Jan 28, 2019 2 min read

There’s nothing like the sulfur dioxide emissions affecting 22 Mon Valley communities to show how poor air quality continues to undermine the region’s reputation, quality of life and prospects for advancement – and how zealous regulators must be about changing that.

The Allegheny County Health Department urged the chronically ill, children and the elderly in those communities to limit outdoor activity because a Dec. 24 fire at U.S. Steel’s Clairton Coke Works damaged the coke gas recovery equipment, producing several instances of excessive emissions.

While Pittsburgh rightly prides itself on its new-age economy, it isn’t that far removed from the days when air pollution routinely darkened the downtown skies at noon. The region’s air quality is still bad, and people still suffer ill effects. The fire-related emissions, for example, have been linked to exacerbated asthma in a small sample of Clairton High School students.

Although a fire is responsible for the current problem, the coke works and U.S. Steel’s Edgar Thomson Works are repeat violators of pollution standards, putting their neighbors’ health at risk and complicating the Mon Valley’s economic development efforts. Residents long have complained about the pollution and assailed the county health department for lackluster enforcement.

Over the past year, the department has recommitted itself to enforcement efforts. But now it’s on the defensive again with critics questioning why the department waited until two weeks after the fire to issue the air quality advisory.

Department Director Karen Hacker stood by the agency’s work, noting it first posted a notice about the fire and potential air quality problems on its Facebook page and followed that up with the formal advisory Jan. 9 after a number of excessive emissions had occurred. Last Wednesday, however, the department acknowledged a “need to do a better job of communicating information” and announced it would post daily updates on its Facebook page and website.

On Jan. 9, the department awarded $300,000 in grants to community groups and municipalities with plans to plant trees, cut auto emissions and otherwise tackle air pollution. That’s great. But the focus has to be on keeping after the big, repeat polluters around the county. If the agency doesn’t do that, real progress on air quality will remain out of reach.