September 8, 2008

Cutting pollution in So. Utah

BY PATRICE ST. GERMAIN
patrices@thespectrum.com

ST. GEORGE - Wildfires, pollution from Las Vegas and Los Angeles and fugitive dust all impact the air quality of Washington County.

Add to the mix the cars, homes, businesses and industries and there's a potential for problems - something that the Southern Utah Air Quality Task Force is looking to minimize.

With so many of the air quality issues out of the hands of local authorities, the task force focuses on what it can change - primarily fugitive dust.

St. George employee Bill Swensen, a primary member of the Southern Utah Air Quality Task Force, said several years ago, St. George Mayor Dan McArthur was concerned that the area was maxing ut the air quality on aggregate dust.

"We had to do a better job or there would be no more permitting," Swensen said. "We got all the parties involved to improve and sustain our air quality."

The task force is a mix of governmental entities, contractors and private citizens that look at the issues concerning fugitive dust. The dust is called particulate matter which is any sold, waxy or liquid article suspended in the air and is broken down into sizes of either PM 10 or PM 2.5. M 10 is primarily soil particles from dust on roads, tire wear and industrial grinding or crushing operations. PM 2.5 comes primarily from combustion sources like automobile engines, furnaces, and heating boilers.

The task force not only monitors building sites, but also looks at industrial areas in the county as well as the Black Rock Gypsum Mine in Arizona, about seven miles from the closest residence in St George. Swensen said the mine is of concern because it impacts the local air shed and has created a elationship with the Arizona's air quality departments as well as Utah's and said the mine is looking t water lines to bring in water to wet things down in an effort to minimize problems.

"Right now, the mine has trucks hauling water out there which basically is creating as much of a problem as they are taking care of so the water line would really help," Swensen said.

Paul Van Dam, executive director for Citizens for Dixie's Future said the gypsum mine is one area of concern the group has with air pollution and said it is the most .polluting source of dust for the area.

Washington County, Van Dam said, has good air quality and protecting that is part of the concerns with the proposed Toquop coal-fired plant in Nevada.

Moving toward cleaner burning cars and power plants is a step in the right direction along with St.George city's solar project.

"I am tickled about the solar project," Van Dam said.

Marc Mortensen, assistant to the St. George city manager said the city is looking at ways to keep the air clean.
The city has several power plants including a natural gas plant which Mortensen said burns very clean and a diesel plant and diesel generators at the waste water treatment plants which are only used during peak hours to hedge the peak power use and for emergencies.

Since issues such as emissions are regulated by the state and federal governments and outside the scope of the city's control, Mortensen said that's part of the reason the city and surrounding communities are focusing on what it can control, which are dust issues.

Cheryl Heying, director of the Department of Environmental Quality in Utah said a monitoring station recently moved from St. George to Santa Clara to keep track of the air quality in the area.

"One of the things we are interested in is watching the transporting of pollution and looking at the Los Angeles and Las Vegas basins to see if there is any correlation with high pollution events," Heying said.

In terms of the future of transport pollution, Heying said the good news is that Las Vegas and Los Angeles are developing plans to bring down their numbers.

One thing that helps the Washington County area, Heying said is the meteorology which is more favorable with monsoons and air currents that keep the air cleaner than in other areas. That, offset with better and cleaner technology, may help keep Washington County air off the EPA's non-attainment list for air quality which brings in stricter guidelines and regulations to areas with pollution problems such as the Wasatch Front area. Limiting driving, switching to cleaner, more fuel efficient vehicles, and home heating systems are some ways that citizens can help out with the air quality and Swensen said private citizens are needed for the task force.

A heavy polluter that can't be controlled is wildfires and Heying said fires even as far away as Southern California do have a heavy impact on the Washington County area.

"If you talk about visibility improvements in the west, you have to talk about fires," Heying said.

Days where the quality of air in the county was diminished can be traced back to wildfires. Dust is usually a localized issue although on occasion, dust storms from the Nevada Ð even as far away as China, have brought in some hazy days to the county.

"The message is, we are all downwind from somewhere and we need to try our best to minimize all pollution," Heying said.