President Obama announced in a press release that
he had advised EPA Administrator Jackson to not
proceed with the “reconsideration” of the Ozone
NAAQS [91]. At the same time, a brief summary
of the conclusions of the OIRA review was
released by the Director of that Office, Cass
Sunstein [62]. It briefly noted that the EPA “reconsideration” proposal (a) was discretionary and not
required by the CAA 5-year review schedule,
(b) was not based on the best available science
(the record was based on scientific literature that
had been published in most cases before 2006),
and (c) was not consistent with the President’s
desire for regulations that reduced uncertainty.
Environment groups greeted the President’s
announcement with dismay, while Business
applauded it. A Forum (Forum.HSPH.org) held
on September 21, 2011 at the Harvard School of
Public Health entitled “Smog or Jobs: The Impact
of Tighter Ozone Control” provides insight into
the controversial nature of President Obama’s
decision informed by the views of his advisor,
Sunstein. The current review of the Ozone
NAAQS initiated in 2008 will now proceed.
A key initial step in the review process occurred
with release in March 2011 of new integrated
science assessment for ozone [88]. A proposal
for the Ozone Standard should be issued in 2012
for public comment and a final rule for continuing
or revising the Ozone NAAQS should be issued in
March 2013 if EPA adheres to the 5-year schedule
specified in the Clean Air Act [16].
Current Air Quality Standards and
Guidelines
As noted earlier, the National Ambient Air Quality Standards established by the US Environmental Protection Agency are constantly changing.
Indeed, the Clean Air Act specifies that each
NAAQS should be reviewed every 5 years.
Although this schedule has been rarely met, the
reviews continue and changes in the NAAQS
have occurred. There is no specified schedule for
review of the WHO Air Quality Guidelines. However, it would be reasonable to assume that they
will be periodically reviewed and possibly revised
as new information is required.
The NAAQS as of September 18, 2011 are
shown in Tables 5 and 6 in summary form. The
reader interested in the details that support each of
the NAAQS is referred to the US EPA’s Website
for criteria air pollutants where detailed documents can be found on each of the Criteria Pollutants. This includes information on previous
reviews as well as reviews that are currently in
progress.
The final rule for each of the primary (health)
NAAQS published in the Federal Register are as
follows: particulate matter [75], Lead [73], Ozone
[82], Nitrogen dioxide [86], Sulfur dioxide [87],
and Carbon monoxide [89]. Each of these final
rules contains references to the Criteria Document
(or Integrated Science Assessment), Risk and
exposure assessment, and proposed rule that
undergirds the final rule. In addition, the EPA
Web site for criteria pollutants provides linkages
to the Regulatory Impact Analyses (RIA) that has
been conducted on the proposed final rule. The
RIA contain information on the monetized benefits of the rule and the associated costs of achieving the NAAQS. In accordance with the US
Supreme Court ruling in American Trucking Associations v. EPA [4] and Whitman v. American
Trucking Associations [93], the costs of
implementing the NAAQS may not be considered
by the EPA Administrator in the setting of the
NAAQS. However, these costs can be considered
in developing a schedule for implementation of
each NAAQS.
The current WHO air quality guidelines are
summarized in Tables 7, 8, 9, and 10. The basis
for these guidelines is contained in WHO documents [95, 96].
Future Directions
This entry has provided an overview of Air Quality Guidelines and Standards focusing on the standards developed by the US Environmental
Protection Agency and the Guidelines developed
by the World Health Organization. The latter
Guidelines, although stated to provide guidance
Air Quality Guidelines and Standards
37
he had advised EPA Administrator Jackson to not
proceed with the “reconsideration” of the Ozone
NAAQS [91]. At the same time, a brief summary
of the conclusions of the OIRA review was
released by the Director of that Office, Cass
Sunstein [62]. It briefly noted that the EPA “reconsideration” proposal (a) was discretionary and not
required by the CAA 5-year review schedule,
(b) was not based on the best available science
(the record was based on scientific literature that
had been published in most cases before 2006),
and (c) was not consistent with the President’s
desire for regulations that reduced uncertainty.
Environment groups greeted the President’s
announcement with dismay, while Business
applauded it. A Forum (Forum.HSPH.org) held
on September 21, 2011 at the Harvard School of
Public Health entitled “Smog or Jobs: The Impact
of Tighter Ozone Control” provides insight into
the controversial nature of President Obama’s
decision informed by the views of his advisor,
Sunstein. The current review of the Ozone
NAAQS initiated in 2008 will now proceed.
A key initial step in the review process occurred
with release in March 2011 of new integrated
science assessment for ozone [88]. A proposal
for the Ozone Standard should be issued in 2012
for public comment and a final rule for continuing
or revising the Ozone NAAQS should be issued in
March 2013 if EPA adheres to the 5-year schedule
specified in the Clean Air Act [16].
Current Air Quality Standards and
Guidelines
As noted earlier, the National Ambient Air Quality Standards established by the US Environmental Protection Agency are constantly changing.
Indeed, the Clean Air Act specifies that each
NAAQS should be reviewed every 5 years.
Although this schedule has been rarely met, the
reviews continue and changes in the NAAQS
have occurred. There is no specified schedule for
review of the WHO Air Quality Guidelines. However, it would be reasonable to assume that they
will be periodically reviewed and possibly revised
as new information is required.
The NAAQS as of September 18, 2011 are
shown in Tables 5 and 6 in summary form. The
reader interested in the details that support each of
the NAAQS is referred to the US EPA’s Website
for criteria air pollutants where detailed documents can be found on each of the Criteria Pollutants. This includes information on previous
reviews as well as reviews that are currently in
progress.
The final rule for each of the primary (health)
NAAQS published in the Federal Register are as
follows: particulate matter [75], Lead [73], Ozone
[82], Nitrogen dioxide [86], Sulfur dioxide [87],
and Carbon monoxide [89]. Each of these final
rules contains references to the Criteria Document
(or Integrated Science Assessment), Risk and
exposure assessment, and proposed rule that
undergirds the final rule. In addition, the EPA
Web site for criteria pollutants provides linkages
to the Regulatory Impact Analyses (RIA) that has
been conducted on the proposed final rule. The
RIA contain information on the monetized benefits of the rule and the associated costs of achieving the NAAQS. In accordance with the US
Supreme Court ruling in American Trucking Associations v. EPA [4] and Whitman v. American
Trucking Associations [93], the costs of
implementing the NAAQS may not be considered
by the EPA Administrator in the setting of the
NAAQS. However, these costs can be considered
in developing a schedule for implementation of
each NAAQS.
The current WHO air quality guidelines are
summarized in Tables 7, 8, 9, and 10. The basis
for these guidelines is contained in WHO documents [95, 96].
Future Directions
This entry has provided an overview of Air Quality Guidelines and Standards focusing on the standards developed by the US Environmental
Protection Agency and the Guidelines developed
by the World Health Organization. The latter
Guidelines, although stated to provide guidance
Air Quality Guidelines and Standards
37