December 2010Monthly Archives

Air Quality suffers from stagnant weather – Residents Asked to Reduce Burning

While a bit of sun and lack of rain later this week presents a nice change of pace, it also could mean degraded air quality.

On Thursday and into the weekend, temperatures are expected to be chilly, with little wind to clear the air. The cold nights and still, foggy mornings tend to prompt more use of woodstoves and fireplaces. Unfortunately, in these conditions any smoke we put into the air around us, stays in the air around us. The result could be rising levels of air pollution.

In the interest of public health and safety, the Olympic Region Clean Air Agency (ORCAA) asks that all residents refrain from burning unless absolutely necessary.

Burning wood creates smoke composed of fine and very fine particulate matter (PM2.5). These tiny particles are too small to be filtered by the nose and the body’s other natural defense mechanisms, so they may end up being inhaled deep into the lungs. That means that exposure to wood smoke may, at the very least, cause breathing problems and can increase – sometimes substantially increase – the severity of existing lung disease, such as asthma. Smoke also has been shown to aggravate heart and vascular disease.

In addition to minimizing the use of woodstoves and fireplaces, ORCAA asks homeowners to use alternative means of disposal to clean up their yards. Chipping and composting are the best option, though other alternatives to burning are also available. You can find more details on the options here or by calling your local waste disposal company.

If residents do need to burn, ORCAA encourages them to do so only at mid-day during the period of greatest air ventilation. During early morning and late evening hours the inversion is strongest, so at those times, any smoke remains trapped at ground level, creating significant air pollution issues.

To learn about the health effects of air pollution, check out the American Lung Association of Washington’s Web site at www.alaw.org. To find the latest on the status of burn restrictions within ORCAA’s six-county region, click here.

admin
December 30, 2010
Burn Status, Health, News and Information
Comments Off
, , , , ,

Public Invited to Comment on ADAGE permit application

The Olympic Region Clean Air Agency (ORCAA) firmly believes in its motto,  “Clean Air is Everyone’s Business.” As such, ORCAA seeks to keep everyone within our jurisdiction well informed about the actions­—and proposed actions—we take. Toward that end, the standard 30-day Public Comment Period on permit actions may be extended.

Public comment is currently being accepted on a Notice of Construction (NOC) permit, which includes a permit to operate, for ADAGE Mason LLC (ADAGE) in Shelton, Mason County. Given the public interest in Woody Biomass projects, ORCAA has extended the Public Comment session on this application to 40 days.

ADAGE proposes to construct a 65-megawatt (MW) biomass power plant in the southwest corner of the Port of Shelton’s 400-acre Johns Prairie Industrial Park located at 500 East Export Road near Shelton, Washington. Operation of the biomass power plant will result in the emission of air pollutants.

ORCAA Engineering Staff has assessed air quality implications of ADAGE’s proposal and concluded that compliance with applicable air regulations and standards will likely be maintained. On this basis, ORCAA Staff’s recommendation is to conditionally approve ADAGE’s NOC application.

Comments on the NOC may be submitted to ORCAA in writing – ORCAA staff will fully consider all comments pertaining to air quality implications of the proposed project before a Final Determination is made. Written comments should be addressed to ORCAA (address: 2940-B Limited Lane NW, Olympia, WA 98502) and will be accepted up through the end of the public hearing on January 31, 2011. Comments may also be submitting electronically through the ORCAA website. Use the Comment Form at the bottom of the Staff Recommendation page.

In addition to the extended Public Comment Period, ORCAA will also hold two public hearings.  On January 31, 2011, beginning at 1:00 p.m. and again at 6:00 p.m., formal public hearings will be conducted by ORCAA to gather testimony regarding air quality concerns associated with ADAGE’s proposed project. The hearing will be held in the Main Room of the Shelton Civic Center located at 525 West Cota Street in Shelton, Washington.

Copies of ORCAA’s Staff Recommendation for Notice of Construction 10NOC748 are on file and available for review at the Shelton branch of the Timberland Public Library located at 710 W Alder Street in Shelton, and at ORCAA’s office in Olympia.  This document is also accessible via ORCAA’s website, www.orcaa.org.

admin
December 21, 2010
News and Information, Permits
2 comments
, , , , ,

Woody Forest Debris Emissions Study Available

Greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions of alternatives for woody biomass residues

The forests of the Pacific Northwest have historically fueled the economy of the region. Yet there has been no data on the impacts of using the woody forest materials left after harvest as fuel. Until now.

Using a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Olympic Region Clean Air Agency (ORCAA) managed an in-depth analysis of air pollutant emissions of options for using or disposing of woody debris generated in conjunction with forest management and land clearing operations in the Pacific Northwest. The results of that study are now available.

Results from the project are available for downloading from ORCAA’s website (www.orcaa.org) and include a Final Report and an Emissions Calculator. The Final Report provides a summary of emissions based on average or typical parameters for variables such as transport distance, processing technology and other variables. The Emissions Calculator is an emission calculation tool that generates emissions results based on user input parameters for variables.

Both greenhouse gases (GHGs) and the traditional regulated air pollutants are represented in the results. The results compare emissions of the 15 alternatives for woody biomass residues – that is, the debris left in the forest after timber harvest, land clearing, or other silvacultural work – including both emissions from gathering, transporting and processing the woody biomass, as well as avoided emissions from the displacement of any existing products.

The analysis was designed to focus on comparing different alternatives for use and disposal of woody forest debris since there have been relatively few studies that comprehensively addressed this segment of the woody biomass life cycle. A post-harvest to grave approach was chosen to focus on comparing alternatives for timber-land debris, all forest land management practices are assumed to be held constant across the options considered. The primary goal of the project was to quantify air pollutant emissions from 15 viable alternative practices for using or disposing of woody biomass.

ORCAA welcomes your comments on both the Final Report and Emissions Calculator and will use this input for future improvements and updates to both.  You may view them here.

admin
December 17, 2010
News and Information, Upcoming Events
Comments Off
, , ,

Air Quality suffers from stagnant weather: Residents Asked to Reduce Burning

Air quality seems to be the first casualty from the dry, still weekend weather.

Still, stagnant air held down by a high-pressure system means any smoke we put into the air around us, stays in the air around us. The result is rapidly rising levels of air pollution.

Our region experienced increasingly high levels of air pollution in recent days as a result of the outdoor burning and home-heating with wood stoves and fireplaces. The cold nights and still, foggy mornings tend to prompt more use of wood stoves and fireplaces. But those conditions also indicate the presence of an inversion, which traps the smoke close to the ground around us. In the interest of public health and safety, all residents are asked to refrain from burning unless absolutely necessary.

Burning wood creates smoke composed of fine and very fine particulate matter (PM2.5). These tiny particles are too small to be filtered by the nose and the body’s other natural defense mechanisms, so they may end up being inhaled deep into the lungs. That means that exposure to wood smoke may, at the very least, cause breathing problems and can increase – sometimes substantially increase – the severity of existing lung disease, such as asthma. Smoke also has been shown to aggravate heart and vascular disease.

In addition to minimizing the use of wood stoves and fireplaces, ORCAA asks homeowners to use alternative means of disposal to clean up their yards. Chipping and composting are the best option, though other alternatives to burning are also available. You can find more details on the options at www.news.orcaa.org or by calling your local waste disposal company.

If residents do need to burn, ORCAA encourages them to do so only at mid-day during the period of greatest air ventilation. During early morning and late evening hours the inversion is strongest, so at those times, any smoke remains trapped at ground level, creating significant air pollution issues.

To learn about the health effects of air pollution, check out the American Lung Association of Washington’s Web site at www.alaw.org. To find the latest on the status of burn restrictions within ORCAA’s six-county region, visit www.news.orcaa.org.

admin
December 6, 2010
Burn Status, News and Information, Uncategorized
Comments Off
, , ,