## Overview of Regional Haze and WA and OR RH Plans

EPA , Region 10 Keith Rose Steve Body June 7, 2011

## What is Regional Haze 

# ?

 

### Means visibility impairment due to fine particles caused by emissions of air pollutants from numerous sources 

### located over a wide geographic area.

 

### Sources include major and minor stationary sources, mobile sources, 

### wood stoves, etc.

## Regional Haze and Visibility

Alpine Lakes Wilderness Area, WA 20% Worst Days, Current conditions (51 Mm - 1 ) 2064 Goal, Natural Conditions (12Mm - 1 )

## What Causes Haze?

 Fine particulates (PM 2.5 ) composed of:

 Sulfate
– chemical reaction in atmosphere of Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) with other pollutants (primarily ammonia) to form very fine particulate.

 SO2 comes from coal fired power plants and diesel fuel combustion

## What Causes Haze?

 Nitrate
– chemical reaction in atmosphere of Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) with other pollutants to form very fine particulate.

 NO2 (or NOx ) comes from power plants, motor vehicles, and other combustion processes

## What Causes Haze?

 Smoke
– from wildfire, prescribed fire, woodstoves, agricultural burning

 Soil particles
– e.g. wind blown dust, re
entrained road dust, etc.

 Marine aerosols
– fine water droplets containing organic and inorganic material

## Regional Haze Rule

 The goal is to achieve natural background visibility conditions in National Parks and wilderness areas areas by 2064
.  10 year planning cycles: States and Tribes (as appropriate) to develop State or Tribal Implementation Plans (SIPs or TIPS)

 First SIPs/TIPs cover period to 2018.

 First SIPs/TIPs include ‘reasonable’ controls on large major stationary sources: power plants, oil refineries, industrial boilers, aluminum smelters, etc.

## Visibility Monitoring Program: IMPROVE Network

 IMPROVE monitors are located throughout the country to ensure that each Class I area is represented by one monitor.

 These monitors collect fine particulate samples that are analyzed for sulfates, nitrates, elemental carbon, organic carbon, and metals

 The measured concentrations of each type of particulate are converted into a visibility index to determine the degree of visibility impairment.

## IMPROVE Monitoring Network in Western States

### Map of WA Class I areas

### Map of OR Class I areas

## Yakama Reservation
- Mt. Adams

Wilderness Area Map

## Mt. Adams Visibility Glide Path

## Mt Adams Current and Natural Conditions: Worst Days

 

### Current Conditions: 12.76 dv

 

### Natural Conditions: 8.35 dv

 

### Improvement needed: 4.41 dv

## OR RH SIP Status and Dates

 OR submitted SIP to EPA on December 20, 2010

 EPA proposed approving BART and interstate transport visibility portions of SIP on March 8, 2011

 EPA will take final action on this portion of the SIP by June 21, 2011

 EPA expects a consent decree deadline of fall 2012 to take action on the remainder of SIP

## WA RH SIP Status and Dates

 WA submitted SIP to EPA on Dec. 22, 2010

 EPA is evaluating the current SIP submission

 Ecology is planning to submit a revision to their SIP to reflect the recent agreement with TransAlta for the Centralia facility

 EPA must finalize action on remainder of SIP by fall 2012

## Major Sources to be Controlled

by WA and OR SIPs

 Oregon:

 PGE Boardman; coal
- fired Power Plant

 PGE Beaver Power Plant

 Georgia Pacific Wauna Mill

 International Paper, Springfield facility

 Washington:

 TransAlta ; coal fired power plant

 TESORO; oil refinery

 Port Townsend Paper Company

## Visibility Improvements in Mt. Adams wilderness due to Boardman Controls

 

### 2011 NOx controls
– 0.79 dv

 

### 2014 SO2 DSI phase I
– 1.38 dv

 

### 2018 SO2 DSI phase II
– 1.51. dv

 

### 2020 shutdown
– 2.69 dv

## Visibility Improvements in Mt. Adams wilderness due to TransAlta Controls

 

### Jan 1, 2013, SNCR implemented

 

### Jan 1, 2013, a ~0.5 dv improvement

 

### Dec 31, 2020, shutdown of one unit

 

### Dec 31, 2025, shutdown second unit

 

### 2025 a ~3.6 dv improvementQuestions?