Seven Peaks Resort announced Tuesday that a new air quality report reaffirms that an expanded resort will not contribute significantly to air-quality violations in Provo.
The analysis was prepared by Trinity Consultants Inc. of Dallas for Seven Peaks. The Utah Bureau of Air Quality required the report in response to questions raised at a public hearing in July."The '90s Provo City is very concerned about livability," said Provo Economic Development Director Gary Golightly. The city is involved to help mitigate problems of air quality.
The project supervisor for Trinity, Patrick E. Delamater Jr., presented a summary of the study at a press conference hosted by Provo at City Hall.
Delamater said a full report was presented to the Bureau of Air Quality on Tuesday afternoon. The report concluded that an additional 2,000-space parking lot for Seven Peaks Resort would not contribute to any violations of the national ambient air quality standard.
The study used a model developed by the Environmental Protection Agency. The model projected pollution levels for 2010, a time when the ski resort is expected to be operating at capacity.
The traffic study used in the model was from a study done under contract for the city of Provo, but paid for by Seven Peaks.
Jim Harris, a biology professor at Utah Valley Community College, said the traffic study was seriously flawed. "You can't get anything meaningful out of garbage data."
Harris also objected to the pollution levels cited in the study. He said the pollution data used in the study were not for the non-attainment days. There were five days in the months studied when Provo exceeded air quality standards for carbon monoxide. He questioned why the study did not show non-attainment days.
"I feel quite confident that this resort will never be built," said Harris. He said the Bureau of Air Quality will listen to objections about the study and will wait for the public's reaction before issuing a permit for Seven Peaks to proceed with building.