Thomas DiLazaro

The LehighValley/Berks County Air Quality Partnership, the American Lung Association of Pennsylvania and Woman’s Club of Allentown presented the 37th Annual R. Emmet Doherty Clean Air Award to Thomas DiLazaro, former DEP Air Quality program manager, during a ceremony yesterday at Cedar Crest College in Allentown.

“Tom has long been committed to improving air quality in the Lehigh Valley and promoting the efforts of the Air Quality Partnership to educate residents about how they can reduce air pollution,” said Keith Williams, chairperson of the Lehigh Valley/Berks County Air Quality Partnership. “His many years of service to the Commonwealth, his dedication to enforcing Pennsylvania’s air quality laws and regulations and his enthusiastic support of the Air Quality Partnership of Lehigh Valley/Berks County make him a very worthy recipient of this year’s R. Emmet Doherty Clean Air Award.”

The Clean Air Award recognizes the efforts of a local business, organization or individual for improving air quality in the greater Lehigh Valley region. First presented in 1970, the award is named in honor of R. Emmet Doherty, a former director of the Lehigh Valley Pollution Control District who monitored air quality and championed air pollution reduction during his 19 years of service.

Tom DiLazaro retired from DEP in June 2007 after 34 years of service. DiLazaro worked in several different capacities in the DER/DEP Air Quality Program, including as an Air Pollution Control Engineer. He was appointed Air Quality Program Manager in May 1993 and also served as the supervisor of DEP’s Bethlehem District Office. He earned his Bachelor and Master’s Degree in Engineering from Penn State. DiLazaro is married with two children and resides in Nazareth.

DiLazaro worked with the Lehigh Valley/Berks County Air Quality Partnership to develop and continue the Ride Free on Ozone Action Days in conjunction with the Lehigh and Northampton Transportation Authority (LANTA). DEP, the partnership and LANTA sponsor Ride Free program, which has been operating since 2001.

Bus rides on LANTA’s Lehigh and Northampton County routes are free when DEP Air Quality meteorologists forecast an Ozone Action Day. In 2002, LANTA realized a 54 percent increase in its number of riders, as well as a significant reduction in ozone-producing automobile traffic.

He also worked with Partnership chairperson Keith Williams (recipient of the 2006 R. Emmet Doherty Award) on other air quality educational and promotional events such as developing nightly ozone and particulate announcements on WFMZ-TV weather broadcasts, Ozone Free BBQs with WFMZ-TV, Air Quality Nights at Reading Phillies games and a gas-can exchange program that provided over 600 free, low-vapor containers and allowed residents to turn in their old gasoline containers.

The Lehigh Valley/Berks County Air Quality Partnership is a coalition of individuals, businesses, governments and community groups that educates the public about the dangers of ground-level ozone and particulate matter, and encourages people to take voluntary actions to reduce their contributions to air pollution.

For more information, visit the PA Air Quality Partnership webpage.

11/16/2007