(277 KB)
Acting Chairman Tim Hagerty opened the July meeting of the Louisville Metro Air Quality Task force (Task Force). Eleven Task Force members were present, and Sharon Dodson attended for George Siemens. A quorum of the Task Force was present.
Art Williams, Director, Louisville Metro Air Pollution Control District, announced that so far this year there has been no exceedance of the 8-hour ozone standard nor has the District called an Ozone Action Day. This is the farthest that the Louisville area has gone into an ozone season without an Ozone Action Day or an 8-hour ozone exceedance. There are two significant reasons for the lower ozone concentrations. First, there have been significant reductions in oxides of nitrogen (NOx) emissions resulting from the EPA’s NOx SIP Call. These reductions have occurred both locally at the Louisville Gas and Electric plants and regionally at power plants such as the TVA Paradise Plant. The second reason is that the meteorological conditions have not been conducive for the generation of ozone. Dr. Geoffrey Cobourn, a professor at the University of Louisville, developed an algorithm made up of nine different weather variables to predict the likely levels of ozone. The three most important variables are temperature, cloud cover, and wind speed. The Louisville area has had cooler than usual temperatures, higher than usual precipitation (which translates into more cloud cover and less ultraviolet light), and fewer episodes of significant air stagnation.
Mr. Williams discussed the 26-year histogram that shows exceedances of the 1-hour ozone standard and the list of ozone reactivity factors for volatile organic compounds and mentioned that the full 1999 emissions inventory for Bullitt and Oldham Counties, comparable to what was distributed at the May Task Force meeting, was now available.
Mark Derf, a modeler with the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM), made two presentations. The first presentation, Ozone Modeling for Southern Indiana/Louisville Area, provided an overview of photochemical modeling. The second presentation, 8-Hour Ozone Modeling Analyses Summary for Southern Indiana/Louisville Kentucky, described the results of the photochemical modeling performed by the Lake Michigan Air Directors Consortium (LADCO) (both available from the District’s web page - see below). Established in 1990 by the States of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin, the original purpose of LADCO was to address the regional 1-hour ozone transport problem in the Lake Michigan area. LADCO is using CAMx (Comprehensive Air quality Model with extensions), a publicly available computer modeling system for the integrated assessment of 8-hour ozone and fine particulate air pollution. The regional modeling performed by LADCO includes the Louisville area.
The LADCO modeling shows that, when applying the relative reduction factors resulting from the implementation of the federal emission control programs, the 8-hour ozone standard is expected to be met by 2007 at all seven ozone monitor locations in the Louisville area. The modeling also shows that local emission controls are also effective in reducing ozone concentrations. Inputs to the CAMx model will be updated this summer and the model will be rerun. It was agreed that it is important for all of the Task Force members to better understand the assumptions, results, and significance of current and future modeling.
The Task Force members discussed the issues of what is the relevant information upon which to base a recommendation and what the goal for the Task Force should be, whether to plan for meeting the 8-hour ozone standard, the legal requirement, or for meeting a lower level. It was suggested that planning for emission reductions beyond those necessary to meet the legal requirement could hurt economic development. While the basis of the legal requirement to attain the standard is health, it was asked whether meeting the standard is adequate for ensuring acceptable health for all. It was stated that meeting the minimum emission reduction required to attain the standard would provide no margin for growth and that planning for better-than-required air quality would also provide a better quality of life.
It was agreed that the next Task Force meeting should focus on the following questions:
The next Task Force meeting will be Friday, August 27, 2004, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m., in the District’s Board Room, 850 Barret Avenue, Louisville.
The following documents from the July 23rd meeting are available from the District’s web page at www.apcd.org/taskforce/meetings/20040723:
(277 KB)
The following documents are available only on paper. Please contact Jon Trout at (502) 574-7251 or Jonathan.Trout@loukymetro.org if you would like a copy.