Montgomery County Commission to Vote on Additional Air Monitors in Industrial Park

During the November 5 informal county commission meeting, Commissioners will be presented with a resolution to approve three air monitoring stations on two sites in the Clarksville-Montgomery County Corporate Business Park South along International Boulevard.

This resolution is in direct response to public concern about potential air pollution related to the proposed AtlasBX battery manufacturing facility. The proposed $172,200 cost will be funded from an unanticipated revenue stream created from the repayment of back taxes by a local industry.

At the November 13 formal commission meeting, the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners will vote to authorize County Mayor Jim Durrett to use funds from the tax settlement to install three air monitoring stations adjacent to the proposed AtlasBX manufacturing facility. The stations, although not required by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), will be monitored by a third party with results reported locally. The funding will additionally provide two years of third-party monitoring services and quarterly air quality reports for these new stations.

“Maintaining healthy air quality for Montgomery County citizens is an ongoing priority for Montgomery County Government. We are taking these increased steps to provide air quality monitoring stations and making the reports public to let the community know we’ve heard your concerns and we want to take additional measures to address any worries,” said Mayor Durrett.

TDEC does not consider a plant to be a "significant source of lead" emissions until they reach 10,000 pounds per year. That is 10 times the amount proposed by AtlasBX. State regulations on sulfur dioxide for fuel burning installations are not considered a significant source until they reach more than 1,000 tons per year, which is almost 90 times what AtlasBX estimates it would produce.

If you have questions about how air quality monitoring stations work and what allowable limits are, please visit www.tn.gov/environment/program-areas/apc-air-pollution-control-home/apc/emissions-inventory-reporting-requirements.html.