Maricopa County, the gold standard regarding dust control enforcement.

By: Stop Dust Now

Any climate and environment group that does not include controlling fugitive silica dust in their action plan for saving the Earth should not be taken seriously. Laws exist across the nation to prevent the creation of fugitive silica dust, yet these laws are completely ignored by most federal, state, and local agencies and climate and environmental groups. As we mentioned in (Ignorance of the Impacts of Fugitive Silica Dust), this “…100% preventable hazard still continues because of apathy”.

So what does Maricopa County, Arizona know about dust that the rest of the USA does not?

The seriousness of dust control enforcement in Maricopa County can be seen in the Dust Abatement Handbook from the Maricopa County Air Quality Department.

Maricopa County has some of the nation’s strictest enforcement of dust control laws because they recognize dust for the hazard it is to the climate and environment. There are regulations for dust-polluting activities and sources such as motor vehicle use on unpaved roads, lawn mowing, and wind. Even permits are required for any activity disturbing a surface area greater than one-tenth of an acre (about the size of a basketball court).

It is almost funny how Maricopa County can recognize dust for the hazard it is, yet the majority of climate and environmental groups who claim to be helping the Earth include no mention of controlling fugitive silica dust in their action plans. For example, Cape Cod and the Islands (Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket) in Massachusetts have some of the dustiest roads in New England with a lot of traffic on those roads from the current population and even more from the tourist population during the dry, summer months. In the Cape and Islands, climate and environment groups fail to acknowledge one of the worst problems in their area.

You would think that Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket would care the most about dust, seeing as they are on islands. But no. They do not care about controlling the dust at all, even when educated on the fact their islands are getting smaller from blowing away each day and that the climate, environment, and citizens are all suffering from the dust.

If everyone is on board with saving the future of our climate and environment, as well as improving human health, then everyone needs to get on board with fugitive silica dust control. Maricopa County can control the dust through strict enforcement of laws, then why is the rest of the nation not too?

/StopDustNow