At tonight’s Denver Regional Council of Governments board meeting we discussed the board’s position on some proposed changes to the state’s air quality standards. Oil and gas drilling releases volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides into the air, which are harmful to human health in their own right but also lead to the formation of ozone, which is also pretty bad for humans. Golden has some of the worst ozone pollution in the state, largely because of sources outside Golden, including oil and gas drilling in Weld County and elsewhere and transportation-related pollution throughout the Denver Metro area. Ozone is a serious problem for the entire region because our ability to access federal transportation dollars depends in large part on our ability to control ozone pollution, and this past summer we did a pretty lousy job. Ozone pollution is also directly linked to respiratory diseases and other serious health impacts, especially to children and the elderly.
The Air Quality Control Commission is considering a proposal to improve standards for oil and gas drilling operations both in the Denver region and statewide. DRCOG was planning to weigh in by asking the Commission not to do anything that might harm our federal ozone pollution status, but I felt that we should more clearly express our support for the proposed rule change. My motition at tonight’s board meeting to do just this passed unanimously.
The Commission won’t make a decision for several months but I believe that DRCOG’s clear support for the proposed rule will help secure its passage.
July 6, 2009 at 6:54 am |
[...] in October I successfully encouraged the Denver Regional Council of Governments to strongly support the proposed air quality i…. As I’ve pointed out many times, Golden suffers from some of the worst air pollution on the Front [...]