Dallas city leaders are set to consider a push for tougher rules and plans to reduce ozone emissions in the DFW region.
At a Quality of Life and Environment Committee hearing Monday, city council members will learn more about a State Implementation Plan produced by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to meet federal standards.
According to the briefing paperwork for the committee, the Environmental Protection Agency has called the state’s plan “inadequate” and Dallas city staff concurs.
The resolution the council will decide on calls for a stiffer SIP to meet federal standards.
According to the city report, DFW hasn’t met federal ozone standards since 1991 and must meet the current standard by July 2018 or risk losing federal funding, among other possible actions.
The Dallas document states that the SIP does not adequately address external stationary sources of greenhouse gas emissions. The city sites several studies showing concrete kiln plants south of the city, natural gas production to the west of the region and coal fired power plants to the east all contribute to DFW’s ozone issues.
The resolution says environmental quality and living conditions are paramount to the economic success of the region.
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The Dallas resolution calls for more renewable energy sources and the state to support such renewable sources. The city requests a clean air plan to improve ozone levels at an accelerated rate, to reduce the external stationary emissions, to have a cooperative dialogue between TCEQ, the EPA and the city, and to support the EPA’s Clean Power Plan.
Monday’s committee hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. For more information click here.
