STATEMENT: Residents, local officials submit comments in support of ACHD clean air proposal as deadline approaches

PITTSBURGH – The Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD) will close the public comment period at 11:59 pm ET on Monday for its plan to increase permitting fees on the region’s largest industrial air polluters and  improve Clean Air Act enforcement. Residents from across the county have voiced their support for the proposal, including at a public hearing allowing concerned citizens and local leaders to give oral testimony. At the hearing, the PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center delivered supportive comments from local members and a letter of support signed by 30 local elected officials and a dozen environmental, public health, and community organizations. Once finalized by ACHD, the new plan will need the approval of the Board of Health and County Council.

Zachary Barber, clean air advocate with the PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center, issued the following statement:

“Clean air should be a right and not a privilege for all Allegheny County residents. The proposal put forth by ACHD will go a long  way towards delivering on that promise.

“Every parent teaches their kid to clean up their own mess, so it’s only fair that local air polluters should pay their share to clean up their emissions.

“The ‘polluter pays’ concept has been a cornerstone of the nation’s environmental laws for over decades. ACHD’s proposal to make sure that the region’s air polluters are paying their fair share of the costs to do the oversight and enforcement of their industrial facilities is commonsense. PennEnvironment applauds Allegheny County officials for putting forward a proposal to boost clean air efforts by increasing fees on local air polluters.

“Today, Allegheny County residents spoke loudly and clearly, they want clean air and support ACHD’s proposal to take a set of critical steps to rein in the region’s most chronic air polluters.”

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The PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center is dedicated to protecting our air, water and open spaces. We work to protect the places we love, advance the environmental values we share, and win real results for our environment. For more information, visit www.pennenvironmencenter.org.