S. Smith Griswold Outstanding Air Pollution Control Official Award
S. Smith Griswold Outstanding Air Pollution Control Official Award
S. Smith Griswold (1909–1971) served as chief air pollution control officer for the Los Angeles Air Pollution Control District between 1954 and 1965. In 1965, he became chief of the Abatement Branch of the Division of Air Pollution Control in the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, and later served as associate director for abatement and control before leaving in 1967 to work as a consultant. As President of the Association in 1962, he focused international attention on air pollution control officials’ activities, problems, and achievements. The S. Smith Griswold Outstanding Air Pollution Control Official Award is presented by the Association for outstanding accomplishments in the prevention and control of air pollution. The recipient must be or have been a government agency staff member whose contributions to the prevention and control of air pollution have been widely recognized.
A&WMA presents the 2019 S. Smith Griswold Outstanding Air Pollution Control Official Award to Dennis McLerran for his contributions to the prevention and control of air pollution.
McLerran served as Regional Administrator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 10 between 2010 and early 2017 and as Executive Director of the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency between 1994 and 2010. He is currently an environmental attorney at Cascadia Law Group in Seattle, WA. He served as President of the National Association of Clean Air Agencies (NACAA) and also served for many years as a board member and co-chair of the Mobile Sources and Fuels Committee.
At EPA, McLerran led the agency’s Green Ports and Vessels Initiative (GPVI). GPVI is a collaboration to reduce air pollution and climate emissions from vessels and port operations along the U.S. Coasts and China. The initiative brings U.S. technical experts, private sector innovators, and government officials with expertise in maritime commerce and air pollution control together with Chinese officials, scientists, and organizations to share and develop best practices. Highly significant improvements in public health and the environment have been assisted through this work.
While at the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, McLerran conceived of and led the establishment of the Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy. This effort is a collaboration between the Ports of Seattle, Tacoma, and Vancouver; British Columbia; and the air and climate regulatory agencies. The initiative develops strategies to reduce air and climate pollution from the three largest container ports operating in the Pacific Northwest and Canada. This award-winning effort has been highly successful with recent emission inventories documenting that between 2005 and 2016, sulfur dioxide emissions have been reduced by 97%, diesel particulate emissions by 72%, black carbon emissions by 41%, volatile organic compounds by 29%, and oxides of nitrogen by 23%.
McLerran was one of the founding leaders of the West Coast Diesel Collaborative formed to reduce diesel emissions in the Western United States. The Collaborative convened stakeholders from industry, ports, agriculture, and air quality agencies to develop strategies and funding sources to reduce diesel and black carbon emissions. As Chair of the Marine and Ports Working Group of the Collaborative, McLerran led efforts along the West Coast of the United States and Canada to develop broad support for petitioning the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to form the North American Emission Control Area (ECA). The ECA requires use of dramatically cleaner fuels for marine vessels operating within 200 nautical miles of the coasts of the United States and Canada and has resulted in as many as 30,000 lives saved annually due to reduced exposure to air pollutants.
Also while at the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, McLerran led development of programs to bring cleaner fuels to motor vehicles, reduce wood smoke in communities, provide funding to clean up diesel transit and school buses in Washington State, and greatly improve air quality and public health. He led the formation of the State of Washington’s first climate change stakeholder process which ultimately led to passage of a wide variety of climate and air quality legislation in the state. A key legislative effort co-led by McLerran was adoption of the California emission standards for motor vehicles in Washington State.
McLerran now practices environmental and land use law in Seattle and serves on the boards of a number of public service organizations, including the Leadership Council for the Puget Sound Partnership; the U.S. arm of the Stockholm Environment Institute; the Salish Seas Institute; and the Institute for Energy Studies at Western Washington University. McLerran represents a variety of public and private clients on air quality, climate, and land use issues. Recently, he served as Co-Chair of Governor Jay Inslee’s Maritime Blue Advisory Committee, which developed a strategy for a sustainable, low carbon maritime industry in Washington State.
S. Smith Griswold (1909–1971) served as chief air pollution control officer for the Los Angeles Air Pollution Control District between 1954 and 1965. In 1965, he became chief of the Abatement Branch of the Division of Air Pollution Control in the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, and later served as associate director for abatement and control before leaving in 1967 to work as a consultant. As President of the Association in 1962, he focused international attention on air pollution control officials’ activities, problems, and achievements. The S. Smith Griswold Outstanding Air Pollution Control Official Award is presented by the Association for outstanding accomplishments in the prevention and control of air pollution. The recipient must be or have been a government agency staff member whose contributions to the prevention and control of air pollution have been widely recognized.
A&WMA presents the 2019 S. Smith Griswold Outstanding Air Pollution Control Official Award to Dennis McLerran for his contributions to the prevention and control of air pollution.
McLerran served as Regional Administrator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 10 between 2010 and early 2017 and as Executive Director of the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency between 1994 and 2010. He is currently an environmental attorney at Cascadia Law Group in Seattle, WA. He served as President of the National Association of Clean Air Agencies (NACAA) and also served for many years as a board member and co-chair of the Mobile Sources and Fuels Committee.
At EPA, McLerran led the agency’s Green Ports and Vessels Initiative (GPVI). GPVI is a collaboration to reduce air pollution and climate emissions from vessels and port operations along the U.S. Coasts and China. The initiative brings U.S. technical experts, private sector innovators, and government officials with expertise in maritime commerce and air pollution control together with Chinese officials, scientists, and organizations to share and develop best practices. Highly significant improvements in public health and the environment have been assisted through this work.
While at the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, McLerran conceived of and led the establishment of the Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy. This effort is a collaboration between the Ports of Seattle, Tacoma, and Vancouver; British Columbia; and the air and climate regulatory agencies. The initiative develops strategies to reduce air and climate pollution from the three largest container ports operating in the Pacific Northwest and Canada. This award-winning effort has been highly successful with recent emission inventories documenting that between 2005 and 2016, sulfur dioxide emissions have been reduced by 97%, diesel particulate emissions by 72%, black carbon emissions by 41%, volatile organic compounds by 29%, and oxides of nitrogen by 23%.
McLerran was one of the founding leaders of the West Coast Diesel Collaborative formed to reduce diesel emissions in the Western United States. The Collaborative convened stakeholders from industry, ports, agriculture, and air quality agencies to develop strategies and funding sources to reduce diesel and black carbon emissions. As Chair of the Marine and Ports Working Group of the Collaborative, McLerran led efforts along the West Coast of the United States and Canada to develop broad support for petitioning the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to form the North American Emission Control Area (ECA). The ECA requires use of dramatically cleaner fuels for marine vessels operating within 200 nautical miles of the coasts of the United States and Canada and has resulted in as many as 30,000 lives saved annually due to reduced exposure to air pollutants.
Also while at the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, McLerran led development of programs to bring cleaner fuels to motor vehicles, reduce wood smoke in communities, provide funding to clean up diesel transit and school buses in Washington State, and greatly improve air quality and public health. He led the formation of the State of Washington’s first climate change stakeholder process which ultimately led to passage of a wide variety of climate and air quality legislation in the state. A key legislative effort co-led by McLerran was adoption of the California emission standards for motor vehicles in Washington State.
McLerran now practices environmental and land use law in Seattle and serves on the boards of a number of public service organizations, including the Leadership Council for the Puget Sound Partnership; the U.S. arm of the Stockholm Environment Institute; the Salish Seas Institute; and the Institute for Energy Studies at Western Washington University. McLerran represents a variety of public and private clients on air quality, climate, and land use issues. Recently, he served as Co-Chair of Governor Jay Inslee’s Maritime Blue Advisory Committee, which developed a strategy for a sustainable, low carbon maritime industry in Washington State.
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Dennis McLerran
