Stakeholders across multiple disciplines met on July 11 to raise awareness of air quality concerns as the Alamo City edges closer to EPA “non-attainment” with increased ground level ozone levels (a.k.a. “smog”) from an economic boom in one of the fastest-growing metro areas.
Held at Rackspace’s global headquarters, the Keeping It Clean: Our Air, Our Health forum was the inaugural event for the San Antonio Clean Technology Forum in a region-wide effort to catalyze community education, informed discussions, and aggressive action to counteract the ever-growing ground-level ozone problem.
San Antonio has long prided itself as the last major metropolitan area in the U.S. to maintain compliance with federal air quality standards. That distinction was threatened in 2012, when the three-year average ground-level ozone reached 80 parts per billion (ppb), exceeding the Environmental Protection Agency’s standard of 75 parts per billion (ppb).
Violating clean air standards can result in costly compliance requirements, loss of federal highway funding, increased fuel prices and mandatory emissions offsetting. Additionally, economic development can take a hit as companies seek markets that are in attainment to avoid regulatory costs. Another concern discussed at the forum was the EPA’s announcement that it could soon lower the existing standard from 75 to 70 ppb. Along with concerns about potential impacts from the Eagle Ford Shale on regional ground-level ozone, the event engaged the breadth of challenges facing San Antonio.
Visit the San Antonio Clean Technology Forum at www.sacleantech.org to learn more about the concerns and opportunities posed by increased ground-level ozone in the San Antonio region.
Read more news coverage about the forum: http://www.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/blog/2013/07/san-antonio-leaders-air-concerns-about.html.
About San Antonio Clean Technology Forum
The Forum conducts education and information sharing through alliances and partnerships with other entities seeking to support and accelerate initiatives to reduce energy consumption, create financial savings, promote clean technology, and improve the environment while advancing economic development of the San Antonio region. In collaboration with partners and alliances, it seeks to contribute knowledge to key policy makers in government, education and industry to facilitate positive change in the South Texas region.
