This news story originally provided by The Charleston Gazette

December 28, 2005

Letters to the Editor

Valley needs air monitoring

Editor:

The EPA's proposed weakening of toxic air emissions standards points to a much more serious problem in understanding air pollution in the Kanawha Valley.

We have no continuous air monitoring system that indicates what people actually breathe. The few air sampling trials done in the late 1980s indicated high levels of toxic chemicals in communities where they shouldn't have been. Carl Beard, commissioner of the Air Pollution Control Commission at the time, made a passionate plea for increased air monitoring when he retired.

Over the years, when chemical companies and public agencies responded to public concern about toxic emissions and cancer and other health problems, both cited the lack of hard data about what was actually in the air. They simply ignored the next step * sampling the air.

We should put together an air monitoring system, designed and supervised by a respected university (not subject to influence by the chemical industry), and find financing through foundation support. This would insulate the findings from industry and co-opted government influence. In five years, I think it would clearly point out the gross inadequacies of current government efforts to identify air pollution problems, and force control of hazardous emissions.

Mike Harman

St. Alban