Air quality continues to improve, but not at the same rate everywhere, researchers find.
Tag: air quality
Showing 1-21 of 35 results
Letter: Fix needed to stop trash burning in Buncombe
“What I’m complaining about is the ineffectiveness of trying to put an end to this burning.”
Q&A: Ashley Featherstone of Asheville-Buncombe Air Quality Agency
Growing up in Hendersonville, Ashley Featherstone assumed she would move away for work. “I was always told that you could never find a job here,” she recalls. “There are [fewer] jobs here than there are in places like Atlanta and Charlotte. But I just decided that I was going to find a job.” And she […]
Let’s ban open burning in Buncombe County
“Residents’ health shouldn’t have to suffer when there are practical alternatives to open burning.”
Green in brief: WNC shows air quality improvement, AG Stein awards $340K to area environmental work
According to a new study by Filterbuy, an air filter industry website, the median air quality index in the Asheville metropolitan area was 15.3% better over the period from 2015-2019 compared with the period from 2005-2009. The Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton and Greenville, S.C., metros also showed big improvements.
Letter: Charlotte Street ‘road diet’ will worsen air quality
“Come on, Asheville, can’t we think of a more thoughtful and efficient way to promote clean energy?”
Three WNC counties to be removed from vehicle emissions program
As of Saturday, Dec. 1, vehicle owners in Haywood, Henderson and Rutherford counties will no longer have to submit their cars and light-duty trucks to an annual emissions inspection. Inspections remain in place for Buncombe and 21 additional counties, while the three other counties bordering Buncombe — Madison, McDowell and Yancey — have never required them.
Letter: Air sampling for mold offers valuable data
“It is important and a standard practice to perform air sampling, before and after mold remediation, to ensure reduction of high concentrations and effective containment during remediation.”
CTS clean-up moves forward as community wrestles with torrid past
Cleanup efforts are finally beginning at the CTS of Asheville Superfund site on Mills Gap Road, but past controversies and a lack of trust in Environmental Protection Agency officials continued to dominate the discussion during a Nov. 30 public meeting to review the impending remedial projects and address residents’ concerns.
Letter: Offer input on Community Bill of Rights
“When it comes to protecting our land, air and water, the people of Asheville need a law that guarantees our rights.”
Air quality’s improving — but let’s not get complacent
“This is a remarkable environmental success story! Many agencies and organizations can be proud of their contributions to this. Together, they’ve demonstrated that bold action at many different levels can successfully address serious environmental issues.”
Air apparent: monitoring air quality in the mountains
We all have to breathe to live, and the good news is that here in Western North Carolina, the quality of the air we all share is much better than it was just a few years ago. Across North Carolina, government employees are monitoring air quality and the associated health risks to make sure they stay within specified legal parameters. Meanwhile, citizen volunteers are also collecting data and working to make more information available to the public.
Drought ironies
WNC Air Quality Agency renews Duke Energy Title V permit
On Monday, July 11, the Western North Carolina Air Quality Agency renewed Duke Energy Progress’ Title V permit for its Lake Julian coal plant facility. This type of operating permit is regulated under the federal Clean Air Act and must be renewed every five years by most businesses whose facilities emit hazardous air pollutants, whether […]
Wildfires and pollen create air quality issues for some WNC residents
The unique combination of wildfires and high pollen counts in WNC this season may be contributing to the rise in allergies.
Where there’s smoke, there’s ire
UPDATE: Asheville City Council asks local agency to toughen SO2 standard on Duke Energy plant
At tonight’s meeting, April 28, Asheville City Council members may agree to ask the local air agency to “strengthen” proposed limits on sulphur dioxide emissions at Duke Energy’s local power plant. The move comes ahead of a Wednesday, April 29, public hearing that the Western North Carolina Regional Air Quality Agency will hold to consider renewing the air permit for the Duke Energy plant.
New study cites increased sulphur dioxide emissions at Duke’s Asheville plant
Beyond Coal and the Sierra Club released a study today, Feb. 19, indicating that Duke Energy’s Asheville plant may be exceeding federally regulated levels of sulphur dioxide, a toxin that aggravates asthma and causes other health problems. “Somewhere in the Asheville area, that [federal] standard is being exceeded about once every three to four days,” said Howard Gebhart of Air […]
Asheville press conference: Power-plant carbon rules will promote better health
Clean Air Carolina and its MAHA initiative (Medical Advocates for Healthy Air) held an Asheville press conference Wednesday. Sept. 17, to highlight President Obama’s latest proposal to limit carbon pollution from the nation’s power plants — and the positive health impacts of the plan. Power plants are responsible for 52 percent of North Carolina’s carbon pollution. “Climate change […]
WNC Regional Air Quality Agency approves facility permit modification for Flint Group
At the Jan. 13 WNC Regional Air Quality meeting, the agency approved a permit modification for Day International, Inc. dba Flint Group, a fabricated rubber and urethane manufacturer that makes products for the printing industry.
On a clear day: Visibility has improved, but you can’t (yet) see forever in WNC
On a clear day, you can’t see forever in Shining Rock, and pollution is the cause.
