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Hearings on Proposed Updates to Federal Clean Air Standards to be Held in Denver, Dallas, Pittsburgh
Contact: Jeremy Nichols (303) 573-4898 x 1303

Denver—OnSeptember 28, 2011, citizens throughout the Rocky Mountain West will be callingon the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to follow through with itsproposal to tighten air pollution limits for oil and gas drilling, noting thatthe region’s clean air has suffered serious declines in recent years due tounchecked emissions.

At a public hearing that will be held on Wednesday at the ColoradoConvention Center in Denver, the EPA will take testimony on a proposal togreatly improve air quality in the face of ramped up oil and gas drillingnationwide. First released in lateAugust, environmental and public health groups across the country haveapplauded the agency’s efforts to strengthen nationwide air quality safeguardsfor oil and gas development. Individuals and groups from the region intend to voice their support,but also call on the EPA to ensure that public health comes first.

Hearings will also be held in Pittsburgh on September 27 andin Dallas on September 29.

The EPA’s proposed rules promise innumerable benefits,including:

• The proposed rules would generate a net savingsof $30 million annually due to increased recovery of methane, otherwise knownas natural gas.
• Theproposed rules would reduce volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions by 540,000tons, an industry-wide reduction of 25%. VOCs react with sunlight to form ground-level ozone, the key ingredientof smog and contain other toxic compounds.
• Theproposed rules would reduce methane emissions by 3.4 million tons, which isequal to 65 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, a reduction of about26%. This will be likeeliminating the carbon dioxide emissions of 15 coal-fired power plants.
• Theproposed rules would reduce toxic air pollutants, such as benzene, a knowncarcinogen, by 38,000 tons, a 30% reduction.

Because state air quality regulations must at least be asstringent as federal regulations, the final rules will ultimately provide astronger safety net for public health across the United States.

The proposal comes as air pollution from the oil and gasindustry is increasingly impacting communities across the country. Fracking has enabled more extensive andintensive drilling than ever before. Growing smog problems and increasing exposure to cancer-causing benzeneand other toxic compounds have been reported more and more frequently to beassociated with oil and gas drilling.

However, federal air quality regulations have failed to keeppace with these challenges, leaving significant air pollution sourcescompletely unregulated. One set ofregulations were adopted in 1985 and have not been updated since. In 2009, WildEarth Guardians filed suitagainst the Agency to spur the proposed updates.

More Details

Public hearings on the EPA’s proposal to update air qualitystandards for the oil and gas industry.

Pittsburgh

Tuesday September 27
David L. Lawrence Convention Center, Rooms 315-316 (100 Ft.Duquesne Blvd.)
9 A.M. to 8:P.M.

Denver

Wednesday September 28
Colorado Convention Center, Room 207 (700 14^thSt.)
9 A.M. to 8 P.M.

Dallas (Arlington)

Thursday September 29
Arlington Municipal Building, City Council Chambers (101 W.Abram St., Arlington, TX
8 A.M. to 9 P.M.