Oil and gas activities release hundreds of tons of industrial pollutants into the pristine air above Wyoming every year, and that amount is expected to rise—especially in the Upper Green River Valley.

“This place is incredibly special…the air quality in the Upper Green River Valley is the cleanest in the lower 48 states. It is almost as clean as central Tibet…which scientists say has the cleanest air in the world,” says Upper Green River Valley Coalition community organizer Linda Baker. “We want to keep it that way,” she adds.

But mounting evidence indicates that oil and gas development is causing major air quality problems in western Wyoming. As a result, the Wyoming Outdoor Council is increasing its attention to the issue. Our goal is simple: to ensure that air quality is not only maintained but improved in areas where it has been degraded.

We believe we can protect Wyoming’s incredible vistas and ensure air pollution does not harm the health of Wyoming’s people, especially more vulnerable populations like the old, the very young, and those with asthma. But we face a challenge as the booming natural gas industry continues to grow.

“We’re currently in significant expansion here…with several thousand wells over several thousand miles,” said Dan Olson, the head of the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality’s Air Quality Division, at a recent air quality symposium sponsored by the Wyoming Outdoor Council and the Upper Green River Valley Coalition.

“Quite frankly, nobody…including me…can calculate and answer the question of whether there is [an air quality] problem,” Olson said.

The Evidence Grows
But signs of such a problem have begun to surface. The first significant evidence of increased air pollution in the Upper Green River Valley was documented last fall when the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released an environmental assessment for Questar’s proposal to drill wells year round in the Pinedale Anticline field. This assessment showed that nearly three times as much nitrous oxides (NOx) were being produced than were originally predicted in the 2000 Pinedale Anticline environmental impact statement: a total of 1,895 tons per year, rather than the 693 tons per year anticipated.

The environmental assessment also disclosed that monitoring air pollution, which the BLM had committed to do in the original environmental impact statement, was not being done.

This spring, more evidence appeared in the Jonah Infill environmental impact statement. This document showed that the 3,100 new wells called for in the Jonah field would lead to increased visibility impairment in the Bridger Wilderness on up to 10 days per year. In addition, the project will release 16,362 tons of hazardous air pollutants and 56,226 tons of volatile organic compounds per year; double existing background concentrations of sulfur dioxide; triple particulate matter concentrations (PM10 and PM 2.5); double existing ozone levels; and exceed nitrogen deposition thresholds in the Bridger Wilderness, Popo Agie Wilderness, and Wind River Roadless Area.

What all these numbers mean on the ground is increased haze, decreased visibility, more acidification in lakes, and the likelihood in the future of increased human health problems such as asthma. Even the BLM seems to recognize there is a problem. The agency is pursuing supplemental analysis of air quality issues resulting from the Jonah Infill project before giving it final approval. And in December, the BLM and Forest Service discontinued approving new drilling permits in the Riley Ridge field near Big Piney, partly because of the need to update air quality analyses.

We believe the BLM needs to do the same thing for the Pinedale Anticline. The agency’s decision approving well drilling in this field stated that if NOx emissions exceeded the expected level—which they are by a factor of nearly three—then BLM would “undertake additional cumulative air quality environmental review.” This has yet to happen. Finally, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has begun to weigh in. In a letter to the BLM in December regarding the Questar winter drilling proposal, EPA officials said they were “very concerned about the emissions from the increased rate of drilling and the potential effects of the increase in emissions on Class I airsheds.” Class I airsheds are areas of extremely high air-quality that receive special protection under the Clean Air Act such as national parks and wilderness.

In the News
The media has also called attention to the growing problem. The Pinedale Roundup opined on December 16, 2004, that, “It is about time that the BLM and the [Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality] stood up and took some responsibility for what happens on the land and in the air under their watch.” Not to be outdone, the Casper Star-Tribune wrote in an editorial on April 25, 2005, that, “Air quality could be the hammer that nails a lid on Wyoming’s energy boom.”

Reflecting all these concerns, Governor Dave Freudenthal wrote in the State’s comments regarding air quality impacts from the Jonah Infill project: “I would hope that BLM would use the present circumstances as an example of what not to do in the future. The BLM must be vigilant in its management of development such that it always knows the condition of the various resources within its management authority and the incumbent impacts of development on those resources. Anything less jeopardizes current and future developments.”

What We Are Doing
On April 27, together with a number of other conservation groups, the Wyoming Outdoor Council met with EPA officials in Jackson to discuss our concerns. It was a productive meeting that we believe will help ensure the EPA continues to be a strong advocate for protecting air quality. And on June 2, the Wyoming Outdoor Council and the Upper Green River Valley Coalition hosted a public forum on air quality issues in the Upper Green River Valley. The panel included Terry Svalberg (air quality specialist with the Forest Service), Susan Caplan (air quality specialist with the BLM), Dan Olson (director of the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality Air Quality Division), Larry Svoboda (EPA), and Bob Yuhnke (a private attorney who represents environmental groups, including the Wyoming Outdoor Council). About 50 people attended the meeting.

Mr. Yuhnke is providing expert comments on several environmental impact statements for us. He brings more than 30 years experience in all areas of the Clean Air Act.

Finally, the Wyoming Outdoor Council has increasingly focused attention on the EPA and State Department of Environmental Quality rulemakings that affect air quality.

Our goal—to protect our clear, clean air and human health—is simple, but the tools this task demands of us require precision and accuracy to wield effectively. We look forward to this new challenge.