Be prepared for smog sniffers up the tailpipes every two years, vapor recovery systems on gas pumps and a different formulation of gas which will cost us more at the pump. Tree City USA is overdeveloped in the downtown area and developments are being built with NO regard to vegetation.
At a meeting Dec. 4 in Jefferson City, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources will discuss the possibility of adding Springfield and neighboring areas to a short list of regions in the state where air quality is compromised.
Springfield would join St. Louis and Kansas City as air quality non-attainment areas under the plan to be discussed at the hearing in the Governor's Office Building. The designation could include Christian, Greene, Stone, Taney and Cedar counties.
The new ozone standard is an eight-hour average concentration of 75 parts per billion, according to a DNR news release.
Based on this revised standard, the state was required to evaluate areas for their compliance. Compliance with the standard is measured against a three-year average of monitoring data. Based on the 2005 to 2007 monitoring data, two distinct areas in southwest Missouri violate the 2008 eight-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard or NAAQS: Springfield and El Dorado Springs. However, the 2008 ozone season (April through October) was atypically mild. Based on preliminary data for the 2006-2008 ozone season, the Springfield area could remain within the acceptable standard. If more typical weather patterns return next year, the ozone levels may again increase.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has until March 12, 2010, to make final designations and the three-year period used to determine compliance will depend on the timing of designations.
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