1999-02-08 Regular Meeting, Public Hearing and Special Called Workshop Minutes of City Council

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e e PRINCIPLES FOR CLEANER AIR Principles to Clean Aur Now The following principles should guide the creation of a strategy enabling the region to reach attainment of the ozone standard. A collaborative process involving the various stakeholders in the region should be utilized to forge air quality solutions from this point forward. . Contributiollls to ozone non-attainment come from every segment of the region. Consequently, every person, government entity and all businesses of the region, including mobile sources, off road construction equipment, permitted or grandfathered point sources, should do their part to reduce nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compound (VQC) emissions. . Control strategies should be implemented as expeditiously as practicable to realize health benefits and prevent imposition of sanctions upon the region. . The ozone standard should be attained at the lowest economic and social costs considering effects on lifestyle to the citizens of the region; . Local flexibility should be preserved to the greatest extent possible; . Some emission control strategies are best implemented at the national level, such as those on automobiles and consumer goods, and, hence, should be accelerated if they contribute to attainment at lower costs and less adverse impacts than other controls. . Control strategy options considered should include all technically feasible ones prioritized by their relative benefit to cost characteristics; . Economic incentives should be explored as part of the area's attainment approach. . All reasonable efforts should be made to avoid State Implementation Plan (SIP) disapproval by EP A. If ozone attainment cannot be reached by reducing ozone precursors to the maximum technically feasible and cost-efficient extent, other options to obtain SIP approval will be explored. . Encourage TNRCC to undertake a comprehensive air quality research strategy to provide additional scientific information ne.:es'.ary for design of ozone control programs which can be reasonably expected to reduce ozone formation and public exposure to ozone. The public health of area residents, the vibrancy of the region's economy and continued transportation improvements are only assured if a sound, acceptable ozone compliance plan is developed and implemented. Endorsed by Houston-Galveston Area Council Board of Directors on December 15, 1998.