Arbor Update

Ann Arbor Area Community News

Air Quality?

30. June 2004 • Rob Goodspeed
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Sure, I suppose the black film which builds up on my windows is just from cooking …

SEMCOG disputes EPA soot designation

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it plans to declare the seven-county southeast Michigan region, which includes Livingston and Washtenaw counties, as failing to attain new, stricter standards for airborne particulate matter, or soot.

But Southeast Michigan Council of Government officials say they strongly disagree with the proposal.

Chuck Hersey, SEMCOG’s manager of environmental programs, called the move misleading and inappropriate, given that only the air quality monitors in Wayne and Monroe counties have been out of compliance.

The move is different from one earlier this year that designated the region and many others across the country as failing to meet ozone standards. But Hersey added that many solutions to the ozone problem might help reduce soot as well, since they have common sources like vehicles and factories.

The region will have three years to come up with a plan and several more years to lower soot levels, or it could face federal sanctions.



  1. How far does soot travel from its point source? I wonder if, like the Northeast, Southeast Michigan is bearing the brunt of other’s pollution.
       —Ellen    Jun. 30 '04 - 03:19PM    #