Air Quality in Anchorage Air Quality Program Department of Health and Human Services Municipality of Anchorage April 2009 Photo credit: James M. Wiedle, 2003

Anchorage Air Quality Status CO Reclassified as a maintenance area after being classified as nonattainment for over 25 years. No violations of the CO NAAQS since 1996. PM10 Eagle River is currently considered nonattainment but may be redesignated as a maintenance area. Anchorage is classified as an attainment area. PM2.5 Attainment Lead Status with regard to the new air quality standard for lead not yet determined. SO2 Attainment O3 Attainment NO2 Attainment

Carbon monoxide (CO)

CO Colorless, odorless gas Binds with hemoglobin in blood, robs ability to carry oxygen to tissues High concentrations will cause death Lower concentrations are associated with increase in heart pain (angina). May contribute to “premature” death in elderly 70% of all CO in Anchorage is from automobiles

Anchorage CO Monitoring Stations Active sites – red Discontinued sites - black

We see higher CO in residential Spenard than at Seward Highway and Benson Boulevard. During a typical morning commute more emissions occur in the driveway than on the road.

Why plug-in?

Trend in Anchorage CO Concentrations 5 10 15 20 25 30 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 CO (ppm) Garden Benson Seward Turnagain Sand Lake CO NAAQS

Comparison of Calendar Year 2007 CO Concentrations in Selected Western U.S. Metropolitan Areas Metropolitan Area Highest 8-hour Concentration (ppm) 2nd Highest 8-hour Concentration Number of Exceedances of the NAAQS Ogden, UT 9.9 5.7 1 Sacramento, CA 5.6 4.1 Anchorage, AK 5.5 5.3 Phoenix, AZ 4.6 Las Vegas, NV 3.8 El Paso, TX 3.2 Salt Lake City, UT 3.7 3.4 Albuquerque, NM 3.6 Reno, NV 3.3 Fairbanks, AK Denver, CO 2.8 Spokane, WA 3.1 2.9 Portland, OR 2.7 Seattle, WA 1.0 Anchorage was in top 2% of all stations reporting in the U.S.

PM10 and PM2.5 Width of human hair Linked with asthma and other respiratory health problems Studies have shown higher death rates in hospitals when PM2.5 concentrations are high Anchorage studies show that there are more doctor visits for asthma when PM10 levels increase PM2.5 (2.5 µm) PM10 (10µm)

Sources of PM10 and PM2.5 are different Typical PM10 sources Typical PM2.5 sources Wild fire Improper sweeping on paved road Wild fires Diesel exhaust Fireplaces, wood stoves Dust from paved and unpaved roads Volcanoes, windblown glacial silt

PM10 monitoring has been performed at many sites in Anchorage and Eagle River

Anchorage PM10 concentrations sometimes exceed federal standards. PM2 Anchorage PM10 concentrations sometimes exceed federal standards. PM2.5 concentrations are almost always well below federal standards.

Anchorage PM10 peaks during break-up and freeze-up Anchorage PM10 peaks during break-up and freeze-up. Highest levels are near major roads. 20 40 60 80 100 120 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec PM-10 (ug/cu. meter) Airport Heights Residential Area Tudor Road 20 40 60 80 100 120 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec PM-10 (ug/cu. meter) Airport Heights Residential Area Tudor Road

Anchorage PM-10 Trend 10 20 30 40 50 60 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 PM (ug/m 3 ) Gambell Allstate (Tudor Rd.) Garden Mt. Spurr eruption

Eagle River PM-10 Trend 10 20 30 40 50 60 1981 1984 1987 1990 1993 1996 1999 2002 2005 2008 PM10 (ug/m3) Measured PM-10 Estimated PM-10 before paving after paving Mt. Spurr eruption 1992 high winds, blowing dust March 2003

Selected Western Metropolitan Areas in the U.S. Comparison of Calendar Year 2007 PM-10 Concentrations in Selected Western Metropolitan Areas in the U.S. Metropolitan Area Annual Avg PM-10 (ug/m3) Highest 24-Hour Avg 2nd Highest 24-Hour Avg Phoenix, AZ 42 267 149 Eagle River, AK 19 223 48 Albuquerque, NM 35 194 130 El Paso, TX 34 181 167 Salt Lake City, UT 46 174 172 Reno, NV 44 115 Las Vegas, NV 39 127 San Diego, CA 30 110 58 Anchorage, AK 24 99 98 Spokane, WA 89 79 Portland, OR 25 82 68 Eugene, OR 16 78 70 Seattle, WA 20 60 53 Juneau, AK 7 45 21 Anchorage and Eagle River are mid-range in comparison to other cities in U.S. with respect to PM-10

28.7 19.8 18.5 15.4 15.9 29.1 17.9 23.7 13.8 17.0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 PM2.5 (ug/m3) PM-2.5 NAAQS (98th percentile of 24-hr average) Levels of fine particulate matter (PM-2.5) are well below the NAAQS in Anchorage 6.5 5.4 5.9 5.8 6.8 6.9 6.3 4.9 5.5 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 PM2.5 (ug/m3) NAAQS ( Annual Average)

Comparison of Calendar Year 2007 PM-2.5Concentrations in Selected Western Metropolitan Areas in the U.S. Metropolitan Area 98th Percentile of 24-hour Average (ug/m3) Annual Average (ug/m3) Salt Lake City, UT 79.2 16.1 Juneau, AK 39.6 6.6 San Diego, CA 36.9 12.7 Eugene, OR 36.3 7.3 Phoenix, AZ 29.2 12.3 El Paso, TX 28.7 11.7 Spokane, WA 28.3 9.6 Seattle, WA 26.2 Reno, NV 24.0 8.0 Las Vegas, NV 22.6 10.3 Portland, OR 20.9 10.2 Albuquerque, NM 18.4 6.7 Anchorage, AK 14.5 4.9 Anchorage was among the lowest 2% of PM-2.5 stations in reporting in the U.S. in 2007

Benzene and air toxics Benzene is a known human carcinogen, associated with certain types of leukemia. Motor vehicles emissions are likely main source of benzene in Anchorage. Benzene concentrations in Anchorage are highest when CO levels are high.

Average Annual Benzene Concentration (ppb) Comparison of Annual Average Benzene Concentrations in Selected U.S. Metropolitan Areas (2007)  Metropolitan Area Average Annual Benzene Concentration (ppb) Tonawanda, NY 3.7 Houston, TX 1.4 Anchorage ** El Paso, TX 1.2 Phoenix, AZ 0.7 Los Angeles, CA 0.5 New York, NY 0.4 Seattle, WA 0.3 Boston, MA Portland, OR 0.2 Benzene concentrations in Anchorage appear to be among the highest in the U.S. ** Anchorage benzene concentration was estimated from CO.

Why is benzene so high in Anchorage? Our gasoline contains 2 to 10 times more benzene than most gasoline in the lower-48 Vehicle cold starts produce lots of CO and benzene Strong and persistent temperature inversions in the winter

Find full 2009 Air Trends report at: http://www. ci. anchorage. ak