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HomeMy WebLinkAboutresolution.council.017-06 RESOLUTION NO. -.Ll:: Series of 2006 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ASPEN, COLORADO OPPOSING THE WEAKENING OF AIRBORNE PARTICULATE MATTER HEALTH STANDARDS AS PROPOSED BY THE UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, AND URGING THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY TO MAKE CERTAIN CHANGES IN ITS PROPOSED REGULATION TO ADEQUATELY PROTECT THE HEALTH OF RESIDENTS AND VISITORS OF ASPEN, COLORADO WHEREAS, a number of peer-reviewed scientific studies have shown increases in rates of hospital admissions, illnesses, and deaths from respiratory ailments at levels of particulate air pollution experienced several times a year in Aspen; and WHEREAS, the Environmental Protection Agency (EP A) has ignored the recommendation of its own Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) of outside scientific experts to strengthen certain particulate matter standards, and instead has weakened or eliminated its standards and the City Council of the City of Aspen strongly believes that the EP A and Administration should use sound science in making decisions about health standards; and WHEREAS, the Clean Air Act requires that National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) be set at a level to protect the public health with an adequate margin of safety, and the EP A is now proposing to effectively provide such health standards for particulate matter onlv for residents of cities with more than 100,000 people and onlv for certain sources of pollution; and WHEREAS, the EP A proposes the unprecedented step of exempting areas with fewer than 100,000 people from air quality monitoring for particulate pollution, so that residents of towns like Aspen may be exposed to unhealthful levels of particulate pollution but will never know it since monitoring will not be performed; and WHEREAS, scientists and air quality officials have stated that there is a large concem that there will be a significant increase in death and illness rates in the United States if the regulation is implemented as proposed; and WHEREAS, the EP A funds the national air monitoring network and has proposed a different monitoring network with a $14 million capitol cost and $13 million annual operating cost, but is not proposing to fund this monitoring, knowing that states and local governments cannot pay for and conduct the monitoring; and WHEREAS, growth in the West and in Colorado will bring more traffic and other pollution- causing activities and the City of Aspen desires to know what its air quality levels are, and to ensure protection of the health of its residents and visitors WHEREAS, residents of the City of Aspen have taken significant steps over the years to improve and maintain the community's air quality, including participating in the second-largest transportation system in the state, implementation of transportation demand measures like paid parking, street sweeping, and pedestrian bikeway systems, and WHEREAS, the City of Aspen relies on the EP A and Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment for technical assistance in monitoring; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ASPEN, COLORADO, THAT: The City Council of the City of Aspen hereby strongly urges the United States Environmental Protection Agency to make the following changes to its proposed particulate matter regulation. 1. Apply particulate pollution health standards to all citizens, regardless of the size of community in which they live, and in particular to apply the new regulations in full to areas with populations ofless than 100,000. 2. Follow the recommendations of its scientific advisory panel to strengthen annual fine particulate standards. 3. Eliminate the exemption for particulate matter that comes from mining and agriculture, since the science at this time indicates that this particulate pollution is harmful to the public health. 4. Eliminate the exemption from monitoring for areas with fewer than 100,000 residents. The Clean Air Act does not provide for health protection only for residents of larger cities. Monitoring should be performed in locations where previous monitoring or existence of sources indicates a likelihood of violations. 5. Provide additional funding for both fine particulate and the new proposed coarse particulate monitoring networks in all locations with significant probability of exceedances, including rural areas. INTRODUCED, READ AND ADOPTED by the City Council of the Ci of ~_ ,2006. day I, Kathryn S. Koch, duly appointed and acting City Clerk do certify that the foregoing is a true and accurate copy of that resolution adopted by the City Council of the City of Aspen, Colorado, at a meeting held A~ ~ T- o ,2006.