Panel will hear foes of chucking air-quality step

Representatives from public-policy interest groups and the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality will once again be testifying before an Arkansas legislative committee to warn against passing legislation they see as harmful to the environment and contradictory to federal law.

The Arkansas Senate Committee on Public Health, Welfare and Labor will meet today at 10 a.m. to discuss nearly 100 Senate and House bills, including Senate Bill 796, which will amend the state’s air-pollution regulations if passed into law.

Under the federal Clean Air Act, most entities applying for a Prevention of Significant Deterioration permit, which governs the discharge of several specific emissions, must demonstrate the ability to meet National Ambient Air Quality Standards. This is done in part by providing computerized modeling to demonstrate how discharged pollutants would affect the quality of air, soil, vegetation and other elements of the surrounding environment.

SB796 would eliminate this requirement, making it voluntary for most applicants in Arkansas, with exceptions for “major sources” such as coal-fired power plants. Under the language of the bill, the Environmental Quality Department would instead rely solely on air-pollution-monitoring stations to enforce air quality standards.

According to department maps, there are currently 10 monitoring stations spread throughout the state, in addition to five monitoring stations based in Little Rock and another in Roland, Okla., that provide data to Arkansas.

Glen Hooks, a spokesman for the Arkansas Sierra Club, said passage of the bill would simultaneously cripple the state’s regulatory powers and invite federal intervention on environmental matters.

“What this really does is strip ADEQ of the ability to regulate air pollution,” Hooks said. “So the question we should be asking ourselves is: Do we want the federal government to come in here and regulate our industries, or would we rather leave it to Arkansas to regulate itself?”

Department Director Teresa Marks, who last week testified before the Arkansas House Committee on Public Health, Welfare and Labor against two separate bills aimed at amending the state’s environmental regulatory processes in contradiction to federal environmental laws, is to testify Wednesday.

Stephen Sheppard, distinguished professor of law at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, said the recent pattern of Arkansas legislation flouting federal law runs the risk of eventually entangling the state in losing legal battles on constitutional grounds.

“Passing legislation that doesn’t respect federalism is a waste of time and money,” Sheppard said. “What will happen is, someone will be harmed or annoyed, they will claim it’s unconstitutional, that it violates federal statute, and they’ll win.”