State may revise rules for clean air
11:07 PM 4/21/03
Ron Seely Environment reporter

A new rule being considered today by the state Natural Resources Board would add 153 hazardous air contaminants, many of which are thought to cause cancer and other illnesses, to the list of pollutants regulated by the state.

The revisions are the first updates to the air pollution rule, known as NR445, since it was adopted in 1988.

Among the new contaminants that would be added to the list of 429 regulated substances are diesel fumes produced by stationary diesel engines, such as generators, and chromium, a carcinogen that is used in foundries and in pigments and dyes.

In addition to adding 153 contaminants, the proposal would toughen standards for an additional 130 substances already regulated, such as the nerve toxins toluene, a solvent, and styrene, which is used to make fiberglass.

Despite a four-year process involving environmental groups and many state business associations, the proposed changes remain controversial.

Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC), for example, will testify against the proposal because of the potential expense to state business owners. Some environmental groups, on the other hand, are displeased that the proposed regulations would not include more rigorous oversight of additional pollutants, such as mercury.

Caroline Garber, who is chief of the DNR's environmental studies section and who will present the plan to the board today, said the proposed rule is important because it regulates pollution at the local level, in neighborhoods where small businesses such as foundries and small manufacturers are located.

"We're concerned about pollution locally," Garber said.

In addition to adding pollutants and toughening standards for existing contaminants, the changes would streamline the regulatory process, Garber said. The rule, for example, would ease regulations for businesses that are unlikely to emit hazardous air pollutants. This includes most non-manufacturing businesses and manufacturers that emit very low levels of pollutants.

Under this provision, the number of businesses in Wisconsin regulated under the proposal would be reduced from 260,000 to about 1,500, according to the DNR.

For those businesses that do fall under the new regulations, the DNR would create a streamlined permitting process.

Jeff Schoepke, a spokesman for WMC, said the business association is pleased with parts of the proposed rule that would simplify the regulatory process. But he added that the group will ask the Natural Resources Board to veto the parts of the proposal that increase the number of regulated substances.

Schoepke said the increased regulation would cost Wisconsin businesses more than $100 million during the first year of the program, according to one study.

But Garber said another study by the state Department of Commerce showed the cost to be much lower, about $2.5 million. She said the figure being used by WMC is not accurate because the cost to large polluters was averaged across the state.

Schoepke, however, argued that the Department of Commerce figure is wrong because it doesn't take into account the amount of time businesses would have to spend on the new regulations.

"That number is based on companies taking as little as two hours to figure out whether the rule applies," Schoepke said. "But when the DNR walked some businesses through the rules, it took them half a day. It's just crazy to think a company, large or small, can get through this in two hours."

Caryl Terrell, with the Sierra Club, said the proposed rule is an improvement. But she added that more substances should have been on the list, especially those that are emitted into the air, such as mercury, but end up in water.

Nor, Terrell said, does the rule take into account those substances, such as mercury and some pesticides, that become dangerous by accumulating over time.

"But we do want this rule to go forward and be accepted by the Legislature," Terrell said.