LANSING – New rules proposed by the Department of Environmental Quality would deregulate too many additional chemicals, the Michigan Environmental Council said on releasing its comments on the proposal.
The DEQ announced Monday that it had opened the public comment period on the rules (ORR 2014-153 and 2014-154). The changes cover public notice and hearing provisions as well as analysis of air contaminants.
The MEC, in its statement, said the DEQ said the rules would require a company to show that chemicals in its emissions would not harm human health, but that the rules changes actually remove that language.
“Under this proposal, state regulators will no longer be able to tell residents living next to a factory that they have evaluated the application and it is safe to breathe the air,” James Clift, MEC policy director, said in a statement. “Instead, this proposal saddles Michigan families with the impossible burden of trying to evaluate the danger posed by chemicals that have never been tested for their impact on public health.”
MEC and other groups have raised similar concerns about the package as it was under development (See Gongwer Michigan Report, July 16, 2015).
The department is accepting comment on the rules through December 18, including public hearings on December 7. More information on the rules and providing comment is posted on the DEQ website.
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