April 4, 2001, may be remembered as a turning point in the effort to reverse the long-term decline of North Carolina’s air quality.

In the early morning hours of that day, 130 citizens from Western North Carolina and across the state boarded buses and carpooled together to the state capitol to voice support for the passage of strong clean air legislation. At 11:30 that morning, Sen. Steve Metcalf and Rep. Martin Nesbitt, both of Buncombe County, accompanied by many of their colleagues from the mountains, announced they would that day introduce the North Carolina Clean Smokestacks Act to address the largest sources of pollution in our state: coal fired power plants. If passed, this bill which would dramatically reduce emissions from our state’s 14 coal-fired power plants, by far the largest sources of air pollution in North Carolina. Passage of the Clean Smokestacks Act would also place North Carolina in a strong position to provide regional and national leadership for clean air.

Other mountain legislators have pledged their support for the act, including Rep. Phil Haire from Jackson County, and Marge Carpenter from Haywood, and Sen. Bob Carpenter of Macon County. As mountain citizens, we should be proud that so many members of our western delegation, both Democrats and Republicans, have stepped forward to lead the fight for clean air in our state.

There is good reason for legislators to focus on improving our coal-fired power plants. The 14 Duke and CP&L facilities in North Carolina were all built prior to 1975 and were “grandfathered” in under the federal Clean Air Act. They are exempt from compliance with modern air quality standards. As a result, these 14 facilities by themselves create most of our state’s air pollution.

In fact, these power plants produce 45 percent of the nitrogen oxides, 82 percent of the sulfur dioxides and 65 percent of the mercury emissions in North Carolina. These pollutants are primarily responsible for the increasing haze in our mountains, public health warning in our piedmont communities and toxic contamination of fisheries in our coastal rivers and estuaries. The Clean Smokestacks Act would reduce each of these pollutants by about 75 percent over the next decade.

Increasing pollution levels present a significant threat to public health in all parts of North Carolina. High concentrations of ground level ozone have made more than one in three summer days unhealthy for children and other sensitive groups to participate in outdoor recreational activities in our mountains and piedmont communities. More than 1,800 North Carolinians die prematurely each year from exposure to particulate matter from power plants.

Perhaps most disturbing, more than one in ten women of childbearing age are at risk of having newborns with neurological damage due to high levels of in utero mercury exposure. Fetuses are exposed to mercury primarily through their mother’s consumption of contaminated fish. Again, 65 percent of the mercury emissions in North Carolina are created by coal-fired power plants. Once mercury enters the environment, it never goes away. The Clean Smokestacks Act would dramatically reduce our mercury emissions.

Air pollution is also a growing threat to our state’s economy, particularly to $12 billion dollar tourism industry, which depends on clear mountain views, clean rivers and healthy fisheries. Industrial recruitment will be stifled and federal highway dollars will be frozen as more parts of our state are designated as “non-attainment” areas for air pollution.

Critics of the Clean Smokestacks Act make two points, both of which are legitimate concerns. Implementing the act will require investment, but the costs will be modest. To achieve the full reductions called for in the bill, the average residential customers bill by $3 to $4 per month. So a bill of $100 would rise to $104 - a small price to pay for reducing our state’s pollution emissions by half. Duke Power representatives describe the pollution reduction goals as “aggressive but achievable.”

The other argument is that because pollution from neighboring states drifts into North Carolina, we should not bother to clean up our power plants. It’s true that pollution does not respect state borders. Passage of the Clean Smokestacks Act will not be the final remedy to all of the air pollution in North Carolina. However, passage of this act will empower Gov. Mike Easley and our congressional delegation to provide the critical regional and national leadership needed for clean air.

The upcoming Southeastern Governors Summit on Air Quality, to be held on May 31-June 1 in Gatlinburg represents the best opportunity of the year to make progress at the regional level. The legislature should pass the Clean Smokestacks Act before the summit so that Gov. Easley can arrive at this important event and provide leadership by example. Gov. Easley must be able to declare that North Carolina was the first state, but will not be the last, to take strong action for clean air.

(Newman is the executive coordinator of the Western North Carolina Alliance. Reach him at 828.258.8737 or brownie@wnca.org)

 

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