ATLANTA – State Representative Erick Allen (D-Smyrna) today announced that he will introduce legislation in the coming days to require ethylene oxide permit holders to monitor their emissions in Georgia.
“I am continually committed to making sure that the quality of our air, land and water is a priority, and these measures simply put more enforcement on the permittee of ethylene oxide to ensure that they are doing their part,” said Rep. Allen. “It is my hope that this legislation will move forward to improve the quality of our air and to remove the burden of testing from our counties and cities. This is also extremely important considering the state budget cuts that are pending which may limit Environmental Protection Division’s ability to continue testing.”
“I am continually committed to making sure that the quality of our air, land and water is a priority, and these measures simply put more enforcement on the permittee of ethylene oxide to ensure that they are doing their part,” said Rep. Allen. “It is my hope that this legislation will move forward to ensure the quality of our air and to remove the burden of testing from our local counties and cities. This is also extremely important considering the state budget cuts that are pending which may limit Environmental Protection Division’s ability to continue testing.”
The proposed legislation would require ethylene oxide users in the state to monitor stack emissions, and these users would have to submit semiannual reports to the state in June and December. The legislation would also restrict off-gassing, which is the emission of certain chemicals into the air, for longer than 36 hours in an area that is operating without an approved vent control system. Off-gassing would be prohibited in a non-vent controlled warehouse, building or loading dock.
Rep. Allen’s legislation would also require all ethylene oxide permit holders to submit an Ambient Air Monitoring Plan to the Environmental Protection Division (EPD) within six months of the proposed law going into effect. Each permittee would submit a detailed plan to collect and analyze air samples for ethylene oxide near the property boundaries of sterilization plants and at community locations that have been determined by the EPD to have a high modeling impact. The permittees would have to collect samples at least on a quarterly basis over a six-day period, and samples would be collected by a third party company. The results would be submitted to EPD, as well as the local county commission board or city council, and the plan would be available for public view and resubmitted every 24 months.
Representative Erick Allen represents the citizens of District 40, which includes portions of Cobb and Fulton counties. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 2018 and currently serves on the Banks & Banking, Code Revision and Human Relations & Aging Committees
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