files/AzdTWOrnQrq1iTrpUVYl coverstory
Cover Story by John D. Kinsman and Susan S.G. Wierman
Air Quality in the Western States Air quality issues in the Western United States can differ from those in the rest of the nation due to differences in population, energy sources, geography, climate, and other factors. In this month’s issue, we focus on a few air quality issues important to states in the West.
em • The Magazine for Environmental Managers • A&WMA • January 2017
Cover Story by John D. Kinsman and Susan S.G. Wierman
The articles featured in this issue of EM focus on a few air quality issues important to states in the Western United States. Air quality in the Western United States—that is, the Rocky Mountains, Great Basin, and West Coast states—is broadly different (and generally better) than in many parts of the Eastern United States. However, Southern California is known for the country’s most severe and persistent ozone problems, and other western areas also face air quality challenges such as meeting ozone and particulate matter standards, visibility, wood burning, and oil and gas development. Western air quality management challenges can be related to complex topography; diverse ecosystems; and widely-varying population, traffic, and industry. Most of the U.S. Federal Class I areas (major national parks and wilderness areas) are located in the West, which makes air quality and visibility especially highly valued. As air quality standards grow more stringent—including national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for ozone and particulate matter—the influences of background, international, and natural sources of emissions become more important, making the standards more difficult to attain. The increasing prevalence of wildfires is an important consideration. In some cases, even in very rural, remote areas, attaining the new ozone NAAQS of 0.070 parts per million may be difficult due to “background” ozone sources, such as wildfires, stratospheric ozone intrusion, or emissions transported from Asia, Mexico, or Canada. While anthropogenic emissions are
declining from most source categories and continued improvement is expected—due to federal, tribal, state, and local efforts plus advancements in the energy and transportation sectors—further air quality improvements will be difficult where background conditions dominate and/or where local efforts already have been extensive. This issue of EM presents the Western United States air quality situation from the perspectives of: • government agencies (the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] and the U.S. National Park Service [NPS]); • state agencies (the 15-state Western States Air Resources Council/Western Regional Air Partnership [WESTAR-WRAP]); • a group of energy companies (a regional coalition of 12 cooperative, public, and investor-owned electric utilities [WEST Associates]); and • a local state government entity (the South Coast Air Quality Management District [SCAQMD] of Southern California). The authors of these articles discuss their perspectives to challenges such as regional haze, ozone, and exceptional events. In the first article, EPA addresses background ozone and how EPA’s Exceptional Events rule allows states to deal with air quality events that are beyond their control. The author also describes EPA’s recently finalized rule and associated guidance to support state and tribal plans to reduce regional haze.
em • The Magazine for Environmental Managers • A&WMA • January 2017
Cover Story by John D. Kinsman and Susan S.G. Wierman
Next, the article by NPS focuses on developing plans to reduce regional haze to move toward the goal of natural visibility conditions by the year 2064. Key questions include identifying pollutants and sources contributing to regional haze and determining which emissions states should reduce as part of the second regional haze planning period (2019–2028). In the third article from WESTAR–WRAP, the authors explain that, due to the reductions in anthropogenic emissions achieved to date, most sites in the West have experienced at least a 10 percent improvement in visual range (in miles) from the period 2000–2004 to the period 2010–2014, and many have improved more than 20 percent. The authors note that wildfires have burned significant areas in the last decade, and the region is also affected by increasing international emissions. Events such as smoke, wind-blown dust, volcanic eruptions, stratospheric ozone intrusion, and international transport all may push some western areas to exceed NAAQS. Easilycontrolled anthropogenic emissions have all but disappeared. The authors also raise the issues of oil and gas production contributing to winter ozone formation, and climate changes resulting in longer seasons of ozone production. Next, in the article by WEST Associates, the authors note that since 1996 many regulations already have driven sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides emissions down by about threequarters and about one-half, respectively, in the 11-state Western Interconnect region. WEST Associates comments that states and EPA have differed in their interpretation of U.S. Clean Air Act requirements for regional haze, leading to litigation in numerous cases, and raises concerns regarding EPA’s new regional haze rule and guidance. Fire and persistent drought in some regions, as well as transported air pollution
from international sources, are making it more difficult to achieve Clean Air Act regulatory objectives, and these challenges are becoming less exceptional and more frequent. Lastly, the article by SCAQMD explains that on-road heavyduty engine standards are one of the important strategies needed for reducing nitrogen oxides emissions in order to meet the ozone NAAQS. SCAQMD and other local and state agencies have petitioned EPA to adopt more stringent nationwide standards for heavy-duty vehicles. Southern California is home to the largest marine port complex in North America, and heavy-duty trucks moving this cargo are the leading contributor to nitrogen oxides emissions in the region. SCAQMD points out that ultra-low nitrogen oxides heavy-duty engines exist for various types of trucks and buses. Last fall, A&WMA held an excellent conference on “Atmospheric Optics: Aerosols, Visibility, and the Radiative Balance” (http:// visibility.awma.org/) in Jackson Hole, WY. At that meeting, regional air management groups discussed the challenges of improving regional haze, specifically related to EPA’s new regional haze rule and guidance. It is clear that many aspects of managing visibility continue to be hotly debated, and that state and federal views vary on how and when progress should be made. It is impossible to fully address all of the complex issues facing western states in a single issue of EM. As these authors observe, while considerable progress has been made in improving air quality in the West, continued progress requires ongoing collaborative work between state, tribal, and federal agencies along with land managers, non-governmental organizations, and the regulated community. em
John D. Kinsman is senior director, environment at the Edison Electric Institute and chair of EM’s Editorial Advisory Committee (EAC). Susan S.G. Wierman is executive director of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Air Management Association (MARAMA). She is a long-time member and past-chair of the EAC and grew up and went to college in the Pacific Northwest.
em • The Magazine for Environmental Managers • A&WMA • January 2017
Air Quality in the Western States Air quality issues in the Western United States can differ from those in the rest of the nation due to differences in population, energy sources, geography, climate, and other factors. In this month’s issue, we focus on a few air quality issues important to states in the West.
em • The Magazine for Environmental Managers • A&WMA • January 2017
Cover Story by John D. Kinsman and Susan S.G. Wierman
The articles featured in this issue of EM focus on a few air quality issues important to states in the Western United States. Air quality in the Western United States—that is, the Rocky Mountains, Great Basin, and West Coast states—is broadly different (and generally better) than in many parts of the Eastern United States. However, Southern California is known for the country’s most severe and persistent ozone problems, and other western areas also face air quality challenges such as meeting ozone and particulate matter standards, visibility, wood burning, and oil and gas development. Western air quality management challenges can be related to complex topography; diverse ecosystems; and widely-varying population, traffic, and industry. Most of the U.S. Federal Class I areas (major national parks and wilderness areas) are located in the West, which makes air quality and visibility especially highly valued. As air quality standards grow more stringent—including national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for ozone and particulate matter—the influences of background, international, and natural sources of emissions become more important, making the standards more difficult to attain. The increasing prevalence of wildfires is an important consideration. In some cases, even in very rural, remote areas, attaining the new ozone NAAQS of 0.070 parts per million may be difficult due to “background” ozone sources, such as wildfires, stratospheric ozone intrusion, or emissions transported from Asia, Mexico, or Canada. While anthropogenic emissions are
declining from most source categories and continued improvement is expected—due to federal, tribal, state, and local efforts plus advancements in the energy and transportation sectors—further air quality improvements will be difficult where background conditions dominate and/or where local efforts already have been extensive. This issue of EM presents the Western United States air quality situation from the perspectives of: • government agencies (the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] and the U.S. National Park Service [NPS]); • state agencies (the 15-state Western States Air Resources Council/Western Regional Air Partnership [WESTAR-WRAP]); • a group of energy companies (a regional coalition of 12 cooperative, public, and investor-owned electric utilities [WEST Associates]); and • a local state government entity (the South Coast Air Quality Management District [SCAQMD] of Southern California). The authors of these articles discuss their perspectives to challenges such as regional haze, ozone, and exceptional events. In the first article, EPA addresses background ozone and how EPA’s Exceptional Events rule allows states to deal with air quality events that are beyond their control. The author also describes EPA’s recently finalized rule and associated guidance to support state and tribal plans to reduce regional haze.
em • The Magazine for Environmental Managers • A&WMA • January 2017
Cover Story by John D. Kinsman and Susan S.G. Wierman
Next, the article by NPS focuses on developing plans to reduce regional haze to move toward the goal of natural visibility conditions by the year 2064. Key questions include identifying pollutants and sources contributing to regional haze and determining which emissions states should reduce as part of the second regional haze planning period (2019–2028). In the third article from WESTAR–WRAP, the authors explain that, due to the reductions in anthropogenic emissions achieved to date, most sites in the West have experienced at least a 10 percent improvement in visual range (in miles) from the period 2000–2004 to the period 2010–2014, and many have improved more than 20 percent. The authors note that wildfires have burned significant areas in the last decade, and the region is also affected by increasing international emissions. Events such as smoke, wind-blown dust, volcanic eruptions, stratospheric ozone intrusion, and international transport all may push some western areas to exceed NAAQS. Easilycontrolled anthropogenic emissions have all but disappeared. The authors also raise the issues of oil and gas production contributing to winter ozone formation, and climate changes resulting in longer seasons of ozone production. Next, in the article by WEST Associates, the authors note that since 1996 many regulations already have driven sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides emissions down by about threequarters and about one-half, respectively, in the 11-state Western Interconnect region. WEST Associates comments that states and EPA have differed in their interpretation of U.S. Clean Air Act requirements for regional haze, leading to litigation in numerous cases, and raises concerns regarding EPA’s new regional haze rule and guidance. Fire and persistent drought in some regions, as well as transported air pollution
from international sources, are making it more difficult to achieve Clean Air Act regulatory objectives, and these challenges are becoming less exceptional and more frequent. Lastly, the article by SCAQMD explains that on-road heavyduty engine standards are one of the important strategies needed for reducing nitrogen oxides emissions in order to meet the ozone NAAQS. SCAQMD and other local and state agencies have petitioned EPA to adopt more stringent nationwide standards for heavy-duty vehicles. Southern California is home to the largest marine port complex in North America, and heavy-duty trucks moving this cargo are the leading contributor to nitrogen oxides emissions in the region. SCAQMD points out that ultra-low nitrogen oxides heavy-duty engines exist for various types of trucks and buses. Last fall, A&WMA held an excellent conference on “Atmospheric Optics: Aerosols, Visibility, and the Radiative Balance” (http:// visibility.awma.org/) in Jackson Hole, WY. At that meeting, regional air management groups discussed the challenges of improving regional haze, specifically related to EPA’s new regional haze rule and guidance. It is clear that many aspects of managing visibility continue to be hotly debated, and that state and federal views vary on how and when progress should be made. It is impossible to fully address all of the complex issues facing western states in a single issue of EM. As these authors observe, while considerable progress has been made in improving air quality in the West, continued progress requires ongoing collaborative work between state, tribal, and federal agencies along with land managers, non-governmental organizations, and the regulated community. em
John D. Kinsman is senior director, environment at the Edison Electric Institute and chair of EM’s Editorial Advisory Committee (EAC). Susan S.G. Wierman is executive director of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Air Management Association (MARAMA). She is a long-time member and past-chair of the EAC and grew up and went to college in the Pacific Northwest.
em • The Magazine for Environmental Managers • A&WMA • January 2017
