We hope you will join us in submitting a comment to Philadelphia's Air Management Services office about SEPTA's proposed Nicetown gas plant!

Air Management Services (AMS) is the city agency that monitors air pollution and enforces city, state and federal air quality regulations. SEPTA has applied to AMS for a permit for the Nicetown gas plant, and AMS has announced that they intend to issue that permit.

Before making a decision, AMS is accepting written comments. The deadline is Saturday, June 24. We urge everyone who is concerned about the plant to submit a comment expressing their objections. Your comment will help to build a strong case for rejecting this plant and for stopping the construction of additional gas plants in Philadelphia and beyond.

AMS will also hold a public hearing on Tuesday, June 27 at 6pm at Panati Playground, 3101 N. 22nd Street. We encourage everyone to come out to the hearing and to testify about your concerns! Please use the form on this page to let us know if you'd like to attend. We'll follow up with more information soon.

How to Submit a Comment: Web Form, Email, or Regular Mail

AMS only accepts written comments by mail. In order to make it easier for people to submit input, we've created a web form on this page and provided sample text. If you enter your comment here, we will print it and mail it to AMS. You can also email a comment to us at 350philadelphia@gmail.com.

If you prefer to submit a comment directly to AMS, mail your letter to the following address: Air Management Services, 321 University Avenue, 2nd Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19104, Attn: Debra Williams.

Suggestions for Your Comment

We have provided sample text for your comment. If you'd like us to send that text on your behalf, just enter your contact info and click on the "add your name" button. You can also edit the text, or delete it and write your own comment from scratch.

Please urge AMS to deny a permit for the proposed gas plant and to carry out additional studies about the potential health impact. We encourage you to share what is at stake for you personally, especially if you live, work, or go to school near the location of the proposed gas plant, or if you know someone who does. In addition, you may want to mention some or all of these points:

• Air Management Services has not fully examined the potential health impact of SEPTA's proposed gas plant. Pollutants released by natural gas power plants are known to contribute to asthma, heart disease, strokes, and variety of other serious problems. The review process that AMS has used to evaluate this project are not sufficient to protect public health.

• Neighborhood residents are already overburdened with air pollution. Community members are exposed to high levels of multiple forms of pollution, including diesel exhaust and particulate matter. AMS has not examined the harm caused by exposure to this "multipollutant mixture."

• Community members are overburdened with illnesses that are caused or exacerbated by air pollution. A 2012 study indicated that 31% of children in the 19140 ZIP code have been diagnosed with asthma--far above the average for the city. In addition, 19140 has the highest rate of childhood asthma hospitalizations in the city. Nicetown residents are exposed to high level of multiple forms of pollution. AMS has not considered the ways in which those burdens make community members especially vulnerable to additional pollution from the gas plant.

• AMS has not examined a pollutant that is especially concerning: ultrafine particles (UFPs). There is growing evidence that UFPs are especially harmful to people's health, and studies have found that they are emitted in large numbers by natural gas power plants. UFPs are also prevalent in exhaust from cars, trucks, and buses. Nicetown residents are exposed to a great deal of UFP pollution from the Roosevelt Expressway and SEPTA's Midvale Bus Depot. Although these particles are not yet regulated by the local, state, or federal authorities, there is strong reason to be concerned. AMS should examine the UFP pollution that is likely harming community residents now as well as the particles that would be likely emitted by the gas plant.