Is the solution to severe smog in Houston more time?
Move over Los Angeles, the city of Houston, Texas is now also officially on the "severe smog problem" list. The reclassification was requested by Governor Rick Perry last year and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) made the change last Thursday. This move from "moderate" bypasses the level of "serious" and gives the state an additional nine years to meet federal health standards that were originally set in 1997. They were supposed to meet the goal by 2010. Although the 1997 levels are now no longer deemed safe, EPA spokesperson Catherine Milbourn said progress towards that original goal will help protect people and help the area move closer to today's requirements. We not sure how making a classification change and a nine-year extension counts as progress but it seems that the regional business association, the "Greater Houston Partnership," is down with the decision. Their spokesperson said, "The partnership believes that improvement in air quality is important in order to maintain a robust, viable economic climate and to improve public health in the region." Huh? It sounds like a lot of talking and not much doing. The Galveston-Houston Association for Smog Prevention (GHASP) agrees. Their executive director, Matthew Tejada, said of the decision, "We've just done a bureaucratic dance, and we're not any closer to clean air."
Its not only Houston residents that are responsible for the problem. The area is home to many oil refineries that handle product bound for markets throughout the South of the country. While the region has taken some steps to improve the air quality, we all can help out by reducing our personal petroleum usage.
[Source: Associated Press]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
stas peterson 2:55PM (10/09/2008)
There are now only two areas in the country remaining, that really have any smog problem. These are Los Angeles basin and metropolitan Houston. These two cities still record pollution that numbers in the 20-30s of days of "bad air" per year. Even though the criteria for what is "bad air " has gotten progressively tougher over time.
Everywhere else, they still record one or two occasional per year, measurement of "bad air from one or two of the myriad sensors within a metropolis for at least one 15 minute measurement. But obviously these are almost technical violations and the air is essentially "clean" as determined by the EPA monitors of levels of toxic pollutants.
Still even LA is better, Instead of 250 days of very "bad air" a sit used ot be in the 1940s through, the 1980s, now there are 20-30 days of "not-as-bad "air. Ditto for Houston. When these two areas cleanup, then the USA can Declare Victory. It has been a 35 year battle to cleanse the air and waters, but we wil have succeeded.. There ar eno rivers that as polluted as before and Salmon have returned to most Northeastern rivers.
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BoneHeadOtto 5:05PM (10/06/2008)
good luck reducing personal petrol usage in Houston. Everything is spread out and there is no good public transportation.
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paulwesterberg 5:22PM (10/06/2008)
Paris has a similar population, but they have a 2 interconnected subway systems that move 4.5 million people everyday. Oh wait, I forgot this is texas so the answer to the question must be "drill baby drill"
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Doug 12:18AM (10/07/2008)
As a transplant who worked in the NASA community at JSC on the skirts of Houston, I can attest that there is no public transportation worthy of speaking of but in their defense, the soil conditions do not allow a subway. There are other things they could be doing, but please, leaving engineering to those that understand engineering instead of making so such sweeping, ignorant comments. Thanks.
M-SIL 8:05PM (10/06/2008)
The Houston area has the highest concentration of Oil refineries in the world which supplies petroleum products mostly for the southeast USA. Most or probably all of them are not up to EPA regulations which is a leading cause of excessive smog. Why? Because to them, it is cheaper for them to pay the fines than update there refineries. If the EPA enforce much higher fines and etc, maybe the they could update the refineries which could cut the air pollution by 20-35%.
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Greg 11:56PM (10/06/2008)
Makes me so glad to be in Austin where we have a healthy economy AND clean air...............
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Chris 11:06AM (10/07/2008)
As Doug alluded public mass transit in Houston faces many problems from the soil subsiding every year. This also has an effect on the use of buses and small econocars as when it rains an inch(which is quite often) quite a few of the streets become impassable if you are in a small car. If you are waiting for a bus alongside the street you might as well be wearing a wetsuit. The whole Gulf flood plain from Mobile west into Texas sinks every year about 1/4" IIRC. This has however been made worse in the big metro areas where ground water has been pumped out exacerbating the existing soil subsidence problem. This is why you see everyone driving big 1 ton P/U's even though the great majority will never drive them out of town. It is a necessity if you net to get from point A to point B.
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fossritzgerad 3:44PM (9/10/2009)
What about the "L" like they have in Chicago? It is a train that is raised above ground, so it is not slowed down by traffic and weather conditions, and by virtue of it being on a track it has significantly better drainage than the street traffic. The HOV lanes that run above the highways would make for decent rapid bus lanes that are much more cost effective than light rail. I know they have adopted this in some South American cities. Not sure which cities. In SF their buses are hybrid electric and bio-diesel buses that run on the city's restaurant waste. At some point you gotta think the oil town just wants to run on oil.
Chris 11:14AM (10/07/2008)
Houston would however be the perfect place to mandate the use of CNG vehicles. Forcing the turnover of the Class A and Class B trucks to new diesel engines would also do alot for the air quality in Houston.
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Chris 11:25AM (10/07/2008)
Austin's air isn't anything to brag about IIRC. San Antonio and Austin need to build a good light rail system now while real estate prices are still reasonable in the I-35 corridor between them. They are in fact now one Metro Area and they need to start acting like it. There has to be a light rails system that runs from San Antonio to Round Rock built and the sooner the better. With TXDOT,s massive waste and incompetence(failure to actually carry out required environmental studies)it is only a matter of time before they stop upgrading I-35 turning it into a 90 mile parking lot.
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Chris 5:05PM (10/07/2008)
I happen to live in Houston, well the outskirts. I would wholeheartedly agree that Houston would be perfect for CNG cars. Unfortunately our mayor is a wuss and is too scared to step on the toes of the big oil companies to clean up their act. He just now stepped up and said they need to reduce the mercury levels or else. Right-o Mr. Mayor.
I love Houston and what it has to offer but mass transit is not one of them. The only rail we have is the METRORail but the track is only 7.5 and takes 30 minutes from the start to the end. 30 MINUTES! Of course when they try to expand it they face opposition from landowners who refuse to sell the land to Metro for expansion of the rail. I doubt they will ever expand it more than what they need. It's supposed to go to both airports but if it takes 30 minutes to ride 7.5 miles, forget about it.
One idea i propose if to expand the highways even more. Instead of outwards, expand vertically. Have a highway on top of a highway, the bottom for intown driving and the top for further distance driving. The more you expand outward the more congestion you will have, the more traffic accidents you will be in therefor more pollution of idling cars.
Another real solution if expanding some type of rail or trolley system for the outlying communities that cause the congestion in the first place. A pod system would be great. Almost like a high speed enclosed ski lift system. Has to be cheaper. Have them running from the outlying communities to downtown.
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