SW PA Ozone Stakeholders Group
GASP is a stakeholder in the Southwestern Pennsylvania Ozone Stakeholders Group. GASP, along with other parties, such as utilities companies, service station owners, natural gas companies, petroleum interests, large and small industry, the regulatory agencies, transportation agencies, citizen representatives, health interests, and other environmental groups are working toward a consensus of opinion as to the most satisfactory way to reduce ozone in southwestern PA.
The SW PA region,including the city of Pittsburgh and Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Washington, and Westmoreland Counties are in “moderate nonattainment” of the federal health-based ozone standards. This means PA must reduce volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) and/or nitrogen oxides (NOx) by 15% from 1990 to 1996 to comply with the 15% rate of progress requirement in the Clean Air Act. VOC’s and NOx are the main precursors of ozone. Ozone is only, to a small extent, an emission on its own; rather, it is created from the NOx and VOC’s in the presence of sunlight and heat. The Environmental Protection Agency stated recently that it will sanction PA if the state does not submit a plan on how to reduce ozone by the August 15, 1996 deadline. The stakeholders currently have a target date of December 1996 for presenting its recommendation. Presently the stakeholders are discussing basic information so that everyone has an informed educational base from which well-considered recommendations can be made.
Stay tuned for updates. Contact Sue Seppi with your thoughts and opinions. Sue Seppi is the GASP representative in the Stakeholders Group.