The Group Against Smog and Pollution (GASP), the Pittsburgh Association for the Education of Young Children (PAEYC), and Tender Care Learning Center have teamed up to discourage vehicle idling. Earlier this year GASP received a grant from the Grable Foundation to develop the NO Idling! Young Lungs at Work program, in partnership with PAEYC. The goals of the project are to increase awareness among Allegheny County child care providers about air pollution’s negative impact on children’s health and to empower them to reduce air pollution from idling cars by giving them the tools necessary to discourage this polluting behavior on their property. “Young children are particularly susceptible to diesel exhaust fumes,” said Cara Ciminillo, Executive Director for PAEYC. “By partnering together with GASP and Tender Care Learning Center, we’ve been able to offer professional growth opportunities to early care and education providers in our region to educate them about this health-based quality issue impacting early learners.” While there is a law in Pennsylvania limiting the idling of heavy duty diesel vehicles such as school and transit buses and delivery trucks, there are no laws to prohibit the idling of gasoline or diesel powered cars. The idling tailpipes of cars spew out air pollution linked to serious illnesses including asthma, heart disease, chronic bronchitis, and cancer. Idling is a common occurrence at childcare centers. Many parents may think they are saving money by letting their car idle, when in fact an idling car wastes fuel and is more damaging to a car’s engine. Some parents may also not be aware that air pollution exiting the tailpipe of their vehicles is damaging to health and the environment. “Southwestern Pennsylvania continues to suffer from high amounts of air pollution, from both stationary and mobile sources, that affect health and quality of life,” said Rachel Filippini, Executive Director of GASP. “Shutting off the engine is one simple thing parents can do to minimize the amount of air pollution their children and the community are exposed to.” Through the NO Idling! Young Lungs at Work program, child care center staff learn about air quality and anti-idling issues by participating in a one-hour, online professional development course. Staff is able to earn continuing education credits by participating. Those child care centers are then eligible to receive free materials for their centers, including a weather resistant sign to be placed outside the facility, and educational materials for distribution to parents. Ciminillo says the program extends beyond staff to the children and families the centers serve and the community. “Thanks to the NO Idling! Young Lungs At Work program, early childhood caregivers now have the knowledge and resources to work together with the families they serve and the larger community to reduce vehicle idling.” To date, more than 24 childcare facilities have participated in the program and/or have received signage and educational materials for their center. This includes all 18 Tender Care Learning Centers in Southwestern Pennsylvania. “The safety of our children, families, and teachers is our number one priority,” said Megan Bindas, Director of the Tender Care Learning Center in Jefferson. “That’s why we jumped at the opportunity to participate in the NO Idling! Young Lungs at Work program that reminds parents and others not to idle their vehicles when picking up their kids.” #idling #airpollution #PittsburghAssociationfortheEducationofYoungChildren #NOIdlingYoungLungsatWork #RachelFilippini #diesel #emissions #airquality

These are the 2018 nominees for reelection to the GASP Board. Only dues-paying GASP members are permitted to vote. Please follow these directions to vote for nominees: Please mark “Yes” or “No” for each nominee. Please complete your ballot by November 28, 2017. Candidates will be elected by a simple majority of member votes and the results announced at the December 6th board meeting. The terms for these individuals will run from January 1, 2018 – December 31, 2019. #gaspboard #nominees #votes

Whether it be walking the dog or climbing mountains, shooting basketball or biking all terrains, GASP considers you an athlete. We are concerned for your health, and we want to make sure your voice is heard! Why athletes you may wonder? Well, as it turns out, athletes are particularly sensitive to the poor air quality in our region. It’s a matter of exposure: when you exercise, you breathe more deeply and you breathe more often. And depending on the intensity of your exercise, you may even be breathing through your mouth rather than your nose, bypassing the sticky hairs and mucus in your nose that can filter out dangerous particles. You might even by exercising near busy roadways, during rush hour, or on an air quality action day. All of these factors contribute to your wellbeing. Enter Athletes United for Healthy Air. This newly revamped program is designed by you, for you. For the next month, Athletes United is searching its constituency for answers. What are you most concerned about and how can we address those concerns? Tell us all about it in our survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RWPHSD6 With your input, Athletes United for Healthy Air will design programming that advocates solutions to the specific challenges that the athletes of Southwestern Pennsylvania face. Starting with this blog post, we hope to educate and empower athletes like you to champion healthy air for themselves, their teams, and their communities. Breathing in so much pollution is scary and maddening, and it’s severely unhealthy. But, as an athlete, your body and mind are perfectly poised to fight off air pollution’s ill effects. Exercise your body and exercise your voice. It all starts here. Join the movement with Athletes United for Healthy Air. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RWPHSD6 Read more about Athletes United for Healthy Air here. —Emily Persico, Student Conservation association Sustainability Fellow #airpollution #airquality #AthletesUnited

Read PDF Press Release #pressrelease #TomWolf

GASP recently submitted comments to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) regarding the new Beech Hollow natural gas-fired power plant in Robinson Township, Washington County. Although the proposed facility will incorporate a great deal of the latest advances in efficiency and air pollution control technology, GASP is concerned with one pollutant in particular: the facility’s emissions of fine particulate matter (PM2.5). For many years, Allegheny County’s residents have struggled with the adverse health effects of elevated levels of PM2.5 in the ambient air. DEP has a program for permitting new sources of air pollution that ensures areas with better air quality see no significant impact and areas that struggle with air quality issues see little or no impact at all. GASP believes DEP incorrectly considered impacts on Washington County and failed to address prevailing winds that will blow a significant portion of Beech Hollow’s emissions into Allegheny County. In fact, the Beech Hollow facility will be located less than one mile from the Allegheny County line. Our position is that Beech Hollow’s PM2.5 emissions will undoubtedly have an adverse impact on Allegheny County’s ambient air, and this should have triggered much stricter PM2.5 control measures than DEP initially required. See our full comments here. GASP will update you once DEP has responded to our comments. –Ned Mulcahy, Staff Attorney #DepartmentofEnvironmentalProtection #airpollution #beechhollow #particulatematter #AlleghenyCountyHealthDepartment #DEP #ACHD #airquality

The Centers for Disease Control recommends that the average adult get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity each week. Unfortunately, in a region plagued with unhealthy levels of pollution and an epidemic of asthma, where and when we exercise can be just as important as how much exercise we get. This truth is exacerbated in the case of children, whose lungs are still developing and sucking in more air per pound than adults. On May 3rd, 2017, GASP hosted Dr. Stephanie Lovinsky-Desir from the Pulmonology Division of Columbia University Medical Center to break this issue down and discuss her research, which is focused on understanding how to keep children living in urban environments polluted by air pollution active and healthy. Asthma inflames and narrows the airways of 8.4 percent of all United States children, explained Dr. Lovinsky-Desir. In the U.S., asthma costs $56 billion, 10.5 million missed school days, and over 200 childhood deaths per year. This burden disproportionately falls on children exposed to poor air quality, namely minorities and city-dwellers. To better understand the influence of pollution on asthmatic symptoms in New York City, Dr. Lovinsky-Desir and her research group asked a critical question: Does exposure to air pollutants negate the positive effects of exercise on overall lung health? Some research certainly seemed to say so. Exercise increases respiration rates, meaning that active people suck more air pollution into their lungs. In environments with heavy air pollution, this had been associated with decreased lung growth in children and reduced lung function in adults. So the question that remains is this: Is exercising worth the risk? To sort this out, Dr. Lovinsky-Desir strapped vests to 163 children between the ages of 9 and 14, 50 percent of whom were previously diagnosed with asthma. These vests were equipped with GPS units and monitors for black carbon, physical activity, and airway inflammation. The data that Dr. Lovinsky-Desir collected over two 24-hour periods reveals just how complex an issue this really is. While active children experience 20 percent lower airway inflammation than non-active children, they were also exposed to 25 percent more black carbon. Black carbon, a large component of the particulate matter small enough to penetrate deep into our lungs, can suppress lung development in children. Because of this, it is difficult to say how much better off the active children truly are, especially if active while exposed to high doses of pollution. Adding to the conversation on Wednesday were three panelists: Dr. Deborah Gentile, Director of Allergy and Asthma Clinical Research at the Allegheny Health Network; Dr. Ned Ketyer, a retired pediatrician with the Pediatric Alliance; and Patrice Tomcik, a Field Organizer for Moms Clean Air Force. Dr. Gentile and Dr. Ketyer brought the topic back home, discussing their experience and research in the Pittsburgh area, where asthma plagues 26,000 children at rates 4 percent higher than the national average. “Our findings are significant because they show that, despite the availability of local primary care providers, asthma specialists, and excellent controller medications, asthma is underdiagnosed and undertreated in many local children,” Dr. Gentile remarked previously. “They also suggest that poor regional air quality contributes to the local incidence and severity of asthmatic disease.” Patrice Tomcik moved the discussion into a focus on natural gas development in rural areas surrounding Allegheny County. Tomcik has become a real leader on issues around fracking and methane, helping to educate and galvanize fellow parents in her community. Her voice strong with passion, she urged the audience to step up and defend our children’s health. In a country-wide comparison of air quality, the State of the Air Report ranked our 12-county region eighth-worst for year-round fine particulate matter and 29th worst for ozone pollution. Allegheny County receives an “F” grade for both measures. With such serious air pollution plaguing our region, many athletes are searching for answers to the question: How do I protect myself from poor air quality. Dr. Lovinsky-Desir left the audience with this advice: Exercise during low traffic times (not rush hour), and stay away from major roads and highways. And, before you go out and exercise, visit AirNow.gov to check your local air quality conditions. This event was a part of Athletes United for Healthy Air, an initiative of GASP to engage athletes of Southwestern Pennsylvania in the campaign for cleaner, healthier air quality. Past events have explored the link between air pollution and cardiovascular health, neurological health, and autism. To learn more about Athletes United for Healthy Air, click here. –Emily Persico, Student Conservation Association Sustainability Fellow #DrLovinskyDesir #AirNowgov #naturalgasdevelopment #AthletesUnitedforHealthyAir #airpollution #airquality #DrGentile

Recently, the Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD) published its draft plan to reduce sulfur dioxide levels in the parts of the county (mostly in the Mon Valley) that are not attaining the national one-hour ambient air quality standard of 75 parts per billion. Due to a large amount of public comments received, ACHD is revising its plan and reopening it to public comment. Comments will be received from May 3 until 11:59 p.m., June 3, 2017. There will also be a public hearing on Thursday, June 1, for those wishing to make their comments in person. Please find all details about the public hearing and where to send written comments on ACHD’s web site. Please visit here to see a summary of the changes ACHD is making. This summary was presented at ACHD’s “Criteria Pollutant Subcommittee” meeting in April 2017. The full text of the revision to the plan can be found on ACHD’s web site. Thank you to all who commented and made this plan stronger, and please comment again to make sure that this plan is as strong as it needs to be to protect our citizens’ health. Stay tuned to GASP for more information on this important plan for our region. #criteriapollutant #airpollution #sulfurdioxide #AlleghenyCountyHealthDepartment #publiccomment #ACHD #airquality

On Feb. 6, 2017 GASP submitted comments to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) regarding a draft plan approval for the Blue Moon Compressor Station in West Pike Run Township, Washington County. A plan approval is a permit to install, construct, or modify a source of air pollution. The facility’s operator applied for the draft plan approval that GASP commented on in March 2016. The draft plan approval would have authorized the installation of five compressor engines, two dehydrators, and associated water tanks and equipment. The facility had already installed and was operating five compressor engines, two dehydrators, and associated water tanks and equipment pursuant to a plan approval issued in May 2015. When aggregated, emissions from the new equipment at the facility and the already-installed equipment would have exceeded major air pollution source thresholds for oxides of nitrogen (NOx), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and formaldehyde, a hazardous air pollutant. In our comments, we argued that the operator’s original plan to construct and operate a smaller facility did not excuse it from its obligation to comply with permitting requirements for major sources of air pollution when, as a matter of fact, it changed its plans within a year and essentially doubled the size of the facility to meet demand that it reasonably could have anticipated. Specifically, we argued that the facility was subject to New Source Review (NSR) requirements, which, if applied, would have required the facility to: implement the Lowest Achievable Emission Rate, offset its potential emissions with Emission Reduction Credits, and conduct an alternatives analysis to demonstrate that the benefits produced by the facility will “significantly outweigh” the “environmental and social costs” that it imposes within Pennsylvania. Further, the facility’s operator would also have been required to show that its other facilities in Pennsylvania are being operated in compliance with applicable air pollution laws. NSR requirements were established to ensure that new major sources of air pollution would not, at a minimum, detract from the attainment of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, and compliance with NSR requirements is mandated by the Clean Air Act. We are pleased to report that our comments found an audience. We have learned that the facility’s operator has revised its original plans and will install air pollution control devices and accept operating limitations so that it can operate the facility as a minor source of air pollution. As modified from the original plans, the facility will be permitted to emit 79 fewer tons per year of NOx, 23.63 fewer tons per year of VOCs, and 3.61 fewer tons per year of all hazardous air pollutants (including 3.43 tons of formaldehyde). This is a victory for everyone who breathes the air in West Pike Run Township and areas downwind! –John Baillie, Staff Attorney #volatileorganiccompounds #DepartmentofEnvironmentalProtection #airpollution #NOx #JohnBaillie #VOCs #DEP #airquality

Join GASP for our next event in the Making the Connection Series: Physical Activity, Air Pollution, and Asthma in the Urban Environment on Wednesday, May 3rd from 5-8 p.m. at Magee-Womens Hospital of UPMC. Dr. Stephanie Lovinsky-Desir will discuss her research and afterward, there will be a panel of health and community experts to respond to her presentation. Networking and refreshments will be from 5-6 p.m. Dr. Stephanie Lovinsky-Desir is Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Pulmonology Division of Columbia University Medical Center in New York, NY. She specializes in evaluating and treating children with asthma and other childhood respiratory disorders. She is also a physician-scientist that is interested in understanding the complexities of asthma in children living in urban environments. Dr. Lovinsky-Desir will address the relationship between the health benefits of physical activity and the risk of increased air pollution exposure during physical activity in urban polluted environments. This work ultimately seeks to understand how to keep children living in urban environments with poor air quality active and healthy. Registration is $5 per person. Please sign up online before attending. #airpollution #airquality #DrLovinskyDesir

The Trump administration has proposed cutting the EPA’s budget by 25 percent, down to $6.1 billion, and to reduce its workforce by 20 percent, down to 12,400 employees, for the fiscal year starting October 1. Some programs will be cut by 90 percent or more, or even wiped out completely. Many of these programs have greatly benefited Southwestern Pennsylvania. Since we still have levels of air pollution that are higher than most other places in the country, we stand to be affected in an outsized manner. Here’s a look at some of the programs on the chopping block, and how those programs have benefited our region in the past. Over the last eight years, Pennsylvania has been awarded more than $12 million in Diesel Emission Reduction Act (DERA) funding, allowing a variety of fleets, including construction, ports, rail, and public buses to be replaced or retrofit with diesel emissions reduction equipment. Many of these projects cleaned up the oldest and dirtiest diesel vehicles and equipment being used right here in Allegheny County. The current budget proposal would cut Diesel Emission Reduction Act funding 100 percent. Allegheny County Health Department’s Air Pollution Control Program receives significant funding from the EPA to assist them in planning, developing, establishing, improving, and maintaining adequate programs for the prevention and control of air pollution or implementation of national primary and secondary air quality standards. Allegheny County has also recently received additional grant funding from EPA to purchase equipment for a variety of air quality monitoring activities, including a monitoring site to study NO2 concentrations near heavily trafficked roads and to assess the pollutant’s impact on vulnerable and susceptible populations. This critical funding could be cut by 30 percent. The Targeted Air Shed Grant is another EPA program at risk of being eliminated. This program’s main goal is to reduce air pollution in the nation’s areas with the highest levels of ozone and PM2.5 ambient air concentrations, like Allegheny County. Past funding, matched with U.S. Steel funding, allowed Clairton Coke Works to replace an old quench tower with a state-of-the-art, low-emissions quench tower, resulting in much less PM2.5 air pollution. The current budget proposal would completely eliminate the Targeted Air Shed Grant program. The proposed cuts affect many more important programs. Radon is the second-leading cause of lung cancer in America, and Western Pennsylvania has levels of radon far above the national average. Funding for state radon programs in Trump’s proposal would be completely eliminated. Programs for lead, brownfield remediation, compliance monitoring, and civil enforcement—all cut. (To learn more about all of the proposed reductions, please see this article.) The cuts to these programs would be harmful to our nation’s citizens and especially to residents of areas with high levels of air pollution, like Allegheny County. According to the EPA, in 2020, the Clean Air Act Amendments will prevent around 240,000 early deaths. Most of the economic benefits (about 85 percent) are attributable to reductions in premature mortality associated with reductions in ambient particulate matter. The benefits to society exceed the compliance cost of the amendments by a factor of more than 30 to 1. In 2015, for 2/3 of the days, the Pittsburgh region’s air quality was not considered good by EPA’s standards for ozone and particulate matter. Allegheny County residents have a cancer risk from air pollution up to 20 times higher than residents of surrounding rural areas. And from 2013 to 2015, 10 of Allegheny County’s 14 PM2.5  air quality monitors registered annual concentrations that placed the readings in the worst 25% in the country. Any cuts to EPA’s important work will affect Allegheny County residents significantly. The Trump administration’s final budget request is scheduled to be released on 3/16. Tell Senators Pat Toomey and Bob Casey: the EPA and the Clean Air Act have been literal lifesavers for thousands of Pennsylvanians. Do not cut their budget! Senator Pat Toomey Email: https://www.toomey.senate.gov/?p=contact Twitter: @SenToomey Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/senatortoomey/ Phone numbers and office addresses: see the bottom of his Senate web page here: https://www.toomey.senate.gov/?p=contact Senator Robert Casey Email: https://www.casey.senate.gov/contact Twitter: @SenBobCasey Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SenatorBobCasey/ Phone numbers and office addresses: see the bottom of his Senate web page here: https://www.casey.senate.gov/ —Rachel Filippini, Executive Director #PM25 #NO2 #DieselEmissionReductionAct #airpollution #USSteel #CleanAirAct #AlleghenyCountyHealthDepartment #ACHD #ClairtonCokeWorks #airquality