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46 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, February 26, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find a Rental Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Email Story to a Friend January 18, 2004 Industry bypasses valley Air quality restrictions prove too costly for most manufacturers By GREG STILES Mail Tribune Interest by large manufacturers in the Rogue Valley as a potential relocation site has been short-lived in recent years because of a single major stumbling block. Work force, transportation and technological infrastructure needs can be satisfied. But it’s air quality issues that cause manufacturers — and the hundreds of accompanying jobs they offer — to bypass the Rogue Valley. Late last year, Oregon’s Department of Environmental Quality proposed relaxed air quality rules that may allow manufacturers to take a longer look at White City, north Medford or other local industrial sites. The DEQ has set a second public meeting about the issue on Wednesday. Southern Oregon Regional Economic Development Inc. Executive Director Gordon Safley says that, in the past three to four years, roughly $400 million in manufacturing investment has bypassed Jackson County. That’s between 500 and 550 jobs that would have paid about $15 hour an hour, plus benefits, lost to present air quality restrictions. There are two primary reasons: The inability to obtain "emissions credits" and the cost of technology that reduces emissions on traditional manufacturing processes. Advertisement "At some point you cross lines where you can’t be competitive in the marketplace," Safley says. "In this particular case, they couldn’t purchase (emission) credits, then had to go strictly to the pollution control equipment, and it wasn’t cost effective to do that. "The problem in the Rogue Valley is (emission credits) are not available from other users," Safley says. "The exception is that if another company goes out of business, those credits can become available. "Up until two years ago, credits were only valid for a two-year period and then that went away entirely. Under current rules, the credits can be made available up to 10 years. But in the past two years, we haven’t had anyone go out of business that had a permit where the credits could have been exchanged, sold or bartered." John Becker, DEQ regional air quality manager, has compiled an extensive list of plants, or operations within plants, that have disappeared or discontinued since the late 1980s. Many of those emissions credits vanished. "Once the decision is made to close down, it takes a couple years to close the doors," Becker says. "Certainly the people closing down the plants had other things on their minds than selling or giving away the credits. So they ... go away." Current DEQ rules require companies to get special permits or buy emission credits if they emit more than 5 tons of PM-10, tiny particulate matter about one-seventh of the diameter of a human hair. The smaller the particle, the more potentially dangerous it is to human health. DEQ officials say the proposal is designed to ensure that federal and state air quality standards for PM-10 particulate matter are met through at least 2015. The proposal is based on computer modeling of pollution trends and population growth. "It’s a valid concern for people to think we’re lowering the bar, but in actuality it’s not going to happen," Becker says. "Where the pollution is coming from more and more, is on the road from mobile sources." Public Hearing WHAT: Public hearing on proposal to relax air quality rules to allow industrial growth in the Rogue Valley. WHEN: 5:30 p.m. Wednesday WHERE: South Medford High School auditorium, 815 S. Oakdale Ave., Medford. COMMENTS: Send them by Jan. 30 MAIL — David Collier, DEQ Air Quality Division, 811 S.W. Sixth Ave., Portland, OR 97204-1390; FAX — 503-229-5675 E-MAIL — [email protected] MORE INFO: www.deq.state.or.us/aq/index.htm www.rogueair.com Reach reporter Greg Stiles at 776-4463 or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. 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