The unique nature of air, and the problems it poses for policymakers seeking to clean it, is on display at the state capital.
Senate Bill 1317, authored by ACC's Senator Mike Jackson, was passed last week and has been sent to the House were it was referred to Rep Bonnen's Committee on Environmental Regulation. The bill, though deliberately vague in its wording, is generally assumed to be a response to the efforts of Houston to regulate air pollution within city limits. The multiple sources of pollution have created several "hotspots" in the city where cancer rates are argued to be higher than normal and traceable to the pollutants. Houston's mayor argues that these pollutants, and the perception that it is a polluted city, make it difficult for Houston to attract the next generation of skilled workers.
The problem is that the source of much of this pollution lies outside of Houston's city limits. Air apparently does not recognize political boundaries. For Houston to limit pollution, it would have to negatively impact the economy of neighboring cities, including those represented by Senator Jackson.
As he explains it, cities can currently "define and prohibit any nuisance within the limits of the municipality and within 5,000 feet outside those limits." As I understand it, his bill simply redefines the word "nuisance" to not include air pollution. If passed and signed into law, neither Houston nor any other city in Texas would be able to prohibit air pollution produced by a source just next to the city.
Senator Jackson calls this a sovereignty issue. A city next to Houston that wishes to allow pollutants to be produced should not have to be subject to its will. Opponents aren't buying it and are calling it an anti-clean air bill.
There's much more to this issue than this brief overview. Here's background reading:
- Opposition by the Sierra Club.
- More on the Senate's Anti Clean Air Bill.
- Houston Gets Slapped.
