Editor: Find better ways to stop dust storms

Saturday, Sept. 14, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

CLARK County should take a hard look at the effectiveness of its dust enforcement.

The Air Pollution Control Division came under fire last week for being too lenient on violators, setting fines so low it's cheaper for companies to pay them than to absorb the costs of compliance.

Members of Citizen Alert, a statewide citizens' environmental group, asked the Air Pollution Control Hearing Board to raise fines for 22 violations from $22,000 to $117,000. Increasing the fines, they argued, would be an impetus for companies to stop creating clouds of dust.

Only four of last week's cases did not involve dust violations.

Dust has become a major culprit for Las Vegas Valley air pollution, the eighth worst in the nation. Dust in a windy desert is inevitable, but some construction practices can increase the levels 500 percent.

Uncovered trucks hauling dirt, gravel pits, unpaved roads and land cleared of vegetation stir up microparticles that are dangerous for humans to breathe. Construction delays on cleared tracts are a standing invitation for dust storms every time the wind kicks up.

Construction violators played no small part in the 14 days this year of unhealthy air conditions that are blamed on increasing asthma and up to 800 pollution-related deaths a year.

An Environmental Protection Agency report has criticized the board for exercising too much discretion. The perception among violators and division staff that the board will reduce fines, makes county's efforts seem hollow.

Although the board rejected Citizen Alert's recommendations, the group raises a valid point. Fines should be high enough to ensure compliance. Otherwise, companies will consider them as part of the cost of doing business.

But stiff fines should be a last resort. The division should waive part or all of the penalties if companies voluntarily modify their practices. Companies that refuse to cooperate should get a wake-up call.

No enforcement system should be so punitive as to drive companies out of business. Nor should it be so lax as to be ignored.

The construction industry in Clark County constitutes an important part of the economy as it continues to build housing for the 5,000 people a month who move here. It should not be strapped with onerous regulations that will drive the cost of housing out of reach for most people.

But residents deserve to breathe clean air for their own health and that of their children. An unhealthy environment will make this community undesirable and damage the economy.

The best answer is for the division and the industry to devise workable, cost-effective methods to reduce the pollution. We suspect most contractors and construction-related companies would be willing to do this.

The board's lip service to the rules is not helpful. It merely allows a problem to continue, invites more pressure from irate citizens and risks EPA intervention.

Workable rules, a cooperative spirit and, as a last resort, stiff fines just might do wonders to clear the air.