Proposed EPA standards could undermine reg/neg agreement.

Furniture makers who recently made finishing equipment purchases and other finishing decisions based on whether they were in ozone attainment or non-attainment zones may be forced to rethink their plans if proposed EPA regulations are approved.

In November 1996, the EPA proposed new air quality standards for fine particulate matter (PM) and ground-level ozone. These very strict regulations could push as many as 300 more areas of the country into non-attainment status, meaning they would not meet ozone air quality standards. In addition to creating new non-attainment zones, the proposed regulations may make it more difficult for areas with poor air quality to comply.

"Larger companies (in current attainment areas) that may have ready made decisions on technologies to satisfy regulations, may now be in a non-attainment zone and they may have to rethink their whole solution to meeting the regulations," said Richard Titus, executive vice president of the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Assn. "This is raising questions about our negotiated agreement."

Titus referred to regulatory negotiations between the wood industry, government and private environmental and health groups that developed standards for the entire country, called the National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants, as well as guidelines recommended to states and areas with poor air quality (non-attainment zones), called Control Technique Guidelines. NESHAP is meant to limit emissions of hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) and the CTGs are guidelines meant to help control emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Companies that are in ozone attainment areas only need to follow standards covering HAP emissions. Companies that are in non-attainment areas must follow regulations controlling both emissions of HAPs as well as VOCs. If there are more non-attainment zones created due to these regulations, more companies would then need to follow regulations for the control of both HAPs and VOCs.

The EPA proposed the strict, new standards to reduce smaller bits of particulate matter and ground-level ozone as a way to combat what has been described as a rising incidence of asthma. The EPA studied 86 related health studies that showed harmful effects from breathing particles at the current standard. Another 185 ozone-related studies were reviewed. The proposed standard, along with clean air programs already planned, would reduce premature deaths by 40,000 per year, and reduce serious respiratory problems in children by 250,000 cases per year, the EPA said.

However, some critics have questioned whether this is the way to tackle the problem. "The science doesn't support it," said Titus. "They are talking about this costing $9 billion and they are not even certain they are attacking the right problem. The science is so unclear." A letter being sent to the EPA by the Wood Machinery Importers Assn. also questioned the science behind the proposed standards and urged the EPA to "determine the specific pollutants which may be responsible for the health concerns before any regulatory action is taken."

Currently, the EPA standard regulates particles the size of 10 microns or smaller. Under the proposal, this would fall to 2.5 microns or smaller. The EPA is proposing to revise the standard for ozone from 0.12 parts per million averaged over one hour to 0.08 ppm averaged over eight hours.

The EPA is currently analyzing public comments on the proposed new smog and soot regulations. During the public comment period, which ended March 12, the EPA received more than 17,000 letters, 3,000 e-mail messages and 15,000 phone calls to a special "888" number. This was in addition to comments heard at four public hearings held throughout the country.