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15,000 – 39,999 Population
Dust Control Plan
City of Pasco
26,000
Tim Arntzen
Management Assistant
(509) 545-3405
CTIY OF
PASCO
Dust Control Plan
The City of Pasco, in the absence of a regional clean air authority, needed to
develop a mechanism to control dust to reduce air quality problems which interfere with
the enjoyment of life and which devalue property. City staff was directed to develop a
simple dust control plan that would be easy to comply with and simple to enforce.
Borrowing language found in other regional dust control and abatement
programs, staff drafted an ordinance (Pasco Municipal Code, Chapter 9.56) which
states;
"The purpose of this chapter is to provide a regulatory format that
promotes the health, safety, comfort, and general welfare of residents of the City
by requiring property owners of undeveloped land, construction activities, urban
development and similar activities within the City of Pasco to control and prevent
the creation of fugitive dust."
Once the Ordinance was drafted, an operational procedure was drafted to insure
enforceability of the ordinance. The Pasco dust control procedure operates under the
premise that voluntary compliance is better gained through education beforehand than
enforcement after a violation exists. In order to facilitate compliance at the earliest
possible stage of land development, staff drafted a one page dust control certification
(attached) which requires all building permit applicants to certify that they are familiar
with Pasco dust control requirements. It also requires the applicant to identify the
method he or she will utilize for on-site dust control. The certification is supported with a
hand-out which details acceptable methods for various construction and development
scenarios, allowing the permit applicant to select the "best available control method".
In the event enforcement becomes necessary after a project is underway, a
simple verbal reminder to the permit holder usually suffices. If this warning does not
lead to immediate compliance, a notice of civil violation will be issued and the project
may be shut down until compliance is achieved. In cases where dust persists, the City
may hire a private contractor to control the dust, billing the permit holder or property
owners for the costs.
There is no fiscal impact to the city created by the adoption or enforcement of the
dust control ordinance. Existing code enforcement officers check on dust control as
they make their ordinary inspections.
With the adoption of the city's dust control ordinance, residents benefit by having
a local jurisdiction available for immediate and effective response to their air quality
concerns. Until the Pasco dust control ordinance was implemented, dust complaints
were typically made to the Department of Ecology's Eastern Regional Office in
Spokane, then referred to the Pasco code enforcement office before any action could
be taken. This was especially problematic for our citizens with asthma and other
respiratory ailments who required immediate response.