Air Quality Monitoring in Philadelphia Thomas Farley, MD MPH - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Air Quality Monitoring in Philadelphia Thomas Farley, MD MPH - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Feb 20, 2024 396 likes •580 views

Air Quality Monitoring in Philadelphia Thomas Farley, MD MPH Commissioner Philadelphia Department of Public Health Air Pollution EPA Criteria Pollutants Air Toxics Particulate Matter (PM2.5 and PM10) Chemicals that

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Air Quality Monitoring in Philadelphia

Thomas Farley, MD MPH Commissioner Philadelphia Department of Public Health

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Air Pollution

  • EPA “Criteria” Pollutants

– Particulate Matter (PM2.5 and PM10) – Nitrogen dioxide (NO2), Ozone (O3), Carbon monoxide (CO), Sulfur dioxide (SO2) – Lead

  • Harmful to human health

– Heart and lung disease, reduced life expectancy

  • Mainly produced by combustion

– Stationary sources

  • PES and other industrial sources
  • Building furnaces and boilers

– Mobile sources

  • Cars, trucks, buses
  • Ships, airplanes, construction equipment
  • “Air Toxics”

– Chemicals that may have long-term risks for cancer or other biologic/environmental

  • E.g. benzene, formaldehyde

– Produced by chemical release (e.g. gasoline stations, dry cleaners)

  • Greenhouse gases
  • Carbon dioxide (CO2), Methane (CH4), Nitrous
  • xide (N2O)
  • Flourinated gases like hydroflourocarbons

– Produced by burning, production, transport of fossil fuels – Contribute to global warming, climate change, severe weather events, sea level rise

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Air Quality Has Improved Since Regulation

1962 2010s

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City-Wide Air Monitoring Network

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Trends in Annual PM2.5 (Fine Particles)

2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 CONCENTRATION (ug/m3) YEAR MIN AVG MAX ANNUAL NAAQS (12 ug/m3)

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Trends in Annual Ozone

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Source: Philadelphia Inquirer, 6-29-2019 (https://www.inquirer.com/business/philadelphia- refinery-fire-plan-to-close-20190626.html)

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Sources of Air Pollution at PES

  • Distillation Unit
  • Alkylation Unit
  • Pumps, air compressor, fans
  • Steam generating boilers
  • Process heaters
  • Flares
  • Cracking units
  • Sulfur recovery unit
  • Catalytic reforming unit
  • Hydrogen production unit
  • Storage tanks
  • Wastewater treatment
  • CO Boilers
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Monitoring of Emissions from PES

  • Stack tests when source is installed or modified and generally

repeated every 5 years.

  • Continuous Emission Monitors (CEMs) that measure certain

pollutants on continuous basis

– Quarterly reports submitted to AMS -> DEP, EPA

  • Inspections by AMS and EPA
  • Fence line air monitors:

– Particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), ozone, S02, lead, CO, NOx, H2S – Benzene

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Estimated emissions from PES vs. other sources in Philadelphia

Mobile sources 86% Other stationary sources 5% PES 9%

Fine Particles (PM2.5)

Mobile sources 72% Other stationary sources 8% PES 20%

Greenhouse Gases*

*Including carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide

Stationary sources estimated by measurement and reports; mobile sources estimated by EPA MOVES14a model

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City-Wide Air Monitoring Network

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5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 1/1/2014 2/20/2014 4/11/2014 5/31/2014 7/20/2014 9/8/2014 10/28/2014 12/17/2014 2/5/2015 3/27/2015 5/16/2015 7/5/2015 8/24/2015 10/13/2015 12/2/2015 1/21/2016 3/11/2016 4/30/2016 6/19/2016 8/8/2016 9/27/2016 11/16/2016 1/5/2017 2/24/2017 4/15/2017 6/4/2017 7/24/2017 9/12/2017 11/1/2017 12/21/2017 2/9/2018 3/31/2018 5/20/2018 7/9/2018 8/28/2018 10/17/2018 12/6/2018 1/25/2019 3/16/2019 5/5/2019 6/24/2019

PM2.5 Concentration (ug/m3)

Daily Average of PM2.5 at RIT Station (1/1/2014 - 6/24/2019)

PM2.5 at RIT Station

Fire/Explosion

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Fine Particle Pollution at PES and Nearby Stations

On Morning of Fire/Explosion

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 0:00 1:00 2:00 3:00 4:00 5:00 6:00 7:00 8:00 9:00 10:00

Ug/m3 Time, June 21, 2019

RIT station PES Fenceline Camden

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Philadelphia Air Quality Survey Sampling Units

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Annual Average PM2.5 in Monitoring Sites

Preliminary Results from PAQS

24th + Ritner 7.9 Southwest 8.3 City Hall 10.4 Roxborough 6.5

City Average 8.1 ug/m3

Refinery

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Summary

  • Air pollution levels in Philadelphia far lower than previously, but

further improvements would help human health

  • PES is a significant source of air pollution and greenhouses gases in

Philadelphia

– Mobile sources (vehicles and equipment) are cumulatively far greater contributors

  • Levels of PM2.5 in neighborhoods near PES similar to city-wide

average

  • No evidence that fire/explosion on June 21 increased levels of air

pollutants in neighborhoods nearby