Proposal Would Guarantee Public Access to Air Quality Data

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – U.S. Sens. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Reps. Troy Carter (D-LA) and Paul Tonko (D-NY) reintroduced the Public Health Air Quality Act, which would strengthen air quality monitoring in communities near industrial sources of health-harming pollution.

“Accurate, up-to-date information on the air we breathe is critical for keeping families safe,” said Joanna Slaney, Environmental Defense Fund’s Vice President for Political and Government Affairs. “With millions of people living near high-polluting petrochemical facilities and other industrial sources of air pollution, adequate monitoring is needed for families to understand their health and environmental risks.

“By expanding the number of air pollution monitors, prioritizing placement in communities closest to polluting facilities and advancing the use of satellites to track pollution, Sen. Blunt Rochester has put forward a valuable proposal that would ensure everyone has information about the air they breathe.”

The Republican tax law rescinded funding for several air pollution monitoring and reduction programs. Sen. Blunt Rochester’s proposal would:

• Require fenceline monitoring at the most-polluting industrial facilities;
• Increase the quantity of monitors available to assess whether areas meet air quality standards;
• Require EPA to issue rules for monitoring and mitigating health-harming pollution at petrochemical facilities and other sources of harmful air pollution; and
• Ensure communities have access to the collected data.