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Dallas To Lose Federal $ If Air Quality Gets Worse

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Oct 4, 2007 10:46 pm US/Central

Dallas To Lose Federal $ If Air Quality Gets Worse

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by Jay Gormley
DALLAS (CBS 11 News) ― Several years ago Dallas ranked in the top ten cities in the nation for poor air quality.

The Environmental Protection Agency gave the city until the summer of 2009 to clean up its act. If it fails to, the federal government could pull millions of dollars in grants and federal highway funding.

"The federal government has the region in a catch-22. We are required to clean up our air or we lose federal highway funds. But we need federal highway funds to improve transportation, which would ultimately clean up our air," said Mark Ball, a spokesperson for the Texas Department of Transportation. "The bottom line is we have to do something."

TxDOT says the addition of high-occupancy vehicle lanes and the high-five has helped air quality. But according to Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert, the city has a ways to go to be in compliance with the E.P.A.

Thursday, city leaders addressed their options as part of a nationwide forum called "A National Conversation on Climate Action."

"This is the case where there isn't really a single solution that's going to be the magic bullet," said Dr. Camille Parmesan from the University of Texas at Austin. She was one of the many speakers at Dallas City Hall Thursday.

Parmesan is trying to get the city to invest in cleaner energy, such as wind farms, bio-diesel and nuclear power.

"I think it's extremely important at the city level to support mass transportation," she added. "I know that's very difficult in Texas cities because they are so sprawled out."

Ped Farraz added solar panels to his house in Irving because he wanted cut down his energy bill.

While solar power saves homeowners money, it also helps clean the city's air.

With a deadline approaching, the City of Dallas needs more residents like Farraz.

(CBS 11 News)

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