FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
State Air Agencies Hold 2014 Annual Meeting
September 18, 2014
Lexington, Ky.
The Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies (AAPCA) held its 2014 Annual Meeting on September 11 and 12 in Austin, Texas.
AAPCA members participated in panel discussions on topics ranging from next generation air monitoring to EPA’s proposal to regulate greenhouse gases from power plants. Speakers included Janet McCabe, Acting Assistant Administrator for the Office of Air and Radiation at U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) Chairman Bryan Shaw, and experts and senior officials from U.S. EPA Region 6, U.S. EPA’s Office of Air Quality Planning & Standards, TCEQ, Public Utility Commission of Texas, Electric Reliability Council of Texas, and the Great Plains Institute.
“AAPCA held a successful, well-attended meeting in Austin last week. The organization is poised to grow in 2015 as a result of the energy and enthusiasm of our member states and AAPCA’s committees,” said President Steve Hagle. “We appreciate the participation of top notch experts from U.S. EPA and our states in passing on valuable information and enabling meaningful discussion of the important issues facing all of our members.”
“I am excited to take on this leadership position at a critical time for states and the Clean Air Act. AAPCA provides a unique conduit for our states to share information and best practices,” stated Vice President Sheila Holman. According to Past President Michael Vince: “It is clear from this meeting that the Association is tackling the critical, technical issues confronting state air quality agencies, including EPA’s 111(d) proposal, national ozone standards, training and workforce development issues.”
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 currently represents 17 state agencies.
AAPCA is housed in Lexington, Kentucky as a policy program with The Council of State Governments (CSG). More information on AAPCA may be found by visiting http://www.csg.org/aapca_site/.
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