Weld County pushes for transparent and data-driven ozone policies
Published on April 14, 2023
On March 16, 2023, Colorado Governor Jared Polis submitted a troubling letter directing state agencies to impose further regulations on the oil and gas sector to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides, or NOx, a precursor to ozone. Regrettably, Governor Polis’s letter misleads state agencies and the public by incorrectly asserting, “it is estimated that oil and gas extraction activities are responsible for almost half of total ozone in the Denver metro area.” Governor Polis’s claims run contrary to publicly available data from the Regional Air Quality Council (RAQC) – data specifically developed by experts using state-of-the-art modeling tools to evaluate how much each source contributes to ozone. The Governor also appears to rely on oil and gas emissions information that has not been made publicly available, leading to questions about the transparency of the process to develop ozone control strategies.
The Governor’s letter comes not long after the Colorado’s Air Pollution Control Division (APCD) and the RAQC reinitiated stakeholder meetings to address ozone in the North Front Range (NFR) in January 2023. Weld County has actively engaged with the RAQC and participated in their Control Strategy Committee and working group meetings since their inception in September 2021 and has provided concrete suggestions at the APCD’s listening sessions last year. As a vested partner, Weld County also submitted a letter to the RAQC and APCD in January providing specific, actionable recommendations to optimize ozone control strategy development in 2023. During a RAQC Board meeting last Friday on April 7, Weld County staff raised concerns with the lack of transparency in the Governor’s directive, corrected misinformation related to ozone contributions from different sources, and emphasized the need for data-driven ozone policies to make measurable improvements.
“To our knowledge, revised oil and gas emissions inventory data correcting the error identified during the December 2022 SIP rulemaking has not yet been released to stakeholders or the public. Weld County is concerned that these data have not been thoroughly vetted and are being used prematurely without a transparent stakeholder process.” said Dr. Annareli Morales, an Environmental Health Specialist in the Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment during the RAQC Board meeting on April 7, 2023.
“Weld County strongly recommends that any data being used to inform the development of control strategies – particularly data used for public-facing communications – be provided to stakeholders for review and verification prior to making decisions about control strategy needs, or worse, proceeding without an understanding of the efficacy of the controls. As noted in our letter to the RAQC, it is critical that we utilize the best available data for decision making and ensure these data are accurately presented and communicated to improve the public’s trust and confidence in the RAQC, AQCC and the Division,” said Dr. Morales.
Dr. Morales presented modeling data from the RAQC showing that the top four local NOx emissions source categories that contribute the most to ozone concentrations at key violating monitors are: passenger cars, construction activities, industrial point sources, and lawn and garden equipment – not oil and gas emissions. “We urge the RAQC and the Division to review Weld County’s recommendations provided in our letter to facilitate efficient and effective workgroup meetings,” said Dr. Morales.
As Colorado actively plans next steps in addressing ozone, Weld County continues to engage with the RAQC and APCD on ozone control strategy development to recommend common-sense solutions based on sound science and the best available data.