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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, September 20, 2007 |
CONTACT Contact: Christopher Dann |
State Health Department Confirms Summertime Ozone Readings, Standard Violation; Nonattainment Designation Expected From U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyDENVER---The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment today confirmed that an intensive review of ozone data collected by air quality monitors through Aug. 31 this summer is complete and that a violation of the federal health-based standard for ozone has occurred at a Jefferson County monitor. “We’ve looked at the numbers, the monitors and other related information, and have concluded that the data are valid,” said Paul Tourangeau, director of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s Air Pollution Control Division. “We will be transmitting the data to the EPA shortly and anticipate that the Denver region will be formally designated by the EPA as a ‘nonattainment’ area for ozone.” Tourangeau continued: “The validation of the data is important because it confirms our understanding of what the status of the area will be in relationship to the federal health-based standard. It compels us to move forward rapidly to develop plans for further reductions in ozone concentrations.” A violation is not official until the EPA has reviewed all relevant data and made a formal determination. The EPA is expected to make its decision in November 2007. The current federal health-based standard for ground-level ozone is 0.08 parts per million (ppm) measured over eight hours. The EPA determines compliance by reviewing three consecutive years of data to arrive at an average that can be compared to the standard. Data from each monitor are considered separately. A violation at any one of the state’s 12 Denver-metropolitan area and North Front Range monitors results in a nonattainment designation for the entire region. Specifically, the fourth-highest reading each calendar year is averaged with the fourth-highest readings from the two previous calendar years for each monitor and compared to the standard. Because of a rounding factor that is included in the calculation, an average of 0.084 ppm or lower is necessary to stay in compliance with the standard. At the Rocky Flats area monitor, the three-year average (2005-2007) currently is 0.085 ppm. All other monitors, although periodically recording eight-hour concentrations at or above the standard, remain in compliance based on their three-year averages. In June, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed to lower the ground-level ozone standard to a level ranging from 0.070 to 0.075 ppm measured over eight hours, and the agency reports that it will finalize a new federal standard next spring. However, a nonattainment designation under the existing standard is expected. “The department anticipates that the EPA will designate a nine-county region (Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas, Jefferson, Larimer and Weld counties) as out of compliance with the existing eight-hour ozone standard,” said Tourangeau. The department’s Air Pollution Control Division, along with the Regional Air Quality Council, the North Front Range Metropolitan Planning Organization, other agencies in the region and stakeholders, already has begun work to further reduce ozone concentrations to attain the standard. A plan will be submitted to the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission for approval by the end of 2008, with legislative review expected after that. Once all state approval processes have been completed, the plan ultimately will be submitted by the governor to the EPA for final approval. Ozone is an important public health issue. Increased ground-level ozone concentrations can compromise public health, especially among sensitive populations like active children, the elderly and those with pre-existing respiratory conditions like asthma, at levels below the federal standard. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission have adopted various emissions reduction strategies to achieve the federal health-based ozone standards. ---30--- |
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