Philadelphia Air Board rejects proposal for city perc ban
In the end, after nearly a year of discussions, negotiations and hearings, only
one member of the Philadelphia Air Pollution Control Board was ready to approve
a regulation that would have hastened the demise of perc drycleaning in the
city of Philadelphia.
The proposal would have banned perc use in two years in all drycleaning plants
except those that are free-standing. The city’s health department estimated that there are only eight such free-standing
facilities in the entire city.
Drycleaners and trade association leaders went into a March 5 hearing expecting
that the city’s phase-out plan would be approved. Instead, they were stunned and pleasantly
surprised when an awkward silence followed board member Joseph Minott’s motion to approve the proposal. Minott’s motion was not seconded; there was no board vote and the proposal died on the
spot.
Minott, who is also executive director of the Clean Air Council in Philadelphia,
introduced the proposal last year, which started a process of meetings, counter
proposals and negotiations with representatives of the Pennsylvania and
Delaware Cleaners Association, the Philadelphia Korean Drycleaners Association,
the Drycleaning and Laundry Institute, the National Cleaners Association and
the Halogenated Solvents Industry Alliance.
Those talks seemed to result in little gain from the drycleaning industry’s point of view.
“At all of these meetings, we submitted ideas that would have made the proposed
regulations fairer and more fact-based,” said Carol Memberg, executive director of PDCA. “We had proposed a technological approach to the question of air quality. We
showed the board several options that they apparently were not aware of that
would improve air quality and answer many of their questions about safety.”
But instead of replacing the draconian proposals with suggestions from the
industry group, the board simply tacked them on to the existing plan, adding
more layers of expense for businesses that would not be able to survive,
Memberg said.
Expecting the worst, association representatives and Philadelphia drycleaners
packed the hearing room to testify against the plan.
“From the onset, it appeared that the board would vote for the staff’s proposal,” said DLI’s Jon Meijer.
“This outcome was a far cry from what most everyone in the room expected given
the tenor of the meeting up until the agenda allowed for public comment,” said Nora Nealis, executive director of the National Cleaners Association.
“It was clear that the drycleaning community got to the board as we hammered away
at key points of the proposed rule,” Meijer added.
Despite the victory, all is not well for perc drycleaners in the City of
Brotherly Love.
First, the issue is likely to surface again, although association leaders have
been told that when it does a better process will assure transparency,
orderliness and full input from the industry.
“During the entire process, we had vigorously complained about the procedures the
board used,” Memberg said. “We had to fight for a place at the table and sometimes received drafts the
evening before a meeting.”
Second, drycleaners now may be a target for inspectors. Spot inspections of a
few plants as the regulations were being developed revealed elevated perc
levels at some locations. And earlier this year, one Philadelphia cleaner was
ordered to halt drycleaning operations after an inspection found unacceptable
perc levels in an adjoining day-care center.
A compliance assistance program for Philadelphia drycleaners emphasizing
pollution prevention will be coordinated by PDCA’s Dale Kaplan with the Small Business Development Center, the local Korean
association and the AMS.
NCA’s Nealis urged cleaners to take steps to ensure that solvent vapors don’t migrate into neighboring shops. These include using state of the art
machinery; checking for leaks; plugging holes, gaps and cracks in floors and
walls; assuring adequate ventilation; and operating machinery correctly —don’t overload, don’t short cycle, hit proper drying and cooling temperatures; and clean lint
screens after every two loads.
“Industry has been working on this issue for more than a year,” Meijer said. “While this is a clear victory, it is likely that we will see more from the local
regulators over the next several months. In the meantime, DLI and PDCA will
continue to work with regulators to make sure that drycleaners in co-located
facilities follow all current rules as required by the current federal perc air
standard for drycleaners.”
