Country Life----Where to go? (Buffalo, Rochester: environment, jobs, crime)

[GoldenCrow]

Originally Posted by oktaren

I went back to chautauqua county yesterday to get my car inspected and hang out with family for a bit, WOW IT SMELLED AMAZING! No pollution and all i could smell was grapes. i forgot how great it smells this time of year!

Chautauqua County is very beautiful, but looks can be deceiving:

According to the Environmental
Protection Agency, Chautauqua County
ranks as one of the Dirtiest/Worst
Counties in US in five out of six categories.
We score in the worst percentile
in the “Cancer risk score (air and water
releases)” and are also getting failing
scores for “Air releases of recognized
carcinogens.”
Chautauqua County also fails in
ranking of the number of housing units
with a high risk of lead hazards, in the
bottom ten percent of the U.S. Seven
percent of all homes in Chautauqua
County are at risk.

The link to the article quoted above: http://www.3thick.com/WEB%20FILE%20WORD%20issue30_8207.pdf (broken link)

They used the Scorecard Home website to find the information for this article. This is a pollution information website where you can check to see how your county (or someplace you're thinking of moving) is ranked.

Chautauqua County came in #5 for the worst pollution, behind Monroe, Niagara, Erie and Onondagua counties.

[oktaren]

Originally Posted by GoldenCrow

Chautauqua County is very beautiful, but looks can be deceiving:

According to the Environmental
Protection Agency, Chautauqua County
ranks as one of the Dirtiest/Worst
Counties in US in five out of six categories.
We score in the worst percentile
in the “Cancer risk score (air and water
releases)” and are also getting failing
scores for “Air releases of recognized
carcinogens.”
Chautauqua County also fails in
ranking of the number of housing units
with a high risk of lead hazards, in the
bottom ten percent of the U.S. Seven
percent of all homes in Chautauqua
County are at risk.

The link to the article quoted above: http://www.3thick.com/WEB%20FILE%20WORD%20issue30_8207.pdf (broken link)

They used the Scorecard Home website to find the information for this article. This is a pollution information website where you can check to see how your county (or someplace you're thinking of moving) is ranked.

Chautauqua County came in #5 for the worst pollution, behind Monroe, Niagara, Erie and Onondagua counties.

Yeah, I work in the environmental industry, i know all about it.

the only problem though is it only breaks it down by county, and there are a few places in the county that were very badly contaminated and skew the ratings for the rest of the county. But yeah, those parts are very dirty.

But go check out a really dirty place, like where I live now, Pittsburgh, its much much worse here.

And also, remember these are just RELEASES. that tells you little about the actual pollution levels in the county, especially with air and water pollution. this pollution is actually more dangerous further away from the source because of how it dissipates. for example, near a power plant, the pollution actually stays in a pretty steady stream and is concentrated in a small area where it is released, as the pollution flows further from the source, it spreads out and while not as potent, it effects alot more people, but this less potent pollution mixes "downstream" with other less potent pollution streams...

either way, the entire earth is pretty much cancerous at this point

[GoldenCrow]

Originally Posted by oktaren

Yeah, I work in the environmental industry, i know all about it.

the only problem though is it only breaks it down by county, and there are a few places in the county that were very badly contaminated and skew the ratings for the rest of the county. But yeah, those parts are very dirty.

But go check out a really dirty place, like where I live now, Pittsburgh, its much much worse here.

And also, remember these are just RELEASES. that tells you little about the actual pollution levels in the county, especially with air and water pollution. this pollution is actually more dangerous further away from the source because of how it dissipates.

So the scientist in you must know that you often can't always smell air pollution, or taste water pollution. In addition to the home-made pollutants, the NY coast of Lake Erie is slammed with air pollution from other areas, not the least of which is the giant out-of-date coal plant in Canada -- Naticoke -- that nation's worst polluter, and it's directly across the lake (as the wind blows) from Erie and Chautauqua counties.

According to the EPA, Chautauqua County is one of the areas of the country where air pollution levels persistently exceed the national ambient air quality standards and has been designated "nonattainment." And the particulate matter is apparently tracked at a station in Dunkirk.

Here's the national map from the EPA: Counties Designated Nonattainment | Green Book | US EPA

[oktaren]

Originally Posted by GoldenCrow

So the scientist in you must know that you often can't always smell air pollution, or taste water pollution. In addition to the home-made pollutants, the NY coast of Lake Erie is slammed with air pollution from other areas, not the least of which is the giant out-of-date coal plant in Canada -- Naticoke -- that nation's worst polluter, and it's directly across the lake (as the wind blows) from Erie and Chautauqua counties.

According to the EPA, Chautauqua County is one of the areas of the country where air pollution levels persistently exceed the national ambient air quality standards and has been designated "nonattainment." And the particulate matter is apparently tracked at a station in Dunkirk.

Here's the national map from the EPA: Counties Designated Nonattainment | Green Book | US EPA

I do this type of work I know all about it. I do the testing, you don't need to 'educate' me on the subject.

As for particulate matter, there is no place worse in the united states than where I am located now. ****tsburgh. I can barely breathe here. Not because i can smell it or taste it but because i have asthma and it is much harder to breathe here.

Either way, there is no place in the united states that has low pollution. our standards are so low that even the places that have "low" pollution have way too much. Its to the point I don't even care about looking at the levels anymore, because even the low levels are very toxic to humans and other animals. I am all for shutting down all coal fired plants and going on minimum electricity, but people don't want to take a REAL step. Just having the electricity web that surrounds you in your house is very carcinogenic.

Also Natichoke is to be decomissioned within a few years, that will a blessing. There is a push to clean up the dunkirk plant as well.

[GoldenCrow]

Originally Posted by oktaren

I do this type of work I know all about it. I do the testing, you don't need to 'educate' me on the subject.

Hmmm....your earlier post said that there was "no pollution" in Chautauqua County, yet the EPA says otherwise. Just don't want you moving back to WNY expecting it's all grape-scented air & sunny skies. WNY (at least those counties on Lake Erie) is probably not the best relocation choice for someone who has health issues such as asthma.

[oktaren]

Originally Posted by GoldenCrow

Hmmm....your earlier post said that there was "no pollution" in Chautauqua County, yet the EPA says otherwise. Just don't want you moving back to WNY expecting it's all grape-scented air & sunny skies. WNY (at least those counties on Lake Erie) is probably not the best relocation choice for someone who has health issues such as asthma.

I guess I should have been more specific, when i said no pollution i meant compared to where i am at now. which is a death trap. pittsburgh is the WORST area for particulate matter in the county, no where is worse. but really, its dirty everywhere. i would rather be somewhere as great as wny and try to better the situation.

I lived in Chautauqua County from 2-28, i think ill be ok i have only been away for 6 months.

by the way, i don't expect sunny skies, i don't even like sunny skies i like gray and snowy

[GoldenCrow]

Originally Posted by MaryG1959

My husband & I are looking for a place to move out in the country---somewhere VERY AFFORDABLE, with nice people and place for us to have a few animals (we have dogs and parrots presently). Somewhere I can let my dog bark without worrying about the nasty neighbor I have next door to me in PA!

Husband was driving through from NJ through NY and said he ran into some very rural areas that were beautiful.

Any ideas as to where you can live cheaply but nicely. (if that made any sense!!)

Hi --

In Western NY, Genesee County might be worth looking at, along with some of the more rural areas such as Cattaragus County. The Finger Lakes region is very beautiful, and you can still find some areas that are affordable once you get outside of the towns with big second home markets. Good luck with your search.

[505ci]

Oktaren, did you ever hear about Pittsburgh's reputation down in Louisianan at the mouth of the Mississippi? They don't like us very much. Evidently they've been having a big problem down there for years with the wetlands being polluted and killing a lot of the marine life. I guess recently they tested and found out that much of the pollutants come from upstream due to what industry in Pittsburgh pumps out into the Ohio river.

Not saying it doesn't come from other sources as well, but I guess Pittsburgh's industrial waste is the biggest culprit. There's a lot of people down there who aren't too happy with Pittsburgh.

[oktaren]

Originally Posted by 505ci

Oktaren, did you ever hear about Pittsburgh's reputation down in Louisianan at the mouth of the Mississippi? They don't like us very much. Evidently they've been having a big problem down there for years with the wetlands being polluted and killing a lot of the marine life. I guess recently they tested and found out that much of the pollutants come from upstream due to what industry in Pittsburgh pumps out into the Ohio river.

Not saying it doesn't come from other sources as well, but I guess Pittsburgh's industrial waste is the biggest culprit. There's a lot of people down there who aren't too happy with Pittsburgh.

I'm not suprised, but no, I hadn't heard of that before. I know similar occurences happen with some of the releases west of us on lake erie (cleveland, detroit, etc) which float downstream to us in western new york.

[bellafinzi]

Originally Posted by oktaren

As for particulate matter, there is no place worse in the united states than where I am located now. ****tsburgh. I can barely breathe here. Not because i can smell it or taste it but because i have asthma and it is much harder to breathe here.

If that steel mill near the Ohio River is still running, I'll bet you that Steubenville, OH tops Pburgh. That town not only has bad air, but bad water too. Inhaling the air makes you gag. And not only does the tap water taste disgusting, it has little things floating in it.