Our View: Idaho’s welcome clean-air law needs flexibility

Somewhere between Idaho’s year-old vehicle emissions testing law and Rep. Dick Harwood’s failed attempt to repeal it lies a better answer to air quality control in Idaho.

Last year, Idaho adopted its first emissions testing law in a bid to satisfy federal clean-air requirements. The law requires testing or an equally effective measure if the Department of Environmental Quality determines that air pollutant levels equal or exceed 85 percent of the federal standard and that automobiles are one of the top sources. Currently, testing is confined to the Boise metropolitan area. However, Canyon and Kootenai counties could be next, and this has caused consternation.

Harwood’s contention that there is no problem, so the law should be repealed, is simplistic. Idaho is a growing state – and Kootenai County among the most vigorous regions – and should the need arise, it would be wise to have a law on the books. A state that has “quality of life” as one of its chief selling points should want to preserve clean air. It should want to be inviting to tourists and new residents, not to mention new businesses. It should want to avoid “dirty air” headlines that describe noncompliance.

As Gov. Butch Otter said in signing the bill last April, “Clean air is among Idaho’s most precious resources. We are blessed with skies as open and clear as any in the world.”

However, the governor also asked for revisions to the law that would give counties more flexibility in meeting the targets. Good idea. The Kootenai Metropolitan Planning Organization notes that some alternatives can be as effective as traditional emissions testing. Many of them have been implemented by the Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency.

Vapor recovery systems limit the emission of gasoline vapors by fuel suppliers. Public awareness campaigns can also be effective in alerting people to the impact of their daily activities. The problem is that while the current law allows for alternative strategies, it does not set aside money to pursue them.

If retrofitting gas stations is as effective as emissions testing, then the law should accommodate that.

Spokane County is one of five counties in Washington that require emissions testing of most vehicles every two years. The others are Clark, King, Snohomish and Pierce. The law has built-in flexibility. For one thing, the state will no longer require the testing of 2009 or newer models, because those are cleaner cars to begin with.

Idaho doesn’t need to throw out its clean-air law, but it does need to give counties an array of proven alternatives to meet worthy goals.