7 Air Quality/Air Pollution

Question 1

What are the six common pollutants known as “criteria air pollutants?”

Answer 1

Lead, CO, Ozone, NOx, SOx, Particulate Matter

Question 2

What does the word “criteria” mean in that context? In other words, why are they referred to as “criteria pollutants?”

Answer 2

They are the air pollutants that have to meet a certain limit or criteria in our country according to the law.

Question 3

With regard to air pollution, what is an “attainment” area? What is a “nonattainment” area?

Answer 3

An attainment area is an area where the air is cleaner than the EPA air pollution limits while a
non-attainment area is an area where the air is too polluted to meet the EPA limits.

Question 4

Under the Clean Air Act, what are the purposes of a State/Tribal Implementation Plan?

Answer 4

“to reduce air pollutants to allowable levels” and to continue to reduce air pollutants overall

to get all states and tribal nations under the criteria pollutant limits and maintain/decrease their air quality levels once they meet these limits.

Question 5

For any of the criteria air pollutants, be able to describe how it forms or gets into the air, and list a few harmful health effects of exposure to it

Answer 5

SEE TABLE SCREENSHOT

Question 6

Clean Air Act:
Be able to list a few major points of the 1970/1977/1990

Answer 6

1970/1977:
-Common wide-spread pollutants (criteria pollutants)
Sets air quality standards for criteria pollutants
Designates attainment and non-attainment areas
Requires State Implementation Plans (SIPs)
Sets requirements for how non-attainment areas can improve
Prevention of Significant Deterioration program to preserve clean air in attainment areas
Sets national standards for emissions from new stationary sources, consumer products, vehicles, fuels
-Control of acid rain
Cap and trade program for sulfur dioxide emissions from power plants
Sets emission standards for nitrogen oxides from power plants
1990:
Market-based principles (emission banking & trading)
Alternative clean fuels
Low sulfur coal, natural gas
Cut dependency on oil imports by increasing reliance on clean fuels
Utility programs that incentivize customers to conserve energy

Question 7

What are some ways that the Clean Air Act addresses the need to reduce criteria pollutant levels?

Answer 7

Sets air quality standards for criteria pollutants
Designates attainment and non-attainment areas
Requires State Implementation Plans (SIPs)
Sets requirements for how non-attainment areas can improve
Prevention of Significant Deterioration program to preserve clean air in attainment areas
Sets national standards for emissions from new stationary sources, consumer products, vehicles, fuels

Question 8

How does the Clean Air Act address control of acid rain?

Answer 8

CAPS and TRADES:
Cap and trade program for sulfur dioxide emissions from power plants
Sets emission standards for nitrogen oxides from power plants

-caps SO2 and NOx emission amounts for large companies and production plants of any kind
throughout the nation
-Allowances are equal to 1 ton of smokestack emissions. Each company gets a set number and if
they want/need to exceed that number they either need to adapt their production methods to
produce less pollutants or purchase more allowances. Makes a set number of allowances that
can be traded and sold in the flexible market nationwide.

Question 9

What three factors combined to produce the Donora Smog? (Also applicable to why we get inversions in Utah during the winter.)

Answer 9

Weather changes
Emmisions from Steel Mill
Topography hills/mountains into a valley