Oct. 21: This post has been updated to reflect an extension to the public comment period and an updated fact sheet.
From now until November 10, members of the public (this means you!) can help shape the Air Quality program launching as part of Washington’s Climate Commitment Act. The state Department of Ecology is accepting comments and holding public meetings to receive feedback on the Improving Air Quality in Overburdened Communities Initiative. It’s time to use your voice to speak up for cleaner air for all of Washington’s communities.
Learn more about how risk differs across our communities with the Environmental Health Disparities Map.
Everyone in our state is invited to comment, but Ecology especially wants to hear from residents of overburdened communities — neighborhoods where people are exposed to pollution or contaminants through multiple pathways, which may increase the risks to their health. These risks include high rates of asthma, cardiovascular disease, autism, low birth weight, lung cancer and other conditions.
Ecology is seeking input from the public primarily on the indicators to use to identify an overburdened community highly impacted by air pollution. Comments may also cover topics such as the types of air monitors to deploy to communities, how communities would like to see air quality improved, and other factors influencing local air quality monitoring practices in your community.
Download this fact sheet to learn more about air pollution, existing legislation, gaps in our monitoring system and how it all applies to Washington’s new climate laws.
Passed by the Legislature and signed into law in 2021, the Climate Commitment Act represents a promise to people across Washington — that while the state works to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through the law’s cap-and-invest program, it will also focus on improving air quality in communities that bear outsized burdens from pollution. This public comment period is a key opportunity to make the air quality program as strong as possible, to help make it easier to breathe for some of our most vulnerable neighbors.
commenting is simple
Fill out an online form, attend a virtual public comment session, leave a voicemail for Ecology staff, or send a letter in the regular mail. Contact information for all of these methods is available on Ecology’s Public Comment page.
Thank you for speaking up!
Banner photo by Mike Wilkinson.
