Jan. 7, 1997 sees Congressional Record publish “FAIR CLEAN AIR COMPLIANCE DOWNWIND FROM POLLUTERS”

Volume 143, No. 1 covering the 1st Session of the 105th Congress (1997 - 1998) was published by the Congressional Record.

The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.

“FAIR CLEAN AIR COMPLIANCE DOWNWIND FROM POLLUTERS” mentioning the Environmental Protection Agency was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E27 on Jan. 7, 1997.

The publication is reproduced in full below:

FAIR CLEAN AIR COMPLIANCE DOWNWIND FROM POLLUTERS

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HON. RANDY ``DUKE'' CUNNINGHAM

of california

in the house of representatives

Tuesday, January 7, 1997

Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce legislation that requires the Environmental Protection Agency to consider the downwind transportation of air pollution when determining a region's air quality compliance. This legislation is similar to H.R. 1582, which I introduced in the 104th Congress with the support of the county of San Diego.

In 1990, Congress amended the Clean Air Act to base the smog control requirements for each area on the severity of the area's pollution problem as indicated by the nonattainment area classification. The EPA has established five such classifications: marginal, moderate, serious, severe, or extreme. Under current law nonattainment status is determined without addressing air pollution transported from upwind areas.

Due to pollution blown downwind from the Los Angeles basin, San Diego was initially given a nonattainment classification of severe. San Diego was later reclassified to serious because the ozone design value, 0.185 parts per million, was at the lowest limit of severe. Had the design value been outside that narrow window, San Diego would have been forced to carry out excessively stringent and costly control programs to combat air pollution created and transported from elsewhere.

This situation affects many other communities, too. I encourage all of my colleagues to join me by cosponsoring this legislation.

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SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 143, No. 1