Easy ways to throttle back under legal limits

How easy is it to avoid a speeding ticket? Easy. Slow down.

When it comes to the question of how to keep Butte and the Mat-Su Borough from exceeding federal EPA healthy air limits that could cause and EPA enforcement action against the Borough, the answer is similar. Slow down.

In recent years, Butte has trended towards the outer limits of allowable levels of small particles (called PM 2.5) that are mainly caused by smoke from burning green wood, slash, and trash on cold still air inversion days in winter.

There seems to be more understanding that the Butte has an air quality problem that needs to be dealt with locally and that enforcement by the EPA needs to be avoided. In 2016 it was a rounding error of one-tenth of one point that kept the Borough out of “non-attainent.” At the end of 2017 two or three additional days of violations could have triggered a “non-attainment” classification that could have forced the Borough into 20 years of onerous and expensive regulatory drudgery with the EPA.

Luckily those violations didn't happen before the end of 2017. Then, 2018 was an excellent year with only one violation. Was it the good weather? People burning drier wood? Fewer slash piles? All of the above? We do know 2018 was warmer with more active air patterns.

Now, that we literally have a little breathing space, is a good time to find a solution that keeps air levels from exceeding healthy limits and avoids possible enforcement action by the federal EPA and state DEC.

Last December the Borough Planning Commission considered a proposal for an easy no-cost solution asking residents of the Butte area not to burn outside during cold air inversion days. It creates healthier air and reduces the risk that EPA classify the Butte into the “non-attainment” enforcement action. The Butte air problems are not severe, and fairly easy to keep from violating the EPA standards with some basic activities:

• Borough will continue providing healthy air advisories and also begin calling healthy air alerts on the handful of days violations occur or are forecast to occur.

• During air alerts people are asked to delay outside burning of slash, trash and burn barrels to avoid adding more smoke to the air—similar to summer burn bans to keep errant sparks and flame from igniting fires

• Ensuring people's right to heat their homes without regulating wood stoves

• Continuing education and prevention efforts to burn dry wood more efficiently and invite local problem solving.

• Designating a unique Butte Air District focuses on a local solution in problem area that helps keep the 100,000 non-Butte residents of the Borough from being roped into air quality enforcement.

• No additional personnel or additional budget is needed to carry out the proposal

• It creates a local track record of working prevention activities to solve the fairly minor air problem which is important in case violations return and risk “non-attainment” classification.

• These simple prevention measures provide a backstop giving the Borough a seat at the table to advocate for local citizens against unneeded enforcement by federal EPA and state DEC

A large community meeting was held at Butte Elementary School in January where people could ask questions directly to representatives of state DEC, the Borough and the Alaska Lung Association.

The proposal recognizes Mat-Su residents' way of life including their right to heat their homes with wood. It does not allow Borough regulation of wood stoves or other heating sources.

Because Mat-Su is currently “in attainment” and not forced into federal regulations, we have the opportunity to implement simple steps to avoid federal regulation and have healthier air. The Planning Commission proposal was approved unanimously and will get its first public hearing before the Borough Assembly on March 5.

We simply need to find the best way to make an ounce of local prevention better than a ton of EPA cure.

Jim Sykes is a member of the Mat-Su Borough Assembly.

Jim Sykes serves as Member of the Mat-Su Borough Assembly and the opinions expressed are his own.