AIR QUALITYfor the

Interagency Wilderness Fire Resource Advisor

2011 SOUTHERN AREA ADVANCED FIRE AND AVIATION ACADEMY

Discussion Topics:• Very Brief Overview of Air Pollution• Define Class I Areas and the National Goal for Visibility• Clean Air Act direction to EPA

• Regional Haze and IMPROVE monitoring• Clean Air Act direction to Federal Land Managers

• Agency Policies• Group Discussion: What All This Means for a WFRA.

• Strategies / Guidelines?

• NAAQS

National Ambient Air Quality Standards

Pollutant Primary Stds. Averaging Times Secondary Stds.

Carbon Monoxide 9 ppm (10 mg/m3)

8-hour (1) None

35 ppm (40 mg/m3) 1-hour(1) None

Lead 1.5 µg/m3 Quarterly Average Same as Primary

Nitrogen Dioxide 0.053 ppm (100 µg/m3) Annual (Arithmetic Mean)

Same as Primary

Particulate Matter (PM10)

150 µg/m3 24-hour(3) Same as Primary

Particulate Matter (PM2.5)

15.0 µg/m3 Annual(4) (Arith. Mean) Same as Primary

35 µg/m3 24-hour(5) Same as Primary

Ozone 0.075 ppm 8-hour(6) Same as Primary

0.12 ppm 1-hour(7) (Applies only in limited areas)

Same as Primary

Sulfur Oxides 0.03 ppm Annual (Arith. Mean) -------

0.14 ppm 24-hour(1) -------

------- 3-hour(1) 0.5 ppm (1300 µg/m3)

Change in Air Quality Standards for Ground-Level OzoneOn March 12, 2008, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) changed the primary and secondary air quality standards for ground-level ozone. The new standard was changed from 0.08 parts per million (ppm) to 0.075 ppm. EPA is in the process of evaluating the need to change this again. Until that decision is issued (2011?), the States will use the 0.08 ppm standard.

Smoke Emissions

Ozone(O3) +

• Carbon Dioxide(≈ 3000 lbs/Ton fuel

consumed)

• Water (≈ 1000 lbs/T)

• Carbon Monoxide (≈ 300

lbs/T)

• Hydrocarbons (≈ 15

lbs/T)

• Nitrogen Oxides (≈ 4 lbs/T)

• Particulate Matter

(≈ 25 lbs/T)

USDA Forest ServiceAir Resource Management

January 2010

Particulate MatterSmoke particles from wood are relatively small

< PM 2.5 microns

PM 2.5-10 microns

> PM 10 microns

70.0%

20.0%

10.0%

(similar size to pollen)

(similar size to fly ash)

(similar size to dust) USDA Forest ServiceAir Resource Management

January 2010

2011 SOUTHERN AREA ADVANCED FIRE AND AVIATION ACADEMY

CLEAN AIR ACT, as amended 1977• Visibility protection for Class I areas

• Congress declared a national goal of preventing any future, and remedying any existing, impairment of visibility in mandatory Class I federal areas caused by manmade air pollution.

2011 SOUTHERN AREA ADVANCED FIRE AND AVIATION ACADEMY

MANDATORY CLASS I AREAS:• International Parks• Wilderness Areas > 5000 acres• National Memorial Parks > 5000 acres• National Parks > 6000 acres

existing Aug 7, 1977

Provided the Highest Level of Protection from Air Pollutants

WHERE CAN I FIND LISTS AND MAPS OF CLASS 1 AREAS?• http://www.wilderness.net• http://www.epa.gov/visibility/class1.html• http://www.fs.fed.us/air/technical/class_1/alpha.php• http://www.nature.nps.gov/air/Maps/classILoc.cfm

KEY AIR

POLLUTANTS and the

SOURCES AFFECTING VISBILITY

Air Quality in Class II Wilderness Areas?

CLEAN AIR ACT, as amended 1977• Visibility protection for Class I areas

• Authorized EPA to issue regulations to assure “reasonable progress” toward meeting the goal.

Regional Haze Regulations (RHR)

Great Smoky Mountains National ParkView From Look Rock

WHAT DOES REGIONAL HAZE DO?

WRAP

VISTAS

CENRAP

MANE-VU

Midwest-RPO

STATES &TRIBES ADDRESS VSIBILITY IMPAIRMENT AT A REGIONAL LEVEL

Interagency Monitoring of Protected Visual Environments

IMPROVE Visibility Monitoring Networkhttp://www.epa.gov/visibility/monitor.html

HOW DO WE MEASURE AND MONITOR REGIONAL HAZE ?

http://vista.cira.colostate.edu/IMPROVE/

2011 SOUTHERN AREA ADVANCED FIRE AND AVIATION ACADEMY

http://views.cira.colostate.edu/web/

2011 SOUTHERN AREA ADVANCED FIRE AND AVIATION ACADEMY

Regional Haze Spectrum #1 of 89:00:00 AM

Representativedv=8 Bext=23 VR=170

Regional Haze Spectrum #6 of 89:00:00 AM

Representativedv=30 Bext=196 VR=20

http://views.cira.colostate.edu/web/The Visibility Information Exchange Web System (VIEWS)

Dolly Sods Wilderness (W Va)

Regional Haze Spectrum #2 of 149:00:00 AM

Representativedv=4 Bext=16 VR=250

Regional Haze Spectrum #13 of 149:00:00 AM

Representativedv=28 Bext=156 VR=25

http://views.cira.colostate.edu/web/

Great Smoky Mountains National Park (TN)

The Visibility Information Exchange Web System (VIEWS)

Acadia National Park, Maine

CAMNET A Project of the Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management (NESCAUM).

NATURAL VISIBILITY

5-YEAR AVERAGE (2000-2004) DECIVIEW (DV) IMPROVE DATA ONLY

COARSE MASS

AMMONIUM NITRATE

PARTICULATES

FINE SOIL

ORGANIC CARBON

SULFATES

5-YEARAVERAGES(2000-2004)

http://www.epa.gov/visibility/index.html

2011 SOUTHERN AREA ADVANCED FIRE AND AVIATION ACADEMY

CLEAN AIR ACT, as amended 1977• Visibility protection for Class I areas

• The federal land manager shall have an affirmative responsibility to protect the air quality related values (including visibility) within Class I areas.

Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD)

FLM responsibilities include:

• the review of air quality permit applications from proposed new or modified major pollution sources near Class I areas.

If the FLM determines that emissions from a proposed source will cause or contribute to adverse impacts on the air quality related values (AQRVs) of a Class I area, the permitting authority, typically the State, can deny the permit.

• Allow fire its natural role in wilderness areas and fire-dependent ecosystems.

FEDERAL AGENCY POLICY

• Integrate air quality considerations into fire management decisions. • Reduce the impacts of smoke from wildland fires on visibility in Class I

wilderness, while understanding and promoting the need to re-introduce the natural role of fire in the wilderness ecosystems.

• Provide guidance in fire management plans for responding to natural and human-caused wildland fires and address the effects of fire management decisions on wilderness resources and character, air quality, smoke management, water quality, and other pertinent natural and cultural resource management objectives.

• Recognize and consider wilderness values (e.g., air quality and air quality related values) when responding to wildfires in wilderness. Mitigate potential negative or unacceptable impacts of smoke on air quality in such areas as Class I airsheds.

• Manage smoke from management ignited prescribed fires occurring in or adjacent to Class I wilderness areas in a manner that causes the least impact on air quality related values

CLASS DISCUSSION: WFRA STRATEGIES

MATERIALS / RESOURCES: STRATEGIES / GUIDELINES:• Wilderness Mgmt Plan• Wilderness Air Quality Values

Monitoring Plan• Fire Mgmt Plan• Forest Plan• State Implementation Plan (SIP)• Local Air Quality Specialist Contact

Info• Smoke Dispersion Forecast

• Incorporate air quality effects (incl. visibility) in wildfire response strategies?

• “Burn Outs” planned on good dispersion day?

• Others?

QUESTIONS?