Pinehurst air quality reaches attainment
Courtesy of The West Silver Valley Citizen Advisory Committee. The WSVCAC has been working hard to get Pinehurst, and the rest of the western Silver Valley, into attainment.
The Shoshone County Commissioners as well as the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality has announced that for the first time in four years, the City of Pinehurst has reached attainment for its air quality .
For the past few years, the west end of Shoshone County (particularly the City of Pinehurst) has existed under the stigma of it being in non-attainment for its air quality under the guidelines of the Nation Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS).
“2016 turned out to be a very good monitoring year for the area and the annual average was 9.53 µg/m3 (micrograms per cubic meter) which brings the three year design value for the monitor (2014-2016) to 11.98 µg/m3 which is below the NAAQS,” stated IDEQ airshed coordinator Ralph Paul.
The ‘three year design value’ that Paul spoke of is a rolling average of the previous three years to determine if the air quality is poor or not.
So, whereas Pinehurst had been in non-attainment from the years of 2013, 14, and 15, once they factored in 2016’s number along with 2014 and 2015’s numbers, the average has fallen under the 12 µg/m3 limit.
This is a huge step for the Silver Valley and Shoshone County Commissioner Mike Fitzgerald is happy to see the area continue to take steps to make the community a better place for people to live.
“Attainment is a large step forward for the Silver Valley,” Fitzgerald said. “Attainment relates directly to the overall health and quality of life for residents, alleviates the stigma and perception of poor air quality to visitors and business who want to come to the valley, and signals that our community is improving our recognition of the problem and burning in a more responsible and productive fashion.”
The DEQ will continue to work so that the number continues to go down, by furthering programs like clean burning education and the wood-stove change out.
With these programs, it should ensure that the air quality gets into national compliance.
“In designated non-attainment areas where monitored data demonstrates that the NAAQS has been achieved, the EPA has ensured that the Clean Air Act requirements are suspended,” Paul said. “The policy is referred to as the Clean Data Policy. Based on the Clean Data Policy and the most current data, DEQ will submit a request to EPA to make a Clean Data Determination, putting the state implementation plan (SIP) on hold for so long as the area continues to attain the standard or the area re-violates the NAAQS, at which time the State will need to submit a SIP. If the area continues to meet the standard, the State can then request redesignation to attainment for the area.”
For more information contact the Kellogg office of the IDEQ at (208) 783-5781.