The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is currently in the midst of reevaluating its air quality standards for six major air pollutants that have direct impacts of human and environmental health. For most of the pollutants, this means that the EPA is tightening the standards in response to improved information about the health impacts of different types of pollution. The new standards - which started coming out in fall 2008 and will all be out by 2012 - could impact whether parts of Minnesota continue  to meet (attain) the standards or fail and move into "nonattainment" status for one or more pollutants.

We haven't heard a lot about nonattainment in Minnesota because our air quality has been good enough that we haven't had to worry about it for many years. We have been on the edge of nonattainment for ground-level ozone (which contributes to smog) for about a decade. In response to worries about the environmental, health, and economic impacts of failing to meet the standard, a partnership of business, government, and nonprofits formed Clean Air Minnesota to help keep Minnesota compliant with federal air quality standards. They launched Project Clean Fleet to focus on reducing pollution from school buses and other diesel vehicles, and are also working to reduce pollution from auto body shops and large equipment.

Despite the good efforts of Clean Air Minnesota, the Twin Cities and potentially other parts of the state will likely become nonattainment for ozone when EPA sets its new lower standard later this year. A lot will actually depend on what kind of summer Minnesota has because hot, sunny weather contributes to higher ozone levels. If parts of Minnesota become nonattainment, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) will have to create a plan to take voluntary and regulator steps to reduce pollution and return to compliance.

Two St. Paul monitors have recently become noncompliant for another major pollutant-fine particulate matter - while many other locations around the state could potentially be noncompliant depending on where EPA sets the new standard for particulates. Fine particulates are the cause of most of the air quality alert days that we have in Minnesota, include a staggering 23 days in the Twin Cities this past winter. It is unclear at this point what steps the MPCA will be required to take to reduce fine particulates pollution.

Given the increasing knowledge of the health impacts of major highways on adjacent neighborhoods, the EPA is also requiring new road-side monitoring of nitrogen dioxide. While these monitors won't be in place until 2013 and related regulations won't come in until 2015, it is clear that most major highways will be noncompliant.

It is clear that nonattainment is something we all want to avoid, which means that now is the time to take proactive policy steps to address air pollution concerns. You can see our blog post for steps that you can take to help.

Also posted are two interesting  presentations from a recent Minnesota Environmental Initiative discussion on air quality status - "Meeting Federal Air Quality Standards Forum" (pdf) from the EPA and "State of the Air in Minnesota" (pdf) from the MPCA.