2010 Progress Report - International Joint Commission

Progress Report 2010
the NCore network, which is scheduled to be fully
operational by January 1, 2011. General information
on the NCore network is available at www.epa.gov/
ttn/amtic/ncore/index.html. More specifi c information
on each candidate NCore site can be viewed or
downloaded from http://ncore.sonomatechdata.com/.
The EPA has completed transitioning of the carbon
measurement at CSN-speciated PM 2.5
stations to the
IMPROVE protocol to support better comparability
between the CSN and IMPROVE networks. This effort
was initiated in 2007.
The EPA fi nalized revisions to monitoring requirements
for lead (Pb) in 2008 to support the tightening of
the lead NAAQS from 1.5 μg/m 3 (quarterly average)
to 0.15 μg/m 3 (rolling three-month average). New
monitoring requirements included the establishment
of source-oriented lead monitoring sites around lead
sources emitting 1.0 tons per year of lead or greater
by January 1, 2010, and the establishment of nonsource
oriented sites in urban areas with populations
of 500,000 or more. Information on changes to the
lead NAAQS and associated monitoring requirements
is available at: http://www.epa.gov/air/lead/actions.html.
New ambient monitoring requirements have been
established for the recently revised NO 2
and SO 2
NAAQS. All new NO 2
and SO 2
monitors must begin
operating no later than January 1, 2013. EPA
also proposed changes to the ozone monitoring
requirements to support the 2008 revisions to the
ozone primary and secondary NAAQS. Additional
details on the NO 2
and SO 2
monitoring requirements
and the proposed changes to ozone monitoring
requirements are available at: www.epa.gov/air/
airpollutants.html.
The NADP, with support from the EPA is operating a
new network designed to measure ambient mercury
concentrations. The Ambient Mercury Network
(AMNet) measures ambient concentrations of
speciated mercury at 20 sites throughout the U.S. and
Canada. The data from this network will provide status
and trends of ambient mercury concentrations, as
well as information for model development including
validation and source apportionment.
The EPA is also providing support to the proposed
NADP Ammonia Monitoring Network (AMoN),
which uses passive devices to measure gaseous
ammonia concentrations. Currently there are 20 sites
collecting two-week samples of ambient ammonia
concentrations. These measurements are needed to
enhance atmospheric and deposition models, validate
emission inventories, and understand the chemistry
driving PM 2.5
formation. Both efforts aim to utilize the
NADP committee structure as a platform for initiation
and continued growth. The NADP website contains
data, maps, and program information (http://nadp.
sws.uiuc.edu).
Recent activities related to CASTNET include
transitioning its ozone monitoring operations to fully
meet the regulatory quality requirements applicable to
SLAMS air monitoring data, and real-time reporting of
hourly ozone and meteorological data to the AIRNow
system for use in forecasting and mapping current air
quality conditions. In addition, CASTNET is evaluating
monitoring methods that provide highly timeresolved
(i.e. hourly) measurements of both gaseous
(SO 2
, nitric acid, ammonia) and aerosol (sulphate,
ammonium, nitrate, chloride and other base cations)
components. The EPA is investigating several
ammonia measurement methods including adding
a fourth fi lter to the current three-stage fi lter pack,
a denuder-fi lterpack system, and passive ammonia
samplers for routine monitoring at CASTNET sites. The
website for CASTNET includes program information,
data and maps, annual network reports, and quality
assurance information (see www.epa.gov/castnet).
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