1 St. Louis Region Air Quality Report EWGCOG Staff Report August 12, 2008

2 St. Louis Air Quality History Clean air act amendments of 1990 Moderate ozone non-attainment area 2002 – attained 1-hour ozone standard 2004 – designated as moderate 8-hour ozone non- attainment area 2005 – designated as fine particle (PM 2.5 ) non- attainment area 2008 – revised 8-hour ozone standard enacted

3 Ozone and Transportation Facts People in St. Louis drive over 77 million miles per day Carpooling saves 320 lbs of emissions and $1,000 – per person/year Two MetroLink tracks = 16 lanes A full MetroBus at rush hour removes 40 cars from the highway St. Louis Regional Clean Air Partnership

4 How Ozone Is Formed

5 Four Sources of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) St. Louis Regional Clean Air Partnership

6 Health Effects of Ozone Headaches, fatigue, shortness of breath, coughing, wheezing Irritates eyes, nose and respiratory track Aggravates chronic heart disease and chronic respiratory ailments Decreases resistance to infection Triggers asthma attacks

Hour Ozone Standard Set in 1997, went into effect in 2004 Standard is 80 parts per billion (ppb) averaged over an 8 hour period Rounding allows for values up to 84 ppb

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9 Review of Ozone Standard More recent science shows 1997 standard is not adequate to protect public health USEPA staff and Clean Air Science Advisory Committee reviewed information and made recommendations to USEPA Administrator March 12, 2008 Final Rule signed

Ozone Standard Primary health-based standard set at 75 ppb No rounding Form of standard remains the same Violation is when 3 year average is > 76 ppb

11 Revised Standard Milestones ActionsDates USEPA Administrator signs final ruleMarch 12, 2008 Effective date of final rule (60 days after publication in the Federal Register) ~ June 2008 States provide recommendations on designations to USEPA March 2009 (using data) Final designations by USEPA~ March 2010 Effective date of designations~ 2010 SIPS due~ 2013 Attainment dates depending upon the severity of the problem

12 Fine Particles or PM 2.5 PM is a mix of solid particles and liquid droplets suspended in the air Fine PM is less than or equal to 2.5 microns in diameter (1/30 the width of a human hair) Made up of a number of components Can be emitted directly Can be chemically formed

13 Fine Particles or PM 2.5 Sources Smoke from fires Power plants Industrial activities Vehicle exhaust

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15 Important Dates June 15, 2007 – 8-hour ozone SIPs submitted to USEPA April 5, 2008 – PM 2.5 SIPs were to be submitted to USEPA June 15, 2010 – area to attain 8-hour ozone standard April 5, 2010 – area to attain PM 2.5 standard

16 Gateway’s Air Quality Planning Activities Facilitate SIP process for ozone and PM 2.5 Coordinate the AQAC Prepare air quality conformity determination Coordinate the IACG Ozone data sharing project Special projects

17 Ozone Data Sharing Project Ozone season is April 1 – October 31 EWGCOG acts as clearinghouse for 1-hour and 8- hour data provided by MoDNR and IEPA Initial quality assurance screening

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Ozone Season 7 ozone days 1 in June 5 in July 1 in August 18 exceedances in all Exceedance at a monitor is when an 8-hour average of values is calculated to be > 76 ppb on any day

20 Monitors in Violation of 8-hr Ozone Standard (2006 – August 11, 2008) West Alton Orchard Farm Maryland Heights Sunset Hills Pacific Blair St. (City) Margaretta (City) Wood River Maryville Alton Data still to be validated by States Violation is determined by taking a 3 year average of the 4 th highest annual maximum average by monitor and having average be > 76 ppb.

21 July 2008 AQI Calendar - Ozone

– Basic I/M Test 1993 – Low RVP Gasoline (7.2 psi) 1988 – Stage II Vapor Recovery 1995 – Low RVP Gasoline (7.0 psi) 1990 – Computerized I/M Testing 1999 – Federal Reformulated Gasoline Program 1991 – Low RVP Gasoline (7.8 psi) 2000 – Centralized I/M Program

23 Things to Do to Reduce Ozone Levels Set air conditioner no lower than 78 o to conserve energy Share a ride or use mass transit; Bicycle or walk errands when possible Avoid using oil- and solvent-based paints, degreasers or lighter fluid Defer use of gasoline-powered lawn and garden equipment Refuel cars and trucks after dusk to reduce daytime pollution releases Combine errands and reduce trips Limit vehicle idling when possible

24 For Additional Information On-line Air Quality Resource Center