EAST KERN BREATHES SIGH OF RELIEF EPA DECIDES AGAINST TIGHTENING AIR RULES.

Byline: Jim Skeen Staff Writer

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE - U.S. EPA officials will not subject East Kern County to tighter air emission controls as the agency originally planned, officials said Friday.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency had planned to ``bump up'' the eastern Kern County region from a ``serious'' air quality designation to a ``severe'' designation, along with the San Joaquin Valley planning area of which it is part.

Antelope Valley, Kern County and Air Force officials argued against that move, fearing additional restrictions could hurt military programs and efforts to attract new businesses to the region.

Antelope Valley and Kern County government and business leaders sent more than 400 letters opposing the idea. Many of those letters requested a separate planning area for eastern Kern County, noting that the region is divided from the San Joaquin Valley by the Tehachapi mountain range.

``This is exactly how the process is supposed to work,'' said John Ungvarsky, EPA project manager. ``we reviewed and considered public comments on our initial proposal and acted on them. We want to thank the commenters for the time and energy spent responding to the proposal.''

The new eastern Kern County planning area would include land south and east of the Tehachapi mountain range. The eastern Kern County area would still be under a serious air quality rating and will need to continue controlling air pollution, EPA officials said.

A formal proposal on creating the new East Kern area is expected to be put in the federal register in mid-November. A 30-day public comment period would follow. After reviewing and responding to public comments, the proposal would be implemented.

``Judging from the letters we got, we expect a lot of support for our proposal,'' said EPA spokesman Randy Wittorp. ``I would suspect the proposal would be finalized fairly quickly.''

The EPA decision was welcomed by the Kern County Air Pollution Control District, which covers the eastern Kern County area. The district has been working for five years to get the EPA to split off the region into its own planning area.

``We're real pleased they are moving in that direction,'' said Tom Paxson, air pollution control officer for KCAPCD. ``This means our rules are deemed to be sufficient for our area. Any additional controls won't be necessary.''

Under the federal Clean Air Act, planning areas are assessed with a ``nonattainment'' rating if ozone levels exceed federal standards on an average of more than one day per year over a three-year period.

Under the law, there are five classifications of nonattainment - marginal, moderate, serious, severe, and extreme.

In 1990, the San Joaquin Valley planning area was designated as serious and was require to provide a plan to reach attainment with federal standards by Nov. 15, 1999.

While the planning area's air quality has improved, poor air quality exceeded the ozone standard 80 times between 1997 and 1999 in the San Joaquin Valley, the EPA said. Air monitors at Edwards Air Force Base showed the federal standard was exceeded six times during the same time period.