A Perspective on Fostering the Use of Nontraditional Air

Quality Data

Michael RizzoUSEPA Region 5

EPA’s role in air quality Public health agency

Science based Healthy dose of policy Integrate science and policy to better protect public health

Clean Air Act Mandates the regulation of six criteria pollutants: O3, PM, NO2, SO2, Pb

and CO Source emissions Interstate transport Acid Rain Air Toxics Stratospheric ozone Permits and enforcement

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EPA’s role in air quality Headquarters offices (mostly in DC and RTP)

Policy oriented Review and set National Ambient Air Quality

Standards (NAAQS) Design national plans and promulgate the necessary

regulations to implement the NAAQS and protect public health

Regional Offices Representing specific geographic areas of the United

States Headquarters program implementation Extramural activities Every Region is different 3

EPA’s Structure with Regards to Air Quality

Office of Research and Development (ORD) Conduct scientific research to support the

program offices and Regions Housed in labs around the country (most in RTP) Look at a variety of air quality issues

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What data are traditionally used?

Ozone PM2.5

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What data are traditionally used? Ground based measurements

Collected data usually conform to data collected during health studies

Used for a wide variety of purposes The more information the better Networks have strict quality assurance

requirements Decent time resolution Not always the best spatial resolution

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Nontraditional data uses at EPA Exceptional events

Fires Saharan dust

Weight of evidence Integrated Science Assessments, Risk and

Exposure Analysis, Policy Assessment for some of the criteria pollutants

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Nontraditional data uses at EPA Relating satellite measurements to ground

based measurements

Taken from PM ISA (December 2009)8

Current State of Things Policy makers, however, still rely almost solely

on traditional ground based measurements for Attainment designations Air Quality Index State Implementation Plans Ground truthing air quality models

Why? Regulations Current limitations of satellite data Funding issues

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Recent Emphasis to Enhance Air Monitoring Capability

Sensors and Apps Innocentive Challenge

Science fiction is slowly becoming science fact Large leaps in computing power and individual

creativity and innovation Concerns about public perception and

expectations

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What would help More web based remote training sessions on satellite data

and how to access and utilize the data for regional office staff

Continued development of analyses using satellite data that act as weight of evidence for attainment decisions in SIPs and aid in the design of effective control strategies to help States meet the NAAQS

Continued development of analyses to confirm influences from exceptional events (e.g. dust and fires)

On the modeling front, develop uncertainty estimates for deterministic models like CMAQ

Development of sensor technology to the point where satellite monitoring could be classified as Federal Equivalent Method 11