FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies Holds 2018 Spring Meeting in Lexington, Kentucky
State and Local Air Agencies Welcome U.S. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, Discuss Key Opportunities for Cooperative Relationship with U.S. EPA
April 10, 2018
Lexington, KY
From April 4 to 6, the Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies (AAPCA) held its 2018 Spring Meeting in Lexington, Kentucky. The meeting included approximately 140 attendees, with senior air quality officials participating from roughly 30 state and local environmental agencies as well as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other federal agencies.
AAPCA’s Spring Meeting was highlighted by a ‘fireside chat’ with U.S. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, who spoke during the keynote luncheon with 2018 AAPCA President Stuart Spencer, Associate Director of the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality.
“Administrator Pruitt’s participation underscored this Administration’s dedication to cooperative federalism,” stated Mr. Spencer. “We look forward to continuing a relationship with EPA that allows for discussions such as these, in which agencies that are on the ground implementing rules are given an opportunity to hear directly from Agency leadership.”
The meeting also included presentations and panels on a number of timely Clean Air Act issues, including a topical session centered on “Disaster Response and Planning” and panel discussions on Interstate Ozone Transport, Air Pollution Health Science, and technical updates related to modeling and monitoring. Presenters included EPA Senior Advisor to the Administrator for Regional and State Affairs Kenneth Wagner, former EPA Assistant Administrator for Water LaJuana Wilcher, and current members of EPA’s Science Advisory Board and Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee. Experts from state and local agencies, academic institutions, and EPA’s Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards and regional offices provided technical information to attendees. Presentations can be viewed on AAPCA’s website.
“AAPCA’s meetings provide a key forum for the Association’s geographically diverse membership to interface with a broad range of experts at the local, state, and federal levels,” said Vice President Nancy Vehr of the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality. “In addition to being able to discuss Clean Air Act issues in-depth, participants are able to learn from their counterparts on a variety of topics, ranging from recent disasters to permitting efficiency.”
Secretary/Treasurer Vivian Aucoin of the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality noted that: “The strong participation by EPA’s career and political leadership, including several of the Agency’s regional offices, was welcome, and gave AAPCA members the opportunity to provide insight on emerging air quality issues.”
“The Commonwealth of Kentucky was honored to welcome the EPA Administrator, AAPCA’s state and local membership, and senior career and political leadership from EPA to Lexington,” said Past President Sean Alteri of the Kentucky Division for Air Quality. “The meeting included a robust agenda focused on technical information, and the Association looks forward to continuing to be a key resource for agencies through our meetings, as well as providing important feedback through consensus comments.”
AAPCA’s 2018 Fall Business Meeting will be held September 17 to 19 in Raleigh, North Carolina.
AAPCA Background
The Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies (AAPCA) is a consensus-driven organization focused on assisting state and local air quality agencies and personnel with implementation and technical issues associated with the federal Clean Air Act. AAPCA’s members work collaboratively on behalf of states and the communities they protect to act as a conduit for and provide feedback to federal regulators on air quality rules that have significant impacts across the entire nation. AAPCA represents more than 40 state and local air agencies, and senior officials from 20 state environmental agencies currently sit on AAPCA’s Board of Directors. AAPCA is housed in Lexington, Kentucky as an affiliated association of The Council of State Governments (CSG).
Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies | 1776 Avenue of the States | Lexington, Kentucky 40511
www.cleanairact.org | @AAPCA_States
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