Condit Dam Removal Condit Dam Removal - Access Washington

Condit Dam Hydroelectric Project
Final Supplemental EIS
4.7 AIR QUALITY
This section addresses air quality impacts associated with the proposed removal of Condit
Dam on the White Salmon River. The White Salmon River is the border between Klickitat
and Skamania Counties and is also on the border between two cognizant air pollution control
agencies.
4.7.1 Affected Environment
The region of interest to air quality is the immediate dam area and roadways that would be
used by work crews and trucks for removing demolition materials. This extends from
approximately the Columbia River to the upper end of the reservoir.
The White Salmon River is the boundary between Skamania County, which is in the
Southwest Clean Air Agency (SWCAA) jurisdiction, and Klickitat County, which is under
Ecology jurisdiction. Therefore, all activities that have the potential to affect air quality must
be resolved with the appropriate agency. In actions such as this, the agencies often agree that
a single agency will take the lead for engineering review and regulatory inspections. The
lead agency for air quality is often the one that would issue a permit for permanent or
temporary sources of air pollution, such as rock crushers or asphalt plants. No such facilities
are identified in the project description or supporting documents. General rules regarding
fugitive dust and non-permitted sources of air pollution are considered here.
Assuming a high degree of coordination and similarity of missions, the rules and policies of
the SWCAA will be used as guidance in this analysis. The SWCAA is responsible for
enforcing federal, state, and local outdoor air quality standards. This means areas outside of
residences and businesses to which the public may reasonably have access. SWCAA has
jurisdiction over all the sources of air pollution during dam removal except automobiles,
which are the responsibility of Ecology statewide. SWCAA prohibits burn barrels and
outdoor burning of all materials except natural vegetation grown on the property, and bans
outdoor burning for fire safety, to avoid nuisances, and when air quality is impaired.
SWCAA and Ecology maintain air quality standards for a number of pollutants (Table 4.7-1).
The standards specify the maximum concentration and duration of each pollutant, and the
agencies operate a number of monitoring stations to ensure that air quality stays below the
health and welfare standards.
Currently, all of these standards are attained in the project area. Because the project is in the
Columbia Gorge, the additional air quality concern of visibility is a very significant factor in
determining project impacts. Gorge visibility is protected from degradation by gaseous and
particulate emissions.
4.7-1