Climate Change Impacts on Regional Air Quality Report Just Released by EPA

(Washington, D.C. – April 17, 2009) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has released a report on the potential impacts of climate change on regional U.S. air quality. The information contained in the report will enhance our ability as a nation to protect air quality and human health.

The report, “Assessment of the Impacts of Global Change on Regional U.S. Air Quality: A Synthesis of Climate Change Impacts on Ground-Level Ozone,” concludes that there is a potential for climate change to make ozone pollution worse in some regions and that future ozone management decisions may need to account for the possible impacts of climate change.

Climate change has the potential to produce increases in ground-level ozone in many regions. Ground-level ozone is formed in the presence of sunlight by a chemical reaction between oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which are emitted from sources like motor vehicles and industrial facilities. Climate change also could increase the number of days with weather conditions conducive to forming ozone, potentially causing air quality alerts earlier in the spring and later in the fall.

The Global Change Research Program in EPA’s Office of Research and Development led the development of the peer-reviewed report, which was done in partnership with EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation. The report combines the results of new EPA-funded and existing scientific research and acknowledges that uncertainty remains over the specific regional patterns of climate change induced ground-level ozone changes.

More information on the report: http://cfpub.epa.gov/ncea/cfm/recordisplay.cfm?deid=203459

More information on EPA Office of Research and Development’s Global Change Research Program: http://www.epa.gov/ord/npd/globalresearch-intro.htm

Rocky Mountain High – On VOCs

The Rocky Mountain Clean Air Action and the Natural Resources Defense Council have notified Kerr-McGee, who manager eleven natural gas compressors north of Denver, that they will be filing a lawsuit to reduce air pollution emissions produced by the company.

The compressors emit 2,200 tons of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and 400 tons of volatile organic compounds (VOC) annually. NOx and VOC pollutants react with sunlight to form smog, which has shown to have harmful health effects such as asthma attacks. During the summer of 2006, smog levels were 66 times higher than national standards. The Kerr-McGee compressors emitted the annual equivalent in NOx of about 115,000 cars driven 12,500 per year.

As of 2004, the State of Colorado required Kerr-McGee to install emissions control technology on its engines, which compress natural gas from 3,600 natural gas wells. However the company has not complied with the regulations and the violations have not be resolved.

"The state has required oil and gas companies to install basic air pollution control equipment to help keep smog in check and leave our children better protected," said Nick Persampieri with Earthjustice. "It's unfortunate that Kerr-McGee has failed to comply with the state's requirements."

By installing catalytic converters, Kerr-McGee could cut their VOC emissions by 75 percent.

See the Source:
Earthjustice

Find out:
About diesel catalytic converters for stationary engines

The EPA Acid Rain Program 2005 Progress Report

2005 Progress Report (PDF 4.4 MB; 32 pp) Appendix A (Excel) Appendix A (PDF 205 KB; 81 pp)Appendix B1 (Excel) Appendix B1 (PDF 70 KB; 44 pp)Appendix B2 (Excel) Appendix B2 (PDF 27 KB; 23 pp)

Some of these files are presented in Adobe Acrobat format. For more information about how to use this format, see EPA's PDF page.

From the report executive summary: The Acid Rain Program was created to implement Title IV of the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments. The purpose of Title IV is to reduce the adverse effects of acid deposition through reductions in annual emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) by 10 million tons and by 2 million tons below projected levels, respectively.

Sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) are the key pollutants in the formation of acid rain. These pollutants also contribute to the formation of fine particles (sulfates and nitrates) that are associated with significant human health effects and regional haze. Additionally, NOx combines with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to form ground-level ozone (smog) and nitrates that are transported and deposited at environmentally detrimental levels in parts of the country. These pollutants, in their various forms, lead to the acidification of lakes and streams rendering some of them incapable of supporting aquatic life. In addition, they impair visibility in our national parks, create respiratory and other health problems in people, weaken forests, and degrade monuments and buildings.

In the United States, the electric power industry accounts for approximately 67 percent of total annual SO2 emissions and slightly more than 20 percent of total annual NOx emissions.

Since the start of the Acid Rain Program in 1995, the lower SO2 and NOx emission levels from the power sector have contributed to significant air quality and environmental and human health improvements.

Since its inception, the Acid Rain Program has:

- Reduced SO2 emissions by over 5.5 million tons from 1990 levels, or about 35 percent of total emissions from the power sector. Compared to 1980 levels, SO2 emissions from power plants have dropped by more than 7 million tons, or about 41 percent.
- Cut NOx emissions by about 3 million tons from 1990 levels, so that emissions in 2005 were less than half the level anticipated without the program. Other efforts, such as the NOx Budget - Trading Program in the eastern United States, also contributed significantly to this reduction.
Led to significant cuts in acid deposition, including reductions in sulfate deposition of about 36 percent in some regions of the United States and improvements in environmental indicators, such as fewer acidic lakes.
- Provided the most complete and accurate emission data ever developed under a federal air pollution control program and made that data available and accessible by using comprehensive electronic data reporting and Web-based tools for agencies, researchers, affected sources, and the public.
- Served as a leader in delivering e-government, automating administrative processes, reducing paper use, and providing online systems for doing business with EPA.
- Resulted in nearly 100 percent compliance through rigorous emissions monitoring, allowance tracking, and an automatic, easily understood penalty system for noncompliance. Flexibility in compliance strategies reduced implementation costs.

A 2005 study (PDF 532 KB; 15 pp) estimates that in 2010, the Acid Rain Program's annual benefits will be approximately $122 billion (2000$), at an annual cost of about $3 billion - a 40-to-1 benefit-to-cost ratio.

The Acid Rain Program 2005 Progress Report includes special sections on fuel switching and compliance options, EPA's framework for accountability, program costs and benefits, surface water quality monitoring, impact assessment, environmental justice, and the Clean Air Rules. Building on the Acid Rain Program model, EPA promulgated the Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR), to address transport of fine particles and ozone in the eastern United States, the Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR) to reduce nationwide mercury emissions from power plants, and the Clean Air Visibility Rule (CAVR) to improve visibility in national parks and wilderness areas.