With the threat of missing another benchmark for improving air quality hovering like a blanket of summer smog, Colorado’s top environmental officials are asking the legislature for $47 million to hire more people and build better technology for monitoring unhealthy air, especially along the northern Front Range.
Colorado’s Air Pollution Control Division expects the Environmental Protection Agency later this year to classify the state as a severe violator of federal air quality laws after the state recorded its worst-ever ozone levels during the summer of 2021, division director Michael Ogletree said in an interview with The Denver Post.
In 2019, the EPA declared Colorado a serious violator, forcing more enforcement of air pollution controls, and a move to the severe classification would further increase those enforcements to reign in the state’s worsening ozone problem.
“Weve heard from folks that we will be reclassified to severe in the near future,” Ogletree said. “Were preparing for that.
Ogletree said that a change to its status with EPA would lead to lower emissions thresholds from manufacturers and other industrial facilities. This would create more work for Air Pollution Control Division, Ogletree explained.
The division needs the $47 million requested from the legislature to prepare for the incoming workload, and the larger budget would help put more programs in place to control greenhouse gas and other emissions that deteriorate the Front Range’s air quality and harms people’s health.
A more strict classification also would impact the state’s oil and gas industry.
Gov. Jared Polis requested the money in the budget that he presented to the legislature.
As the Front Range population increases, so does their number of gasoline-powered vehicles and trucks. These vehicles are the No. 1 source of nitrous oxide emissions, which is a major contributor to the region’s ozone problem. Volatile organic compounds are released into the atmosphere by power plants and oil and natural gas production facilities. Larger wildfires in West contribute to the problem.
In the summer of 2021, the ozone levels at 16 state measuring stations exceeded 78 parts/billion, which is above the federal health standard (70 ppb). And scientists expect the Front Range’s air quality to continue to deteriorate unless immediate action is taken.
The governor is also working closely with Democrats to create additional laws that would address the increasing air pollution. There are several bills in the pipeline this year. They would spend nearly $125 million to purchase a fleet electric school buses, replace older diesel trucks with cleaner ones, make electric bikes more accessible, and allow for free public transportation fares during the worst days of summer ozone.
Already, the state has enacted new laws and regulations in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. But many of those things take years to make a difference, and Polis’s administration hopes this year’s asks will have a more immediate impact, said Jill Hunsaker Ryan, executive director of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
“The thing thats probably hard for the public to understand is weve had so much go on in the last few years with these laws and regulations, but the state hasnt seen the full benefit of these actions yet,” Hunsaker Ryan said.
Ogletree and Ogletree stated that the Air Pollution Control Division uses a permit system that was established in the 1990s. However, complex applications for air permits are still submitted on paper. They want to move everything to a digital format and create online dashboards where people can check the state’s various pollution levels in near real-time.
“We can provide transparency to the community and everyone who is interested,” Hunsaker Ryan said.
The division employs approximately 185 people. If the budget request is approved, it would pay additional 106 full-time equivalent jobs, Ogletree stated.
Polis administration wants huge infusions of money for its air quality division. One reason is a change to the way the division is funded. Hunsaker Ryan stated that the fees charged to industry provide the financial support for the division. In the past, however, the legislature had to increase fees.
“That always was a tough thing to do and it just didnt happen,” she said. “Politically, it was a tough thing to do to go the legislature and get fees raised on industry.”
In 2019, the legislature allowed the Air Quality Control Commission to set the fees, but the commission didn’t want to place a sharp increase on industry right from the start, Hunsaker Ryan said. The budget request would provide the division with the funding it needs to increase its technology and staffing over the next two years.
“This is the way we intend to solve the problem of long-term underinvestment,” she said.
So far, Colorado’s efforts to improve air quality are earning support from environmental advocacy groups.
The Southwest Energy Efficiency Project is a public interest group that promotes energy efficient in six western states, including Colorado. They are urging the legislature approve the package of measures to improve air quality to combat drought, wildfires, and other climate disasters.
The organization supports the legislation but does not agree with certain parts. For example, one bill would replace aging diesel trucks with newer models, but the groupwants all diesel trucks off the roads, said Will Frommer, the group’s senior transportation association.
“It seems like we are going backwards to create a new program for diesel trucks when we need to go all-in on electric trucks,” Frommer said. “We dont have time to waste.”
2022 Air Quality Legislation
SB22-193
- To provide grants for local governments and industrial plants, create a $25 million fund. This fund will support energy efficiency and renewable energies projects. The fund would allow for projects that use hydrogen fuel, electric cars, and projects to reduce carbon emissions. The grant program would end on September 1, 2029.
- To increase public access to electric bikes through grants and rebates, create a $12 million fund. The program would be ended on September 1, 2028.
- Spend $15 million to decommission old diesel trucks in Colorado and to replace them with more efficient, fuel-efficient models. The grant money would be available to public and private entities until July 1, 2032.
- Buy electric school buses for Colorado starting September 1, 2034 at $65 million
- $7 million for the state health department to cover aerial surveillance of pollutants
- Provides $750,000 to state health department for free RTD passes to employees
- Annual fees for industry are set at $1 million. They can rise each year until they reach $5,000,000 on July 1, 2024.
SB22-180
This bill$14 million would be set aside to provide free public transport, mainly via RTD, for one month every year when ozone levels are at their highest. It also would provide $30 million to expand Bustang, the state’s regional bus service.
HB22-1244
A Proposal that would give the state’s Air Quality Control Commission the authority to adopt rules that are more stringent than the federal Clean Air Act. The commission would be responsible for regulating toxic air contaminants. Companies that release air pollutants would need to submit annual reports detailing the amount they emit. To monitor and regulate emissions, the bill would also create a state-wide air quality monitoring system.
