1 / 25

Air Toxics in Alaska ITEP Air Quality Training Lower Kalskag 2014

Air Toxics in Alaska ITEP Air Quality Training Lower Kalskag 2014. Barbara Trost/Bob Morgan Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation. Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs). also known as Toxic Air Pollutants or Air Toxics. What are HAPs?.

naomi
Download Presentation

Air Toxics in Alaska ITEP Air Quality Training Lower Kalskag 2014

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Air Toxics in AlaskaITEP Air Quality TrainingLower Kalskag 2014 Barbara Trost/Bob Morgan Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation

  2. Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs) also known as Toxic Air Pollutants or Air Toxics

  3. What are HAPs? Toxic air pollutants that can cause serious health effects • Cancer • Respiratory problems • Neurological problems • Reproductive problems • Birth defects • Adverse environmental and ecological effects

  4. What are HAPs? (cont.) EPA required to control 188 hazardous air pollutants • Defined by Clean Air Act (CAA) Amendments of 1990 (see list) • 5 important air pollutants not on list, addressed separately as"criteria pollutants”

  5. CAA—Title I NAAQS Criteria Pollutants • Particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5) • Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) • Sulfur dioxide (SO2) • Ozone (O3) • Carbon monoxide (CO) • Lead (Pb) is both criteria pollutant and HAP

  6. Examples of HAPs – Mercury Tilt Switch (washing machine) Flame Sensor (gas range) Float Switch (sump pump) Thermometers Thermostats Switches Lighting (fluorescent, CFL, HID, Neon) Batteries (button-cell, mercury-oxide) Coal-burning power plants Burning municipal or hazardous waste (Hg fact sheets and info at www.newmoa.org)

  7. Examples of HAPs – Mercury (cont.) http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/fs-0072-94/ Mercury mines (none currently operating) Extraction of gold in mining Fish and marine mammals ”State health officials are actively monitoring Alaska residents and have not found any cases of unsafe mercury exposures resulting from consumption of Alaska fish” (www.epi.alaska.gov/eh/fish/)

  8. Examples of HAPs – Cadmium • Common in industrial workplaces • Tobacco smoke • Nickel-cadmium (NiCad) batteries (power tools, cordless phones, professional radios, airsoft guns)

  9. Examples of HAPs – Lead Lead solder Batteries TV screens and computer monitors Ammunition Weights Building demolition with lead-based paint Red Dog Mine

  10. Examples of HAPs – Dioxins Group of chemical compounds that share similar chemical structures Herbicides - 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) “Agent Orange” & “Esteron” Sources: byproduct of combustion and production processes involving chlorine

  11. Examples of HAPs – Dioxins (cont.)

  12. Examples of HAPs – Asbestos • Natural asbestos deposits • Insulating material (building materials before 1975, heat-resistant fabrics) • Asbestos Containing Material (ACM) • floor tile • Roofing material • Packing and gaskets • (Removal requires special equipment and detailed training)

  13. More Examples of HAPs Formaldehyde – particle board, new manufactured homes (building materials and home furnishings), smoking, incomplete fuel combustion Beryllium – combustion of coal and fuel oil, incineration of municipal waste Benzene, Toluene – gasoline Vinyl chloride – used to make plastics (PVC) Radionuclides – naturally occurring radon, fallout from nuclear tests

  14. Sources of HAPs – Major Sources (Large Sources) More than 10 tons/year of one HAP or more than 25 tons/year of combination of HAPs • Chemical plants • Coal-burning power plants • Coke ovens – steel plants • Mines (Red Dog) and refineries

  15. Sources of HAPs – Area Sources (Small Sources) • Vehicle exhausts • Village fuel venting tanks • Gas stations • Burning landfills • Dry cleaners • Print shops

  16. Long-Range Transport

  17. Grasshopper Effect

  18. Indoor Sources Combustion • Cigarettes • Exhaust from furnace • Treated wood in wood stoves Building materials/furnishings • Formaldehyde from pressed wood, new carpets • Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) • Paints, new carpet, glues • Dioxins from bleached fabrics

  19. Indoor Sources (cont.) Household cleaning/maintenance products • Chlorine (Clorox Bleach, chlorinated cleaners) • Glues (typically, strong-smelling substances contain VOCs • Glass cleaners can contain benzene, ammonia, more Storage / Arctic entries / Attached garages • Stored fuels • Paints and solvents • Vehicle Exhausts

  20. Effects of HAPs Health Effects of HAPs • Cancer • Neurological problems • Reproductive issues • Birth defects • Respiratory problems

  21. Effects of HAPs (cont.) Environmental effects of HAPs • Soils – spilled gasoline, leached into dump • Water – spilled gas, runoff from dump • Air – venting tanks, burning waste

  22. Greatest Risk in Villages • Normally not a high risk • Some risk • Running small boats frequently or rebuilding carburetors • Living downwind from a dump where trash is burned • Using commercial cleaning and building materials • Natural sources in/near villages

  23. Regulation of HAPs Emission controls • Health-based in 1970 Clean Air Act • Not implemented • Disagreement about regulating carcinogens • Technology-based in 1990 Clean Air Act • Pollution prevention

  24. Regulation of HAPs (cont.) Regulations • By source category • Regulate major sources first • Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) • Pollution prevention

  25. Contact Information Bob Morgan, ADEC Phone: 907-269-3070 E-mail: bob.morgan@alaska.gov Barbara Trost ADEC / AQ Air Monitoring and Quality Assurance, Program Manager Phone: 907-269-6249 E-mail: barbara.trost@alaska.gov Jennifer Williams AK Solid and Hazardous Waste Program Coordinator Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals Phone: 907-349-2163 E-mail:jennifer.williams@nau.edu

More Related