National parks may get relief under Western air pollution plan

Friday, May 23, 2003 | 12:51 p.m.

The haze lingering over Western national parks and wilderness areas soon could be on its way out under a first-of-its kind regional air pollution plan approved by the Environmental Protection Agency.

Air pollution from power plants and factories often travels hundreds of miles, settling in as an unsightly cloud over pristine national parks.

Usually, pollution is addressed on a state-by-state basis. The Western Regional Air Partnership - made up of states, tribes and federal agencies - proposed provisions to the EPA in September 2000 that would ask Western states to work together help clean up the haze over parks.

"It's a brand-new approach to how to control pollution," Colleen McKaughan, associate director in the EPA's air division in San Francisco, said Thursday. "This is the first time this has ever been done."

The plan approved Wednesday is designed to improve visibility in 16 national parks and wilderness areas on the Colorado Plateau, including the Grand Canyon. It seeks to reduce emissions of sulfur dioxide - a major compound in the formation of fine particles and haze - over the next 15 years, the EPA said.

States that voluntarily participate must submit a proposal for achieving regional goals by Dec. 31. States that opt out must meet a national standard that wouldn't require a plan until 2007, McKaughan said.

Colorado is one state that will not adopt the Western plan because it seemed "less defined" than the national one, said Douglas Lempke, administrator for the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission.

Patrick Cummins, co-director of the Western Regional Air Partnership, said the goal is to reduce sulfur dioxide emissions 50 percent to 70 percent from 1990 levels by the year 2040.

"This is a good thing," said David Steele, consultant to West Associates, a group of public and private utilities in the West. "The participating members view this as a win-win opportunity."

Steele said utilities support the provisions because they know what their emission reduction goals are through 2018 and there are no surprises.

"It's an important first step," said Mark Scruggs, assistant division chief for the air resources division of the National Park Service. "It's something that we needed."

Under the plan, if the region exceeds the annual goal, a sulfur dioxide market trading program could be used to meet goals, the EPA said. Plants with low emissions could sell their credits for emissions reductions to other plants exceeding limits.

"It's a significant problem, and it's one that affects both our quality of life in the West and our economy," said Vickie Patton, senior attorney for the Environmental Defense in Boulder, Colo.

"People travel from across the country and indeed from around the world to visit what are some of the most revered national exhibits around. If those areas are sort of covered in a haze air pollution, you can't enjoy them," she said.

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EDITOR'S NOTE - Angie Wagner is the AP's Western regional writer, based in Las Vegas.