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Allegheny County health board dilutes air rules
January 9, 2013 2:22 pm
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Two months after the Allegheny County health board approved controls for toxic air emissions, it decided to weaken them.
The board today approved, on a 6-0 vote with two abstentions, an amendment to move the "public exposure boundary" -- the spot where the public health risk is measured -- to the nearest habitable stucture. Originally, emissions were measured at the industry's property line.
The board voted 7-1 in November to approve air toxics guidelines containing the stricter property line measurement.
The change could allow more emissions of air toxics, which are pollutants that can cause cancer, said Michael Bett, a councilman in Ben Avon, located across the Ohio River from highly industrialized Neville Island.
Don Hopey: dhopey@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1983.
First Published January 9, 2013 2:21 pm
First Published January 9, 2013 2:21 pm
