Maintaining Air Quality at Potlatch Facilities

At our sawmills

Our commitment to air quality at our sawmills is first evident in our strict compliance with tough state and federal regulations limiting emissions. Our particulate emissions, for example, fall below permitted emission levels.

In addition, we take measures—such as sprinkling our log yards during the summer to help reduce dust—that aren't mandated by any law, but are still the right thing to do. At our particleboard mill in Post Falls, Idaho, for example, we follow what we call our "Good Neighbor Policy" to minimize dust and other particulate emissions that can affect air quality or that are simply a nuisance for homes and businesses nearby.

At our pulp, paper, and tissue mills

We constantly monitor air quality at our paper mills to ensure that our emissions are below our permitted limits. Sometimes, reducing air emissions is a matter of reducing our energy consumption. At our Cypress Bend mill in Arkansas, we have cut emissions by reducing our natural gas consumption by 40 percent over the last three years.

At our Lewiston, Idaho mill, we are collaborating with the Nez Perce Tribe on a federally funded study of air toxics by facilitating measurement of ambient air around our mill. Preliminary data show that toxic concentrations around Lewiston are significantly less than in other cities in the Pacific Northwest.

As with any aspect of stewardship, we are far more effective in reducing air pollution when we partner with others in our community. In Idaho, we work closely with state and local government agencies, Native American tribes, environmental groups, and the local air quality advisory commission. At our Cypress Bend mill, we have developed a close working relationship with the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality.