health and reduces major sources of pollution. Broadly speaking, we should:
(1) create enforceable air quality standards based on protecting human health that consider the cumulative impacts of many hazardous air pollutants on vulnerable populations (i.e. children, communities of color, low-income communities, and the elderly), taking into account the disparate impacts of air-pollution on these populations;
(2) conduct widespread and high-quality monitoring that tells us what is in the ambient air, identifies major sources of toxic pollution (i.e. through fenceline monitoring to verify modeling); and
(3) create effective, data-informed enforcement mechanisms that protect real people from the sources of harmful pollution with a clear understanding that violating standards has consequences.
Technical Workgroup Meetings
Neighbors for Clean Air has been attending Technical Workgroup meetings, conducting additional research, and issuing public comments about deficiencies in the process and where it can be improved.
Workgroup materials:
DEQ Technical Work Group Meeting Notes #1 (Akash)
DEQ Technical Work Group Meeting Notes #2 (Akash, Dayna, and Katherine)
Cleaner Air Oregon Technical Workgroup