Ambient Air Study Not Yet Ready to Go

Thursday, May 03, 2007 04:00 AM

Paving season is nearly here, but the plan to monitor air in the Nechako Valley isn’t ready to go

Plans to have an ambient air quality study for the Nechako Valley are still in the works, but it is taking a little longer than had been hoped.

Earlier this year, the Ministry of the Environment requested that Pittman Asphalt, Columbia Bitulithic, and the remaining members of the Aggregate Association , all contribute to the cost of the study.

While all have indicated they are committed to making a financial contribution, the details are still being worked out. There is also a request for some Provincial funding.

The full cost of the two year study is about $90 thousand dollars, it will cover three areas

1. Segregate pollution sources between industrial (gravel, asphalt cement operations) and residential (woodstove and fireplace) contributions by wind direction

2. Compile baseline data on the effects of the previously unmonitored emission sources (asphalt plants and gravel operations) in a sensitive Airshed, and

3. Compare ambient levels in the North Nechako Valley with the long term data on Pm 2.5 collected at the Plaza 400 site downtown.

It had been hoped the equipment would be up and running by May 1^st. That has since been pushed back to June 1^st as there are still financial matters that have to be resolved. If the funding were granted today, Mellissa Winfield –Lesk of the Ministry of Environment’s Prince George office says the equipment could be in place and operating for most of the 2007 paving season.

If the full funding is not received, it is possible the scope of the study could be scaled back, it is also possible the City of Prince George may be asked to make a one time contribution to help the project get off the ground.

The air quality issues hit a new level of concern last year when there was increased paving activity. This year, the Ministry has already met with the asphalt producers and gone over a detailed list of expectations. That list includes an expectation for both Pittman and Columbia Bitulithic that:

"In spite of the Asphalt Plant Regulation, if any stack test fails any parameter, the company must notify the regional Environmental Protection office immediately and must cease production immediately". That expectation concludes with saying the company will only be allowed to resume production "once stack monitoring results show that emissions do not exceed the concentration limits identified in Schedule B of the Asphalt Plant Regulation."

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Posted on Thursday, May 03, 2007 04:00 AM in News by 250 News

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Comments

Posted by: owl on May 3 2007 7:59 AM

So what is surprising about this? Every single thing that is doen about the air quality of the airshed in the bowl is delayed, is hoped about and is underfunded.

Until that is solved, it is evident that no one in the position of responsibility really cares.

Just look at Mr. Sutherland recent announcements in the media. The second phase of the management plan is merely waiting for the third phase to begin. The first phase took almost a decade and really had no outcome other than being repeatedly told that the problem is fireplaces, backyard burning and road dust. Nothing very meaningful.

The cost of this is the pay raises the area MLAs wish to give themselves. Not only that, but the government is not even willing to pay for it. They are expecting the CIOty to pay for it if industry cannot agree to pay for it.

Waht is the holdup? That is the real story. What are the "financial matters that have to be resolved."? Let's idetnify who does not want to pay!!!

Posted by: Chester on May 4 2007 6:11 AM

We all have a vested interest in air quality. I would suggest that we all have a responsibility to pay. We are paying for it one way or another anyway, so let's move ahead on this.

Surely all of those people we have hired in positions of responsibility can lead the way in this? If they won't, maybe it's time to move some of them out of the way and replace them. Chester

Posted by: YamaDooPolCat on May 4 2007 8:00 AM

In the meanwhile there should be no paving or pot hole fixing in the Nechako Valley this summer.

Paving in the Nechako Valley this year could lead to unfair expectation that there will continue to be economical paving programs in the future.

I wonder if Rempel has been following this fuss about nothing? Rempel wants to move some dirt to build an industrial park on the west side of the airport. That will certainly create some dust. You can not move clay when it is wet, so there will be dust. I think the city should just tell Rempel to go home and save his health. No sense losing ones health fighting to build something that no one wants.

Posted by: owl on May 4 2007 9:22 AM

�Paving in the Nechako Valley this year could lead to unfair expectation that there will continue to be economical paving programs in the future."

Economical paving programs???? What other business practices, or practices of businesses should we not be doing because they add cost?

Don�t pave the shoulders on highways. No seat belts in cars. No laminated windows in cars. Don�t scrub the sulphur from gasoline. Use chlorine to bleach pulp. Don�t wear hard hats and steel toed boots. Don�t audit companies for financial and other operating conditions. Get rid of health inspectors. Get rid of building inspectors. Get rid of employment standards. Get rid of restrictions on time behind the wheel for professional drivers. The full list is quite long and would take a book of many hundreds of pages.

So, YDPC � exactly what practices do you consider to be uneconomical and why do you choose them over others?

Posted by: owl on May 4 2007 9:39 AM

The potholes is another good example of uneconomical business practices. We shouldn�t be fixing them at all until a full section of road gets bad enough to warrant re-paving of the entire portion of at least a 50 metres or so. In the meantime we can all pay for fixing our cars, drive more slowly to avoid them, etc. etc �.

The City obviously thinks it is uneconomical to fix potholes and it is a nuisance to do so. Thus they have two crews only and admit that the capacity they have at present will likely not see all potholes filled by the time winter rolls around again.

Too often we have false economics at work because we do not consider the entire picture. Sometimes we are not even aware of the entire picture until indicators pop up �.. fish dying in rivers due to water temperature changes resulting from redirected water flow; suppressing forest fires; too many inhabitants on a lake using septic fields; too many truckers on pavement not designed for those conditions.

Again, the list is very long and growing as we learn more about complex systems.

Posted by: owl on May 4 2007 9:41 AM

Do I even dare say it? .... Monopolies of those who have sole access to expensive transportation and communication infrastructures.