The South Bronx Environmental Policy & Health Study has contributed to our understanding of air quality in the project area by using a mobile laboratory placed in a van to take measurements of various pollutant concentrations. This work is being carried out by the Nelson Institute of Environmental Medicine. The data collected up to date are available online at: <a href="http://www.nyu.edu/projects/southbronxhealth" ,="" target="_blank"> www.nyu.edu/projects/southbronxhealth .

In addition to those measurements, ICIS examined air quality data in Bronx County provided by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). Daily values for criteria pollutants in New York City area are available online at DEC’s web page: <a href="http://www.dec.state.ny.us/website/dar/bts/airmon/sitepage2.htm" ,="" target="_blank"> www.dec.state.ny.us/website/dar/bts/airmon/sitepage2.htm . The DEC data analyzed for the project provide an overview of air quality in Bronx County, and refer to the period 1996-2000. The data were collected by the monitoring stations listed in Table 1, below.

Table 1. NYS DEC Air Quality Sampling Station Location Information

Station ID	Location	Height Above Ground	Within Study Area?
709403	IS 155 470 Jackson Ave.	15 meters	Yes
709405	Morrisania, 1225-57 Gerard Ave.	16 meters	Yes
709406	New York Botanical Garden, 200th St. at Southern Blvd.	16 meters	No
709407	IS 52 681 Kelly St., off 156th St.	15 meters	yes
709408	IS 74 730 Bryant Ave	15 meters	yes
709409	PS 154 333 E. 135th St.	15 meters	yes

All but one of these stations are within the project area. The only air quality monitoring station in Bronx County that is not within the study area is the station that measures carbon monoxide (CO) concentrations. The pollutants included in the report are those that are defined for ambient air quality under the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), and include carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3), particulate matter (PM10), fine particulate matter (PM2.5), and sulfur dioxide (SO2). Lead is not included. The standards for the NAAQS pollutants are given in Table 2, below. The data analyzed consist of 24 hourly measurements per day for each pollutant. These values were averaged to obtain a daily value for each pollution measurement. In addition, the maxima and minima for each pollutant were identified with the exception of  particulate matter (PM10), for which only one daily measurement is provided every six days of the year. These measurements are explained in greater detail below.

Table 2. NATIONAL AMBIENT AIR QUALITY STANDARDS (NAAQS) Federal Clean Air Act and Amendments

Air Pollutant	Standard Primary	Averaging Time
Carbon monoxide	9 ppm 35 ppm	8 hours 1 hour
Lead	1.5 ug/m3	3 months
Nitrogen oxides	90.05 ppm	1 year
Ozone	0.08 ppm	8 hours
Particulate Matter (PM) - 10 microns	50 ug/m3 150 ug/m3	1 year 24 hours
Particulate Matter (PM) - 5 microns	15 ug/m3 65 ug/m3	1 year 24 hours
Sulfur dioxide	0.03 ppm 0.14 ppm 0.50 ppm	1 year 24 hours 3 hours

Source: EPA, available online at: www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/

Average values for CO concentrations are shown in Figure 1. Although there are important variations for year to year, the daily averages and maximum one-hour average values are consistently below the standard established by EPA.

Figure 1

Figure 2 compares yearly averages of NO2 measurements taken by DEC stations during 1996-2000 and compares them to the EPA standard.

Figure 2

Figure 3 provides daily average, maxima and minima values for ozone concentrations throughout 1999. These values are compared to the 1-hour average standard set by EPA. As shown, the standard is sometimes exceeded during the summer months.

Figure 3

Figure 4 shows the yearly averages for SO2 concentrations and compares them to the EPA annual standard. SO2 has a strong seasonal variation, with concentrations being higher in winter. This is the result of fuel combustion in the winter months from space heating activities. As shown in the figure, the standard was not exceeded during this period.

Figure 4

The results for particulate matter (PM2.5) are shown in Figure 5. Annual averages for the year 2000 are compared to EPA annual standard. The comparison shows the standard was not met in that year.

Figure 5

The comparison of the pollutant concentrations with the EPA standards indicates that carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), particulate matter (PM10), and sulfur dioxide (SO2) are consistently below the established standards. Ozone (O3) concentrations sometimes exceed the 1-hr standard during the summer months. Fine particulate matter (PM 2.5) exceeds the annual standard at some stations but not the 24-hr standard. Given these results it appears that ozone (O3) and fine particulate matter (PM 2.5) are the pollutants of most concern in Bronx County.

The full analysis is available in the Phase I report, Chapter 4: Characterization of Ambient Air Quality in the South Bronx. Click here to see it.
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A glossary of useful terms related to air quality is available here.

Institute for Civil Infrastructure Systems Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service New York University 411 Lafayette Street. Suite 300 New York, NY 10003 2004