The EPA didn’t have air quality monitoring procedures in place for Houston when Hurricane Harvey hit in 2017, and wasn’t able to inform the public adequately about storm-related toxic pollution from industrial sites, the EPA Office of Inspector General said in a Dec. 16 report.
The agency’s “ability to assess and communicate air quality-related health risks to the public during and after the Hurricane Harvey emergency response was limited,” the report said.
The EPA needs to improve its emergency air monitoring in heavily industrialized areas so that it can warn nearby communities of health risks and limit exposure to ...