By James Pilcher
The Cincinnati Enquirer

The air may be essentially the same over Greater Cincinnati - dirty according to new federal standards - but the region is divided into three states overseen by two different federal environmental offices.

That makes coming up with a unified way to clean the air tougher, said members of a new group formed to come up with possible ways to allow the region to meet tougher anti-pollution standards.

"We're one region, so we would like to come up with singular solutions as many times as we can," said Boone County Judge-executive Gary Moore, who chairs the new Clean Air Coalition that held its first meeting Thursday.

"That may not be achievable ... but we sure are going to try," said Moore.

The region was ruled out of compliance with new federal clean air standards last month. States have three years to come up with a plan acceptable to the federal Environmental Protection Agency, and then until 2009 to meet the new standards.

Butler, Clermont, Clinton, Hamilton and Warren counties in Ohio exceed the new limits on ozone, an invisible gas and known lung irritant created when vehicle and industrial emissions mix with heat and sunlight.

Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties in Kentucky also do not meet the new standards, as well as parts of Dearborn County in Indiana - specifically the Lawrenceburg area.

The new coalition was formed by the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Regional Council of Governments to help craft a plan that would work for this region, and includes representatives from business, industry and environmental concerns.

Another major complicating factor in getting a unified regional solution is the fact that Southwest Ohio was out of compliance with the old standards, while Northern Kentucky was considered in compliance.

That means Ohio can't do away with any program that is in place now, such as vehicle emissions testing (or E-check), while Kentucky can.

Kentucky environmental officials are under orders from the state legislature to come up with a way of meeting standards while getting rid of E-check. That would still need final approval by the federal EPA, however.

E-mail jpilcher@enquirer.com