Commission, City Council OK air quality proposal

A resolution authorizing the merger of two agencies to create an independent air quality board was approved Wednesday by the Clark County Commission and the Las Vegas City Council.

The plan pitched by County Commissioner Erin Kenny, who is chairwoman of the Environmental Advisory Committee, would merge the air-pollution duties of the Clark County District Board of Health and the county's Comprehensive Planning Department.

A report outlining the proposal has been accepted by the health district and the Southern Nevada Regional Planning Coalition.

Last month Kenny announced in her plan that an independent board would allow the Las Vegas Valley to meet a state deadline to reorganize local air pollution agencies.

The plan, however, has not been without opposition.

Commissioners Mary Kincaid and Myrna Williams both argued that creating yet another air quality board would only create more bureaucratic red tape. Kincaid said the region is working effectively to solve air pollution problems.

"If it's not broke, don't fix it," Kincaid said. "We're making headway, and if we change mid-stream, we might affect that."

Williams questioned the authority the new agency would possess.

"Giving enforcement power that would supersede the health district, I'm opposed to that," Williams said.

Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman recommended that the new agency include representatives of the Bureau of Land Management.

"It seems to me that we're not going to be able to achieve attainment (with Environmental Protection Agency pollution standards) without them being at the table with us," Goodman said.

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