Dust regulations need reality check

The recent dust-up over revised air pollution control regulations points up the importance of public and business participation in the rule-making process.

Health officials started out with a noble goal: improving air quality through more rigorous dust mitigation and pollution control. But they didn't consider the potential impact on cornerstone industries and taxpayers.

For example, one regulation would require paving or dust mitigation for any road in Flathead County with an average traffic volume of over 200 vehicles per day. But when you consider that one home is thought to generate as much as 10 trips per day, how could the cash-strapped county ever afford to pave all the roads with 20 or more homes? Property taxes already have pressed many homeowners to the brink of selling out.

Another regulation would require dust control for commercial or construction activity hauling more than 40 cubic yards of material with a double-axle vehicle per day. This proposal was particularly egregious to construction and logging companies.

In a meeting with Commissioner Gary Hall and some health board members, industry representatives explained 40 cubic yards represented about four dump truck loads or two logging truck loads. This restriction means adding the cost of dust control to nearly every construction site as well as logging jobs in remote areas.

Do we really want to add another economic blow to the timber industry? Is it prudent to make regulations that inflate the cost of housing and subdivisions when rising prices are already edging out first-time buyers?

We need to find a compromise that allows industry to survive while still controlling dust and pollution in the interest of the health of our citizens. Now that industry groups have spoken, we urge the board of public health to listen.

To his credit, Health Officer Joe Russell said he expects the board will decide on Thursday to direct the department to revisit the issue and come back with new options to address these unintended consequences. Another public hearing would then follow in the future.

Effective governance involves a balance of lofty goals for the public good with economic and fiscal realities. With dust control and other regulations, this is where the rubber meets the road.