17 August 2024 — AUSTIN, Texas – How clean is the air we breathe? Not clean enough if recent trends continue. Earlier this year, the Environmental Protection Agency tightened the limits on acceptable particle pollution. As CBS Austin chief meteorologist Chikage Windler found, Travis County is at risk of failing to meet those limits.
“Air pollution is a major problem in Central Texas, from ozone pollution to fine particulate matter like wildfire smoke and Saharan dust,” says Windler.
Austin resident Darrian Bryant enjoys going to the park with his kids, but doesn’t always enjoy breathing in the fresh air.
“I have asthma. I’ve had severe asthma since I was a child. I have a heart murmur that never closes. It’s still about the size of a dime. So, you know, things that have to do with smog, smoke or anything like that bother me,” Bryant explains.
Although we have only had a handful of air quality alerts so far in 2024, we have had a total of 38 Ozone Action Days in 2022 and 2023, the most on record.
“Ozone season begins on March 1st each year and lasts until the end of November. And during this time, when it gets warmer, the sun shines more, the humidity is low and the wind is calm. Add to that car exhaust, emissions from power plants and opening a can of paint in front of your house. All of that releases volatile organic compounds (VOCs),” says Jim Stephens, executive director of the Clean Air Force of Central Texas.
He adds: “This mixes with the low humidity and sunshine and leads to the formation of ground-level ozone.”
It’s a complicated chemical reaction that can have harmful health effects, especially in people with respiratory conditions like asthma. The Clean Air Force of Central Texas is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to educate others about what they can do to reduce air pollution. They have a “Texas Top 10” list of things you can do to improve air quality: https://cleanairforce.org/texas-top-10/
“Fill up your car in the evening, not in the middle of the day. Don’t mow in the middle of the day. Replace your petrol-powered garden tools with electric ones. Combine your trips,” Stephens offers some recommendations.
“So that’s the ozone analyzer,” says Neal Penney, division chief of network operations in the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) monitoring division.
This measuring station measures ground-level ozone – or smog. The equipment is housed in an air-conditioned trailer.
“Air is drawn in through these lines. It comes in at the back of the instrument. At the end of the air stream there is an internal pump that draws the air in. So the actual ozone detection happens in what’s called the ozone bank, that long silver piece in the middle,” explains Penney.
He says that ozone is the most frequently discussed air pollution issue, but fine particulate matter, known as PM 2.5 (particles 2.5 micrometers or smaller), such as dust, dirt, soot or smoke, is also a growing concern.
“Samples are collected 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” he says of the monitoring station.
Unlike the ozone monitor, which is located indoors, the particle pollution monitor is located outdoors and directly detects the air around it.
“Air is drawn in through this sampling head at the top. This top piece of the sampling head separates particles that are PM10 and smaller,” he says. These are further filtered down to the smallest fine particles, PM 2.5, which have been shown to have the greatest impact on the lung health of those who breathe in the pollution. These fine particles can penetrate deep into the lungs, making them more dangerous.
While ground-level ozone pollution is not visually detectable, particle pollution is. On the day of the site visit, a Saharan dust cloud had moved into central Texas and affected air quality. This was easily seen on the PM 2.5 monitor, as the darker dots on the tape indicated higher particle pollution.
“All of this data is used to determine compliance with national air quality standards set out in the federal Clean Air Act,” says Alison Stokes, State Implementation Plan team leader for TCEQ’s Air Quality Division.
The EPA’s new standards for particulate pollution were recently revised downward. This is the first change to this standard since 2012. The new allowable limits are more stringent, now at 9 micrograms per cubic meter, up from the previous 12 micrograms per cubic meter. This means that all of the counties marked dark green on a map published by the Environmental Protection Agency, including Travis County, exceed the limit.
For Travis County specifically, the 2020-2022 average was reported to be 9.3 micrograms per cubic meter. While that is currently above the limit, there is a process by which noncompliance (failure to meet EPA air quality standards) is officially considered reached. It will likely be based on more recent averages. If Travis County is ultimately placed on the noncompliance list, it would trigger further requirements from the state.
“The EPA would set a deadline by which the area would have to meet the violated standard. And then the state itself would have to submit what’s called a state implementation plan,” Stokes explains. Since the new standard has just been implemented, it could take some time to create the official list of non-compliant limits. Unfortunately, even before the official announcement, the EPA released a map of counties that are expected to fail to meet particle pollution limits in 2032 based on computer models. On that map, Travis County remains one of the counties estimated to comprise less than 1 percent of counties statewide that would still fail to meet the revised pollution standard.
Therefore, individuals and industry must make positive changes to ensure cleaner air in the future.
Stephens says if stricter air pollution standards lead to non-compliance or non-adherence to standards, it would be more costly for everyone. That’s why the Clean Air Force of Central Texas has partnered with businesses, schools and other groups to create simple life changes that can solve our pollution problem in the long term.
“My children need to breathe this air, so anything related to their health or well-being is a top priority for me,” says Bryant.
Here is a link to the new EPA standards: https://www.epa.gov/particle-pollution-designations
Here is a link to the Clean Air Force and tips on how to reduce air pollution: https://cleanairforce.org/texas-top-10/
Here is a link to TCEQ’s air quality forecasts: https://www.tceq.texas.gov/air…/monops/forecast_today.html
This story aired Saturday night, August 17, 2024, at 10 p.m. on CBS Austin.
