Maricopa misses EPA's dust deadline
The Associated Press
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 01.02.2007
advertisementPHOENIX — Arizona's most populous county has missed the Environmental Protection Agency's deadline to reduce the unhealthy amount of dust in its air.
Maricopa County's deadline passed at midnight Sunday.
The county is only the second region in the nation the EPA has put on a stringent program to reduce dust in the air. Known as the Five Percent Plan, the program also is in place in California's San Joaquin Valley, which includes Bakersfield, Fresno, Modesto and Stockton.
Under the program, the Maricopa Association of Governments must come up with a plan to cut 5 percent of particulate emissions from the air each year until the county reaches the federal standard.
If the county fails to meet the federal standard, it faces federal sanctions, including the loss of up to $1.1 billion in federal highway money over five years.
Last month, the Maricopa association unveiled a draft of 32 possible ways to reduce particulate emissions.
The plan includes a public outreach campaign topping $1 million that the Maricopa County Air Quality Department will roll out this month. Newspaper and TV ads will try to make residents resistant to pollution the way Smokey Bear ads warned about forest fires.
The proposal also calls for paving dirt roads and parking lots, reducing off-road vehicle use and instituting a 15-mph limit on some dirt roads as well as heavily regulating the construction industry.
The list has drawn criticism from construction industry representatives, who have balked at the suggestion that their work is responsible for more than half of the emissions.
Industry representatives say the county is cracking down harder on them to compensate for areas they can't control, such as agriculture or vehicle use.
"They're applying the tourniquet to the leg when they have a nosebleed problem," said David Martin, president of the Arizona Associated General Contractors.
The EPA limits how much particulate, essentially dust, can be in the air because the airborne substance has consequences for human health. It irritates the respiratory system and can cause lung damage and premature death. It is particularly hazardous to children, the elderly and people with respiratory problems.
"It's a basic human health issue," said Sandy Bahr, director of the Sierra Club's Grand Canyon Chapter. "We have days where children can't go outside and play, and really, that's just criminal."
In 2005, there were a record-setting 19 days in which particulate pollution exceeded the federal standard, and 2006 smashed that record, with 27 days above the limit.
Member governments of the Maricopa Association of Governments will vote to implement the measures by June and the association will submit a plan to the EPA by Dec. 31.
"If we don't, EPA is going to impose a plan on us," said Steve Owens, director of the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. "That's a pretty powerful motivation for everybody to be at the table."

you guys in AZ are in the damm stone age!!!!

EVERY construction site in SoCal has a sign posted in HUGE letters that says.......

IF YOU SEE DUST COMING FROM THIS SITE PLEASE CALL 1-800-ASS-HOLE IMIDATEALY!!!

and it's been going on for years...this is far from anything new.

why are we always on the defensive?????????????????????

I know dust has always been an issue, but they have never, to my knowledge, actually closed a riding area based on dust alone (please correct me if I am wrong). We're always on the definsive because the enviros sit at home and think "How can we close more land" while we are out riding and we come home to a bad news story and say WTF just happened? The problem is they spend as much or more time trying to stop our fun as we do having fun. Sucks, but it's true.

Every construction site here has a Dust Sign, with a number to call. All the sand a gravel pits have the same signs...Had the Dust cops come out to the pits I worked at a number of times...

Here in Las Vegas(Nevada) they are running TV commercials, " DON"T BE A DUSTHOLE" showing a dad and son on ATVs running around in the desert just the other side of a wall is a backyard bbq, with a group of people pizzzed off at the dust. Then they go on to say about breaking the crust of the desert and allowing the wind to carry more dust.....

The problem is they spend as much or more time trying to stop our fun as we do having fun.

Some of us greenies like myself are in this for the long haul. We know that it's been 35 years since presidential directives requiring route designation and environmental inspections for ORV play areas were published.

Still there is no comprehensive education program for ORV impacts

Still ORVs are NOT REQUIRED TO SHOW VISIBLE ID ON THE VEHICLE

Riders such as KG and others think that it it is their right to impact the scenery, wildlife, health, safety and quality of life of others just so they can enjoy themselves (and make a buck in the process).

Everyday I see ORVer's ignorance and outright flouting of the laws meant to protect the environment and people's property and privacy. As I continue to work with others of like mind we are having an effect and saving lands and people's health due to our efforts. It's invigorating! It's almost as much fun as roosting a lil ol lady!

Some of us greenies like myself are in this for the long haul. We know that it's been 35 years since presidential directives requiring route designation and environmental inspections for ORV play areas were published.

Still there is no comprehensive education program for ORV impacts

Still ORVs are NOT REQUIRED TO SHOW VISIBLE ID ON THE VEHICLE

Riders such as KG and others think that it it is their right to impact the scenery, wildlife, health, safety and quality of life of others just so they can enjoy themselves (and make a buck in the process).

Everyday I see ORVer's ignorance and outright flouting of the laws meant to protect the environment and people's property and privacy. As I continue to work with others of like mind we are having an effect and saving lands and people's health due to our efforts. It's invigorating! It's almost as much fun as roosting a lil ol lady!

Atmospheric aerosols reflect sunlight towards space, cooling Earth, and partially counteracting the greenhouse effect. But, as Toon discusses in this Perspective, this is not the only way in which aerosols affect climate. Satellite data presented by Rosenfeld on page 1793 show substantially reduced precipitation downwind from the pollution source. The mechanisms by which pollution may suppress rain remain poorly understood, and different effects may occur depending on the type of pollution and the atmospheric conditions.

Some of us greenies like myself are in this for the long haul. We know that it's been 35 years since presidential directives requiring route designation and environmental inspections for ORV play areas were published.

Some of us greenies like myself are in this for the long haul. We know that it's been 35 years since presidential directives requiring route designation and environmental inspections for ORV play areas were published.

Still there is no comprehensive education program for ORV impacts

Still ORVs are NOT REQUIRED TO SHOW VISIBLE ID ON THE VEHICLE

Riders such as KG and others think that it it is their right to impact the scenery, wildlife, health, safety and quality of life of others just so they can enjoy themselves (and make a buck in the process).

Everyday I see ORVer's ignorance and outright flouting of the laws meant to protect the environment and people's property and privacy. As I continue to work with others of like mind we are having an effect and saving lands and people's health due to our efforts. It's invigorating! It's almost as much fun as roosting a lil ol lady!

Ok what about all the horseback riders that stir up dust??? Are they going to outlaw horses also? the neighborhood I live in has a lot of horse property. Just the horses in their corrals stir up dust and it hangs there on a calm day.