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International Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation Association

Clearing the air

Strategies and options forurban air quality management

FUELS AND VEHICLES WORKING GROUP REPORT SERIES: VOLUME I

IPIECA


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Clearing the air2

IPIECA 2004. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in

any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior consent of IPIECA.

This publication is printed on paper manufactured from fibre obtained from sustainably grown softwood forests and bleached without anydamage to the environment.

Photographic credits: cover: background image, Jim Holmes; sunset, traffic: Photodisc Inc.; settlement: Paul Schatzberger/Panos Pictures;factory: Hartmut Schwarzbach/Still Pictures; pages 8 and 30: Photodisc Inc.

AcknowledgementsThis document was compiled by the IPIECA Fuels and Vehicles Working Group

(Project Manager: Rob Cox) with the assistance of the following:

Miguel Moyano and Irene Alfaro (ARPEL)

Peter Lidiak and Al Manato (American Petroleum Institute)

Paul Bennett and Duncan King (BP)

The officers and members of the IPIECA Fuels and Vehicles Working Group:

Chairman: Stewart Kempsell (Shell)

Vice Chairs: Roger Organ (ChevronTexaco) and Benot Chagu (Total)

Miriam LevOn (Consultant)

Steven McArragher (Consultant)


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Contents

Preface 4

Introduction 6

A framework for air quality management 8

Setting air quality targets 9

Assessment of current air quality 13

Development of an emissions inventory system 15

Addressing information shortcoming 18

Selection of air quality models 19

Forecasting air quality improvements 20

Emission control measures 21

Identification of air quality improvements 23

Prioritization of control measures 23

Contribution of automotive transport options to

air quality management 26Priorities for action 26

Stakeholder engagement and communication 30

Concluding thoughts 32

Bibliography 34

The text in this document contains links to resources on the Internet; these links are

represented by the blue underlined text.

Strategies and options for urban air quality management 3

Clearing the airStrategies and options for urban air quality management


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Clearing the air4

Preface

The International Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation Association

(IPIECA) was established in 1974. IPIECAs goals are to promote good practices and

industry consensus on a number of environmental and social issues. Through its Fuels

and Vehicles Working Group (FVWG) IPIECA provides a coordinated industry

response to downstream product issues as they relate to the environment and humanhealth. The working group seeks to provide a common interface between the oil and

gas industry, auto manufacturers, intergovernmental organizations and NGOs. The

FVWG also looks ahead to strategic fuels issues of the future as well as related

distribution and infrastructure issues for sustainable mobility.

This report is the first in a new series commissioned by IPIECA, through its

FVWG. The report series represents IPIECA members collective perspective and

technical expertise on the role of motor vehicle emissions in general, and the fuels

they use in particular, as options for improving air quality.

In examining the environmental aspects of fuel quality, the report series consists of

separate volumes dedicated to urban air quality management, lead phase-out strategies,

options for the phase down of sulphur from gasoline and diesel, and other topics, as

applicable.

This first report provides a general, science-based framework for helping to

understand the nature of the problem in any specific urban area, the range of solutions

that might be available, the potential impact of each of the solutions and,consequently, their prioritization within an overall management scheme.

Clearing the airStrategies and options for

urban air quality management


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The overall goal of such a framework is to ensure that regulatory decisions for the

management of air quality:

are based on an objective assessment of the appropriate science;

recognize the balance of contributing sources;

take full account of the effectiveness and costs of the alternative measuresidentified to improve urban air quality;

ensure that any requirements for investment in refining and distribution to

improve the quality of transportation fuels are compatible with available motor

vehicle technologies; and

put in place a measurement and monitoring system to track the air quality

improvements and ensure that programme objectives are effectively being met.

IPIECAs ongoing contribution will be to identify and respond to the need for new

information and support. This new report series introduces one vehicle through

which to facilitate an understanding of air quality management principles and

processes. The report series centres on an economic foundation, including

sustainability and environmental factors, but recognizes societies inevitable need for

increased mobility.


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Introduction

The management of ambient air quality, especially in large urban centres, both in

North America and Europe, as well as other countries around the world such as

Japan, Canada and Australia, has created a rich portfolio of experience from which

this report is drawn. The experience in OECD* countries forms the basis for

knowledge transfer from the developed to the developing countries around the

world. The report is written to provide those who are just getting engaged in air

quality management with the basis for drawing up, implementing and executing a

successful programme, while avoiding many of the recognized pitfalls.

Ambient air quality can be characterized by the combined concentrations of minor

atmospheric constituents, and comparing the actual concentration levels with

recommended world standardse.g. those set by the World Health Organization

(WHO)for air quality. The levels of these minor atmospheric constituents in a givenurban area are influenced by many factors, including the local meteorology, geography,

natural emissions and all of the anthropogenic (man made) activities that result in the

discharge of emissions into the atmosphere. The major sources of anthropogenic

emissions are typically those from commerce, industry, transportation and domestic

premises. Data on all these aspects are essential in order to determine the major

sources of pollutants and to develop appropriate plans for controlling them.

A growing number of large population centres around the world exhibit similar

evolution patterns. These usually consist of:

rapid population growth, often fed by migration from the countryside;

rapid economic, industrial and commercial growth;

increased personal mobility; and

escalating personal wealth, which facilitates the purchase of energy-consuming

devices, including vehicles.

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*OECD = Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development: an organization of industrialized

countries formed to promote the economic health of its members and to contribute to worldwide development.


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This, in turn, leads to a rapid growth in energy demand and use, frequently without

adequate performance standards, emission controls or adequate attention to the quality

of the energy source, be it coal, petroleum, natural gas or biomass.

The following chapters of this report discuss a recommended process for

understanding the nature and level of current air quality problems and how they are

most likely to develop under various growth pressures. In addition, guidance is

provided on data collection and analysis needs, designed to: (a) evaluate the importance

of each of the contributing emission sources (or source categories); (b) assess the degree

to which controlling each of these sources has the potential to provide improvements

in ambient air quality; and (c) facilitate ongoing monitoring of the improvements.

The air quality management framework provided in this report is designed to be

simply structured yet scientifically based to allow for prioritization of options based onresource availability and local targets, recognizing the fact that the best solutions are

local solutions. It is based on experience gained through multiple collaborative efforts

in various countries and is intended to be an easily read, generic summary of the

principles behind the many thousands of guidance documents available from the

World Bank (WB), WHO, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP),

US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA), Environment Canada, the European

Commission and many other organizations. For those readers requiring further detail,

the Bibliography on page 34 provides useful links and specific references to a number

of key guidance documents.



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A framework forair quality management

Experience from many countries has shown that a detailed process is necessary to

conduct an air quality management programme that is based on the principles of air

quality objectives, use of sound science, analysis of mitigation options, and involvementof all essential organizations and stakeholders in the public decision making process.

Figure 1 is an example of such a process that contains all of these essential

elements. While recognizing that the specific process utilized may have to be adjusted

or modified to fit local circumstances, there are several essential elements that need

to be addressed in any integrated process. Moreover, there may also be situations in

which some elements of the approach have already been the subject of prior studies,

and those would need to be incorporated into the overall framework, as appropriate.

The key elements of an air quality management framework for each country or

region could be constructed around answers to the following basic questions:

1. What are the air quality targets for the country/region, and when are they

expected to be attained?

2. How are current air quality conditions identified and assessed relative to the

contributions of various source categories?

3. How should an integrated emissions inventory systemthat includes all

stationary and mobile sources be developed?4. What are appropriate air quality modelling methodologies that can be used

to simulate the impact of emission sources on ambient air quality?

5. What are the emission reductions that are necessary to meet the desired air

quality targets?

6. How should potential control measures be prioritized in view of anticipated

growth patterns, future emissions scenarios, and their cost-effectiveness?

Figure 1 provides an example of a detailed process of urban air quality

management, as elaborated previously by IPIECA (IPIECA, 1997). The same general

approach is also advocated in a more recent technical paper issued by the World Bank

(World Bank, 2001, 2004). The same basic process is used in the United States and

Europe (see example of the Clean Air for Europe (CAFE) process on page 10). The

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Local emission inventory data

stationary sources

mobile sources

fleet forecast and turnover

vehicle usage

emission factors

Local meteorological

and topographic data

Local air

quality data

Air quality

guidelines

(e.g. WHO)

Necessary air quality

improvements

Air quality

models

Primary sourcesof pollution

Temper output with public

opinion/concerns

Least-cost solutions to meet

air quality criteria

Cost-effectiveness

model

Emission

reduction targets

to achieve

air quality

criteria

Cost of implementing

emission reduction measures

Quantified impact of emission

reduction measures:

industrial plant

power generation

commercial operations

domestic installations

vehicles

fuels

inspections and maintenance

others (e.g. fiscal, traffic management)

Figure 1: An example of an urban air quality management process

CAFE process looks at the contribution from all sectors including industry,

agriculture, domestic, power generation, non-road transport, etc.

The sections below will attempt to briefly address each of the questions posed

above and provide references for additional guidance.

Setting air quality targets

The World Health Organization (WHO) has an important international role in

setting health guidelines. In 1999 it published its comprehensive guidance titled the

WHO Air Quality Guidelines (www.euro.who.int/air/Activities/20020620_1). This
http://www.euro.who.int/air/Activities/20020620_1http://www.euro.who.int/air/Activities/20020620_1http://www.euro.who.int/air/Activities/20020620_1http://www.euro.who.int/air/Activities/20020620_1http://www.euro.who.int/air/Activities/20020620_1http://www.euro.who.int/air/Activities/20020620_1


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CAFE is a structured analytical and policy setting

approach consisting of the three phases outlined

and depicted graphically below:

1. Risk Assessment

What are the air quality issues of the region

of interest?

What are the pollutants of concern?

2. Risk Management

What are the air quality targets for each

pollutant of importance?

What are the issues associated with anintegrated analysis of regional air quality?

What is the share of transport in each

pollutant emission?

What emissions benefits are attributable

to advanced vehicle technologies and

what fuels are needed to enable those

technologies?

How will all this evolve in the future?

What are the most cost-effective measures

to be undertaken to achieve the targets?

3. Policy Setting

What are the selected options that are

best suited to the region/country based onregulatory gap analysis?

Example: the Clean Air For Europe (CAFE) process

Source:EUROPIA

CAFE Process: industry view

Risk Assessment Risk Management Policy Setting

Base Casecompliance

cost vs.further

gap closure

review ofenvironmental

effects

input data

inventoriesAQ model results

measures/costs data

simulationvia

IntegratedAssessment

Model

cost vs.risk

reduction

outputindicators

targets

policy review

further

measures(Euro-wide;

national; local)

review ofhealth effects


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document provides background information that enables countries to set national or

regional ambient air quality standards in the context of existing environmental, social,

economic and cultural conditions. Application of the WHO Air Quality Guidelines is

designed to assist countries in setting targets for significantly reducing exposure to poor

air quality and its associated health effects.

The WHO guidelines set out the range of ambient concentrations in exposure-

response relationships and give a maximum concentration for a pollutant, below which

no adverse effect on human health is expected over the exposure time given. Generally,as the exposure time increases, the maximum allowable concentration decreases.

Table 1 gives some examples of the guideline values for common air pollutants.

The WHO recognizes that air pollution, both indoors and outdoors, is a major

environmental health problem affecting developed and developing counties alike.

Pollution sources of dust, gases and smoke are generated mainly by human activities but

also emanate from natural sources such as forest fires, volcano eruptions and others.


Pollutant

CO

Lead

NO2

O3

SO2

Annual ambient air

concentration (g/m3)

5007000

0.012.0

10150

10100

5400

Guideline

value (g/m3)

100 000

60 000

30 000

10 000

0.5

200

40

120

500

125

50

Concentration at which

effects on health start to

be observed (g/m3)

Not applicable

Not applicable

365565

Not applicable

1000

250

100

Exposure

time

Table 1: WHO Guideline values (1999) for common air pollutants*

* The WHO has not published guidelines for Particulate Matter. It has only provided risk assessment graphs for guidance.

15 min

30 min

1 hour

8 hours

1 year

1 hour

1 year

8 hour

10 min

24 hour

1 year


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When inhaled, air pollutants affect the lungs and the respiratory tract and can also be

taken up and transported by the blood throughout the body. Through deposition in the

environment, air pollutants can also contaminate food and water sources.

The main air pollutants addressed are suspended particulate matter, gases and

vapours that are present in the atmosphere in high concentrations. Several

observations of note by the WHO are:

Particulate matter affects more people on a continuing basis than any other

pollutant. There are more monitoring data and epidemiological evidenceavailable on particulate pollution exposure than on any other pollutant and its

health effects.

The main components of ambient particulate matter are coarse particles such as

soil, mineral ash and fine particles found in wood smoke or coming from engine

exhausts; however, it is increasingly recognized that PM2.5 is the preferred

metric when evaluating the relationship between health and PM.

Gaseous air pollutants are principally oxides of nitrogen (NOx ), carbon

monoxide (CO), sulphur dioxide (SO2) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs),

as well as those secondary pollutants (such as ozoneO3) formed when primary

pollutants interact.

In addition to the WHO, other international agencies are also involved in standard

setting. For example, the United States has a lengthy and detailed process for setting

up National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) in accordance with the

requirements of the US Clean Air Act. The European Union has also set its ownhealth-related air quality targets, the most recent of which are for full compliance by

the year 2010. Table 2 provides some examples of ambient air quality standards in

selected countries.

Trends currently observed around the world indicate that concentrations of sulphur

dioxide and PM are decreasing in developed countries, while those of NOx and ozone

are either constant or increasing. In developing countries, increasing traffic as well as

industrial emissions are raising concentrations of SO2, NOx, O3 and PM.

Since the primary objective of Urban Air Quality Management is the protection

of human health, Guidelines such as those established by WHO should be considered

as benchmarks or long-term objectives. In developing action plans there is a need to

understand which pollutants of concern exceed the long-term goals by the greatest

levelas part of overall priority setting. Specific decisions on country or regional air

Clearing the air12


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quality standards, and their respective attainment timetables, will have to be taken by

appropriate international, national or regional authorities as part of evaluating their

risk management options. In particular, it is important to note that setting

intermediate targets and tracking progress using selected indicators will help guide

the implementation of various programmes and initiatives and demonstrate

achievements, when compared to business as usual, in reducing population exposure

to both outdoor and indoor air pollutants.

Assessment of current air quality

Adequate information on existing air quality is an essential prerequisite for any rational

and objective air quality management programme, and for formulating programme

objectives and action plans. To that effect, many countries around the world are

constructing and expanding their ambient air monitoring capabilities, and investigating

trends of key indicators such as pollutant concentrations, population exposures and air

quality indices. Air quality data obtained from strategically placed monitoring sites or

from mobile survey platforms provide data on concentrations of key pollutants including

their diurnal (day-to-night) and seasonal variations (Figures 2 and 3).


Pollutant

SO2

NO2

CO

TSP *

PM10

PM2.5^

Lead

USA (Federal)

365 (24-hr av.)

100 (annual av.)

10 (8-hr av.)

150 (24-hr av.)

65 (24-hr av.)

15 (annual av.)

1.5 (quarterly av.)

EU (directives)

125 (24-hr av.)

200 (1-hr av.)

10 (8-hr av.)

50 (24-hr av.)

0.5 (annual av.)

Thailand

300 (24-hr av.)

320 (1-hr av.)

20 (8-hr av.)

330 (24-hr av.)

10 (24-hr av.)

Malaysia

105 (24-hr av.)

320 (1-hr av.)

10 (8-hr av.)

150 (24-hr av.)

1.5 (annual av.)

Table 2: Some air quality standards for major pollutants in various countries (g/m3, except CO that is mg/m3)

* TSP = total suspended particulates PM10 = particulate matter < 10 m diameter^PM2.5 = particulate matter < 2.5 m diameter


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Clearing the air14

Januar

y

Februa

ryMa

rch April Ma

yJun

eJuly

August

Septem

berOct

ober

Novem

ber

Decem

ber

10

20

30

40

70

Monthly maximum ambient ozone concentration at five sites in the UK, 1997 (ppb)

month

0

50

60Site 1

Site 2

Site 3

Site 4

Site 5

0

0.2

0.4

0.6

1.0

1.2

Diurnal pattern for ambient CO concentrations in a UK city, 1997 (ppm)

hour

1 24232221201918171615141312111098765432

weekdays

Sundays

0.8

Figure 3: An example of data collected from seasonal monitoring of ozone concentrations

Figure 2: An example of data collected from monitoring of diurnal CO


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Air pollutants that are typically monitored include sulphur oxides (SOx ), nitrogen

oxides (NOx ), particulate matter (including PM2.5 and TSP), carbon monoxide (CO),

ozone (O3), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Some advanced monitoring

networks or special studies might also concentrate on profiles of various specific

compounds in the atmosphere. Some of the gaseous compounds investigated might

include formaldehyde, ammonia or benzene, while particulate matter might be speciated

to identify nitrates, sulphates or carbonaceous material content, as might be applicable

for the specific information sought. New research is also looking into the significanceof the size of particles and the effect of their chemical composition on human health.

Ongoing air quality monitoring is required to understand the variation of

concentrations of pollutants of concern over time. Generally accepted monitoring

techniques have been formulated and introduced in many OECD countries and through

the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Employing such standardized

monitoring methods, including proper calibration and maintenance of sensors, will ensure

that the data obtained will provide a consistent record of air concentrations and establish

an indicator of the progress of air quality management measures introduced to the area.

Development of an emissions inventory system

Prior to developing any options for emission reductions or mitigation there is a need

to establish an integrated emission inventory system. This system should account not

just for the base year but also for future year stationary and mobile source emissionsthat can be used for forecasting ambient air quality through the exercise of

appropriate air quality models.

The data must be compiled either from existing databases or from new surveys.

Understanding the relationship between current emissions and measured ambient air

levels is essential for undertaking a system of control measures that will result in

effective emission reductions. While not essential, this relationship is best determined

by the use of mathematical models that help in correlating emission characteristics of

different source categories with the observed concentration at monitoring sites.

Models used are typically categorized as either dispersion models, simulating the

dispersion of pollutants from given sources, orsource-receptor models, simulating the

observed measurement at a site and back-tracking the plumes to all the sources that

might have an impact on it. Emission inventories for each source of emissions and



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each pollutant of interest must be collected for the base year, and predicted for the

subsequent years up to the target year when air quality targets will have to be met.

Predictions of emissions will be linked to various socio-economic scenarios that are

used for simulating levels of economic and social activity.

Box 1 presents an example of the source categories that could be used in

constructing an integrated emissions inventory system. Compiling good emission

inventories for any area, urban or rural, requires information on energy use in all

sectors of the economy (industry, domestic, commercial etc.) and on industrialprocesses, as well as detailed information on all forms of transport, i.e. rail,

waterborne, air and road. Once the activity levels are established, emissions may be

estimated by using the proper emission factor for the specific source category and fuel

combination (US EPA, AP-42see references). It will be essential to also take

account of construction and other ongoing activities and their contribution to

particulate emissions, and the potential of natural sources, such as forests and dry land

areas, to contribute to volatile organic compounds and dust in the atmosphere.

Emission inventories rely on available data, and in many casesespecially in

developing countries that are just starting the process of studying emission sources

the data are sparse. In such cases it is sometimes necessary to invoke various

extrapolation and estimation techniques, which need to be well documented in order

to ensure that uncertainty in the resultant inventory is transparent.

Table 3 provides an example of an emission inventory and source allocation for

each pollutant in a given year (reproduced from NILU/IVM (1995), URBAIR). It is

essential to carry out these data identification exercises before proceeding further withthe emissions inventory.

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An integrated emissions inventory system may be

structured around the following source categories:

stationary sources: sub-classified into large

(e.g. power stations), medium and small;

domestic activities: home cooking, heating and

cooling (if fuels other than electricity are used);

waste disposal;

crops/agricultural burning;

forest fires;

passenger cars: fuelled by gasoline, diesel or

alternative fuels; light-duty commercial vehicles;

heavy-duty commercial vehicles;

public sector transport, such as buses and

shuttles;

trains, barges and vessels; and

two- or three-wheeled vehicles.

Box 1: Source categories of an integrated emissions inventory system


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Emissionsourc

es

TRANSPORTSE

CTOR

Exhaust

gasolinevehicles

dieselvehicles

TOTALVEHICLEE

XHAUST

Resuspensionfromr

oads

ENERGY/INDUS

TRYSECTOR

Powerplants

Otherfuelcombustion

heavybunkeroilfuel

lightdieseloilfu

el

kerosene

LPG(liquefiedpetroleumgas)

wood

coal

TOTALFUELCOM

BUSTION

(excludingpowe

rplants)

Industrialprocesses7

OTHER

Refuseburning

7

Construction7

GRANDTOTALS

:

Vehicletype/indu

stry

cars

utilityvehicles

motorizedcycles

bus/truck

taxis

utilityvehicles

jeepneys

truck/bus

industrial/commercial

industrial/domestic

TSP

PM10

SO2

Table3:An

exampleofaTSP&SO2sourc

einventoryforamajorAsian

city

TSP=totalsuspen

dedparticulates

1Emissioncontrol:multicyclone

2PM10=0.95xTSP(Ref.:EPAAP42)

3

PM10=0.85xTSP(Ref.:EPAAP42)

4PM10=0.50xTSP(Ref.:EPAAP42)

5PM10=0.50xTSP(roughestimate)

6PM10=0.25xTSP(roug

hestimate)

7roughestimates

tonnes/annum

percent

tonnes/annum

percent

103tonnes/annum

580

1,180

290

150

170

1,160

1,580

3,800

8,9

10

25,0

00

2,1

201

14,380

2,5502040 ? ?

16,9

90

6,0

00

(

clearing air

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