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Wednesday, March 03, 2004
Environment - Louisville reporter wins National Press Foundation award
"C-J reporter wins award for air-pollution series" is the headline of this story today in the Louisville Courier Journal. Some quotes:
James Bruggers, The Courier-Journal's environmental reporter, has won the National Press Foundation's 2003 Thomas L. Stokes Award for his series of stories last year about toxic air pollution in Louisville. * * *Bruggers conducted an independent analysis of air-monitoring data that had been collected by the University of Louisville for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the West Jefferson County Community Task Force.
The newspaper found 18 chemicals or compounds in Louisville-area air at concentrations that were higher than what local, state and federal environmental regulators considered safe — hundreds of times higher at some of the monitors.
The highest readings were in western Louisville near the Rubbertown complex of chemical plants, but unacceptable levels also were found at monitors in Otter Creek Park in Meade County and on UofL's Shelby campus in eastern Jefferson County. * * *
Shortly after the first stories were published, Mayor Jerry Abramson persuaded three companies to pledge voluntary air-pollution reductions. Those companies and a fourth have since put their commitments in writing.
The Louisville Metro Air Pollution Control Board in January adopted a resolution calling for local environmental officials to draw up a new program for regulating toxic emissions — one that would go beyond the minimum federal requirements that are now in place.
The EPA has begun full inspections of all 11 Rubbertown companies and has agreed to assist the local air pollution control district in reducing hazardous air pollutants.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on March 3, 2004 09:24 AM
Posted to Environmental Issues