Jeremy Nichols spoke to students and faculty at the Sturm College of Law last week on Sept. 20, about Rocky Mountain Clean Air Action (RMCAA)’s mission to ensure compliance and accountability for the provisions of the Clean Air Act of 1990.
“Air pollution affects an entire community,” Nichols said as he explained the Front Range’s need for a “watch-dog organization dedicated to clean air issues.”
RMCAA, founded this past July, has already garnered what they call influential supporters, such as former head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Eric Schaffer, who serves as a member of the board of directors.
Nichols has started a grassroots organization hoping to educate and advocate for the community.
RMCAA’s primary function is to simplify the Clean Air Act of 1990, a complex document over 600 pages in length, for industry as well as the general public.
The Clean Air Act is the fundamental safeguard against air pollutants and is often regarded as the most powerful environmental legislation on record.
Under the Clean Air Act, states assume much of the responsibility for upholding the act’s provisions. Permits are issued by a state agency to industrial plants, factories, or any entity that releases pollutants into the air.
According to Nichols, the problem does not lie within the framework of the law, but rather in the enforcement of it. Accountability is the problem.
“We must hold states accountable, there needs to be better enforcement action against companies violating the act,” said Nichols. “Tracking polluters, securing stronger permits, and creating better monitoring and reporting procedures are ways to hold industry and developers accountable.”
Nichols said he has submitted a petition to the EPA in 2005 starting a legal process towards eliminating the widely abused ‘upset conditions’ loophole in Colorado, which allows permit holders to exceed emission limits on the grounds of a technical malfunction.
Nichols was drawn to the clean air cause from his experience at the Biodiversity Conservation Alliance where he worked to promote forest conservation and for protection of endangered species.
He feels that the mission of RMCAA overlaps well with his previous conservation and protection activities. Above all however, Nichols is concerned with air quality for human health reasons.
“One reason I started RMCAA is my four year-old son,” said Nichols who cited rising smog levels as aggravating those afflicted by asthma, children and the elderly.
“Over 300,000 pounds of volatile compounds is produced by just one compressor in Weld County north of Denver,” said Nichols. “In Lyons, a cement plant has over seventy one thousand violations alone.”
“If you suspect a violation you should contact the Air Pollution Control Division first,” said Nichols. “No visible emission is the standard.”
For those interested in Rocky Mountain Clean Air Action, Nichols encourages individuals to visit the RMCAA website at http://rmcleanair.blogspot.com.
This event was just one of many in the Environmental Law Clinic’s speaker series at the Sturm College of Law.
