The regular meeting of the Air Pollution Control Board of Jefferson County was called to order August 21, 2002, at 9:10 a.m. in the Board Room of the Air Pollution Control District, 850 Barret Avenue, Louisville, Kentucky, by the Chairman, Joseph Vibbert. Karen Cassidy and Lewis Hammond were present. A quorum was not present.
The following District staff members were present: Art Williams, Jon Trout, Gayle Ballard, Mitzi Powell, Jesse Goldsmith, Bruce Gaylord, Cynthia Lee, Terri Phelps, Art Chang, Diane Hazellief, Marty Layman, Gary Flispart, Rebecca Stutsman, Tom Pinto, Bob Dorzback, Phyllis Fitzgerald, Doug Spillman, Paul Lanka, Maher El-Sherif, Martha Gammons, and Irene Stephenson.
The following guests were present: Steve Marks, General Electric; Dave Newman and Malcolm Winsper, KY Motorcycle Association; Marlene Zeckner Pardee, Louisville Gas & Electric; Pat Moran, Stites & Harbison; Robert Gioffre, Gordon-Darby; Brad Dillon, Greenebaum Doll & McDonald; Mike DeBusschere, Kentuckiana Engineering; Carolyn Embry, American Lung Association; and Michael Hesse, former Board member.
Chairman Vibbert noted that the Board would not be able to take any action on items presented to them at today’s meeting because a quorum was not present.
Chairman Vibbert recognized Michael Hesse, former Board member, for his dedication and contributions to the Board.
Mr. Williams introduced Paul Lanka who joins the District as a Scientific Programmer/Analyst; his duties include emissions inventory and programming.
Mr. Trout explained that the states are required to provide technical assistance to small businesses as part of the Clean Air Act Title V requirements for a small business program. The three required components of this program are technical assistance, ombudsman, and compliance advisory panel. The District participates in the Kentucky Small Business Stationary Source Compliance Advisory Panel. The District chose to have its own technical assistance program and ombudsman. Martha Gammons is the small business ombudsman for Jefferson County. The District’s Technical Assistance Program is a service provided by the Engineering Division. Permit Engineers work with small businesses to help them obtain permits and comply with federal and local air pollution regulations.
The Commonwealth has a contract with the Kentucky Business Environmental Assistance Program (KBEAP) to provide technical assistance to small businesses located in the other 119 Kentucky counties. Because KBEAP is separate from the Division for Air Quality (DAQ), noncompliance issues discovered by KBEAP and corrected within a specified period are not reported to the DAQ, thus the small businesses would not be subject to enforcement actions. However, because the District both provides technical assistance and has enforcement responsibilities, a small business with a violation discovered by the District through its Technical Assistance Program would, consistent with Board enforcement policy, be subject to the issuance of a Notice of Violation and assessed a penalty. To encourage small business participation in the District’s Technical Assistance Program, the Board approved an amnesty program through which companies had an opportunity to resolve violations without the District taking enforcement actions. This amnesty program was initially in effect for calendar year 1996, extended through 1997, and reapproved for 1999.
Mr. Trout said that the District is now requesting Board approval for a limited amnesty program to run through calendar year 2003. There is likely to be a considerable number of companies with compliance problems that could benefit from the use of the amnesty program. The goal of the amnesty program is full compliance with all District regulation. The amnesty program proposed by the District would be more limited than the previous programs, specifying that amnesty would not apply to criminal violations, recurring violations, violations for which the District determines that there is an imminent danger to public health or the environment, or companies that have, or have had, construction or operating permits issued by the District. Additionally, as a condition of amnesty under this program, the participant must agree to conduct a pollution prevention audit. The packet provided to the Board explains the history and details of the program, informational background, procedures for referrals, conditions and requirements, and the description for the public outreach plan.
Dr. Cassidy inquired about the cost of the program. Mr. Trout replied that the incremental cost was very minimal because the District, as part of its normal service, assists companies with permit applications, ideas for reducing emissions, and a pollution prevention program. Bob Dorzback is the District staff person whose responsibilities focus on providing pollution prevention assistance. Ms. Gammons, the District’s small business ombudsman, added that she regularly visits and speaks with small businesses. Mr. Williams added that the time invested in providing permit and compliance assistance to small businesses reduces the resources necessary for enforcement. Overtime is not anticipated. Benefits from the use of staff resources include emissions reduction, increased compliance with regulatory requirements, and better utilization of pollution prevention technology.
Mr. Trout said that the Strategy Committee met July 17, 2002, and approved amended Regulation 5.14 Hazardous Air Pollutants and Source Categories, Version #6, Draft #1 - External, July 17, 2002, for public review. A Public Hearing on this proposed regulation occurred before today’s Board meeting.
Mr. Williams indicated that a copy of the August 20, 2002, Ozone Monitoring Report provided to the Board shows 49 exceedances of the 8-hr standard occurring on 19 different days. There were 4 days voided at the New Albany monitor by the State of Indiana due to water in the ozone monitor’s probe line. Table 2 shows the 2002 1-hr exceedance summary from 1996 to the present. These data indicate that 1996 had 3 exceedances, 1997 had 8 exceedances, 1998 had 10 exceedances, 1999 had 1 exceedance, 2000 had no exceedance, 2001 had 1 exceedance, and 2002, to date, had 1 exceedance, that being at the Shepherdsville monitor. Table 3 shows the 8-hr exceedance summary for 1998-2002. There was a considerable drop during 2000 and 2001 relative to 1998 and 1999 in the number of exceedances and the number of days on which an exceedance occurred. Exceedances increased this year in both the number of exceedances and the number days on which an exceedance occurred. Table 4 shows the 8-hr ozone 4th maximum values summary. The 4th highest reading at each monitor is used in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) formula to determine attainment of the 8-hour ozone standard. Mr. Williams explained that, based upon the years 2000, 2001, and 2002 (to date), and 8-hour ozone designations based proportionally on the 1-hour ozone classification scheme, the Louisville area would likely be classified as marginal nonattainment. He cautioned that the 2002 ozone season has not yet ended nor has EPA yet proposed its 8-hour ozone implementation regulations.
Mr. Trout displayed an overhead of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) 36-hour backward trajectory modeling for Louisville that started with the afternoon of July 15th, the day that the exceedance of the 1-hour ozone standard was monitored at Shepherdsville. He also displayed overheads of the EPA’s AIRNow 8-hour peak ozone maps for several days surrounding the July 15th exceedance. The AIRNow maps show that high levels of ozone occurred in the northern Ohio area and over the next several days the highest ozone concentrations moved to locations to the south and west. The NOAA backward trajectory modeling showed that the air that was in the Louisville area at the time of the exceedance had started in the northern Ohio area the day before. Mr. Williams noted that as the air mass dropped dramatically it forced the concentration levels higher.
Mr. Trout said that the District has discussed the July 15th 1-hour ozone standard exceedance with both the Kentucky Division for Air Quality and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. The NOAA backward trajectory modeling and EPA AIRNow maps show evidence of transport pollution that came into the area. Mr. Trout indicated that the District is not, at this time, recommending that the Board pursue any additional reductions to solve the exceedance that occurred on July 15th.
Mr. Williams noted that the KAIRE/KOPC Program brochure provided to the Board was distributed at the State Fair. The brochure focused on the adverse health effects of ozone and how a person drives can make a difference to air quality.
Mr. Williams briefed the Board on the PM2.5 monitor readings. He said that in addition to the annual average PM2.5 standard of 15 micrograms per cubic meter, the EPA also established a 24-hour maximum standard of 65 micrograms per cubic meter. Exceedances of this short-term standard were recorded on July 4th, 5th, and 17th. Two of these readings were reported from the Wyandotte monitor and the third reading was from Southwick. The District is reviewing the numbers, equipment, and reports. It is possible that the exceedances that occurred on July 4th and 5th are attributable to fireworks activity. The exceedance on July 17th followed several days of high ozone levels in the area, including the July 15th 1-hour ozone standard exceedance. A PM2.5 follow-up report will be made at the next Board meeting.
Mr. Williams updated the Board on the Air Toxics Monitoring Project with the West Jefferson County Community Task Force. A request for bids to do the risk assessment work plan went out in the past month. The three bids received were evaluated by the Risk Assessment Work Group. A preferred vendor has been recommended to Purchasing. A contract is being negotiated that will be presented at the August 27th Fiscal Court meeting. The vendor would take all the analytical data from the 1-year comprehensive air toxics monitoring program and thoroughly review the numbers and compare them to the health benchmarks developed by the EPA and other health-based organizations. The reports will go to the Board, West County Task Force, and to the public for presentation and comments. This will be followed by proposals and suggestions for options and programs implemented by the Risk Management Work Group.
Mr. Williams noted that the program is really catching on across the community. Ms. Fitzgerald has been listing new residential participants and documenting existing ones. The District’s website (www.apcd.org) shows a spreadsheet that quantifies the emission reduction benefits that the community is getting from these no-mow landscapes. Ms. Fitzgerald made a Lawn Care for Cleaner Air award presentation to Gayle and Nancy Ballard. The list of Lawn Care for Cleaner Air award recipients was submitted for filing. A copy is attached to the original minutes.
Ms. Fitzgerald mentioned that the District has a Kentucky Land Fair Exhibit, a State Fair-sponsored exhibit at the Fair. The overall theme for this exhibit is land. The display, a Volkswagen car, shows how one drives impacts a vehicle’s air pollution emissions.
Mr. Williams noted that the Board was provided with a copy of Sustain, a journal of the University of Louisville’s Kentucky Institute for the Environment and Sustainable Development. Additional copies will be furnished at the next Board meeting for the public. The Spring/Summer 2002 edition focuses on urban air quality. The District was invited to contribute an article. Dr. Barry Zalph wrote a historical look at air quality in the Jefferson County area.
Mr. Williams mentioned that he attended a historic meeting of the Regional Leadership Coalition that brought together the governors of two states, Indiana’s Governor O’Bannon and Kentucky’s Governor Patton. They addressed and pledged cooperation on a number of key, critical issues for the 23-county area. One of four key issues for the area is the environment. Air quality may be the top environmental issue. The other key issues are transportation, workforce development, and education.
The Air Quality Data Report was submitted for filing. A copy is attached to the original minutes.
The VET report was submitted for filing. A copy is attached to the original minutes.
The APCD Enforcement Status 08/12/2002 report was submitted for filing. A copy is attached to the original minutes.
The meeting adjourned at 10:05 a.m.
_______/signed/_______
Joseph D. Vibbert
Chairman
_______/signed/_______
Jonathan L. Trout
Secretary-Treasurer