Some of the same industry that keeps Cowlitz County’s economy alive also makes the county an air-pollution hotspot, emissions data from the state, federal and private trackers reveals.

The trend of industry being the county’s largest emitter flips the general pattern in Washington, where the largest contributors to poor air quality are wood-burning stoves, wildfires and vehicles.

That reality highlights the longstanding tension between the county’s economic health, which depends on manufacturing jobs, and its broader environmental health, which is shaped by pollution from some of the area’s largest local employers.

“With everything, there’s going to be a trade-off,” county Commissioner Steve Rader said. “And ultimately, what we have to do is measure risk to reward.”

A lack of detailed

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