| OCR Text |
Show Utah proposed standards vs federal criteria Below is the proposed Utah Air Quality Standard for sulfur dioxide. Compare these figures with the Air Quality Criteria (ppm is parts per million) . Total number of halt- Total number ot half- hnnr nerlods in any hour periods In any 24-hou? day during month during which which the concentre- the concentration In tinn In first column first column may be Concentration Uon m M1 t equaMed but not ex- SulfurDloxlde not exceeded. ceeded. 1.5 ppm J 1.0 ppm 2 '5 ppm iR 200 0.3 ppm 16 0.2 ppm 24 300 0.15 ppm no limit no limit The information below is taken from the Air Quality Qual-ity Criteria for Sulfur Oxides, HEW Public Health Service Publication No. 1619. None of the guidelines from the National Center for Pollution Control will be achieved for Salt Lake Valley if the proposed state standards are adopted: (1) Health is adversely affected at level proposed by the Utah Air Quality Standard for S02. At concentrations concen-trations 'of 0.19 ppm of S02 (24 hours average), with low particulate levels, there may be increased hospital admissions of older persons and absenteeism from work. These levels are in the area where no limits are proposed pro-posed by the Utah Standards. The effects of S02 may be aggravated if moderate amounts of particulate matter mat-ter are present. (2) Concentrations of pollutants cause unpleasant odors and tastes at proposed Utah S02 levels. The average taste threshold is 0.3 to 1.0 ppm. All these figures occur in the middle range of those proposed by the Utah Committee. (3) Damage to animals, ornamental plants, forests for-ests and agricultural crops occurs at proposed Utah S02 levels. Alfalfa and other plants are injured by exposure ex-posure to 0.28 ppm averaged over 24 hours, or 0.48 ppm for four hours. The standards proposed for Utah are based on vegetation effects and are set at the borderline, bor-derline, where damage begins to occur. (4) Visibility is reduced at proposed Utah S02 levels. The decrease in visibility as a result of S02 pollution pol-lution is a function of relative humidity and other particulate par-ticulate matter. For example, with the amount of sulphuric sul-phuric acid mist (1.0 ppm) and other particulate matter mat-ter normally associated with Salt Lake smog, the visual ranges at 50 per cent relative humidity would be about 0.5 mile. At 98 per cent relative humidity, visual range decreases to 0.2 mile. Since our worst pollution episodes epi-sodes occur with temperature inversion when relative humidity is high, the S02 concentrations proposed cause greatly reduced visibility. (5) Metals do corrode at proposed Utah S02 levels. lev-els. Studies have shown that air polluted with sulfur dioxide is more corrosive to metals than marine atmospheres. at-mospheres. Considerable corrosion occurs at concentrations concen-trations below 0.05 ppm. (6) Fabrics are soiled and deteriorated at proposed pro-posed Utah S02 levels. Concentrations of 0.09 ppm annual average in the presence of nitrogen oxides and ozone caused severe bleaching of dyed fabrics and concentrations con-centrations of 0.10 to 0.20 ppm (12 hour average) destroying de-stroying a number of paint pigments. (7) Natural scenery is obscured and damaged at proposed Utah S02 levels. A major benefit of living in Salt Lake Valley is the fantastic view of the Wasatch and Oquirrh Mountains, and the view toward Antelope Island and Great Salt Lake which might not exist during our days of smog. from information supplied by the Wasatch Mountain Club and Uinta Chapter of the Sierra Club. |
