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Arkansas Asks EPA to Designate County as Meeting Standards

1 min read

LITTLE ROCK – Arkansas is asking the federal government to designate Crittenden County as meeting federal ozone standards, a move officials say will help boost economic development in the region.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Tuesday asked the EPA to redesignate the county as in attainment of federal ozone standards. In the letter, Hutchinson said that the county has met federal ozone standards according to monitoring data between 2012 and 2014.

The area was classified along with Shelby County, Tennessee, and DeSoto County, Mississippi, as a marginal nonattainment area under the 2008 federal eight-hour ozone standard. Areas designed in non-attainment are subject to more stringent air quality controls.

Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality Director Becky Keogh said in a statement the state hopes to see a decision in six months from the EPA.

(Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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