Oct. 3, 2003
William A.
Burke, a leader in environmental justice and other air quality programs, was
re-elected today to chair the South Coast Air Quality Management District’s
Governing Board.
AQMD’s Governing Board re-elected Burke to serve
as its chair for a two-year term beginning on Jan. 15, 2004. Elected to his
fourth term, Burke’s leadership tenure is the longest on AQMD’s Board.
A Board member since 1993, he has served three
terms as chairman: from August 1997 to December 1999; from January 2000 to
December 2001, and from January 2003 to present. He also served as vice chair
from December 1994 to August 1997 and January 2002 to December 2002.
During previous terms as chair, Burke introduced
landmark AQMD programs for Environmental Justice, Children and Senior Citizens.
The Board today also re-elected Riverside County
Supervisor S. Roy Wilson as vice chair, also for a two-year term beginning on
Jan. 15. A member of AQMD’s Governing Board since 1988, Wilson has served as
vice chair since January 2003.
Localized Significance Thresholds Adopted
To better protect public health, particularly in
areas with higher air pollution, AQMD’s Board today adopted a detailed set of
voluntary guidelines to assist local governments in analyzing potential local
air quality impacts from development projects.
The Localized Significance Threshold Methodology
is one of 23 items in AQMD’s Environmental Justice program enhancements adopted
in September 2002.
The methodology includes easily read look-up
tables to help local governments determine whether projects under five acres,
such as strip malls and small residential projects, will significantly affect
local air quality.
The methodology is meant as an optional
enhancement to projects analyzed under the California Environmental Quality Act
(CEQA). It will be phased in during a pilot program over the next nine months.
In other action today,
the Board:
- Set a public hearing for November 7 to amend both Rule 1171 –
Solvent Cleaning Operations, and Regulation XX -- RECLAIM. The amendments to
Rule 1171 address advances in low-VOC cleaning technology. Amendments to
RECLAIM will provide for the re-entry of power plants back into the RECLAIM
trading market; and
- Approved $250,000 in projects to demonstrate fuel cell vehicles,
augment hydrogen storage and fueling technologies, and provide infrastructure
maintenance.
AQMD is the air pollution control agency for
Orange County and major portions of Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside
counties.
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