State DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos announced Tuesday that New York is petitioning the EPA for its failure to address the movement of ozone from upwind states to downwind states. New York is asking that the EPA require power plants and large industrial sources in nine upwind states to reduce their contribution of pollution impacting New York. The petition is filed under Section 126 of the Clean Air Act, which allows a state to petition the EPA for a finding that sources or groups of sources in other state contribute to a state's inability to meet National Ambient Air Quality Standards established by the EPA. EPA has designated the New York-Northern New Jersey-Long lsland, NY-NJ-CT area as nonattainment with the 2008 NAAQS for ozone and indicated that it plans to designate New York as nonattainment with the 2015 ozone NAAQS. In addition, Chautauqua and Erie counties in Western New York are on the cusp of exceeding the 2015 NAAQS. Elevated ozone levels in New York State are due in part to emissions from polluting sources in upwind states.
