Airborne Organic Toxins

in Anchorage Ambient & Indoor Air


Will Changes in Gasoline Composition
Affect Toxics Levels?
(study updates)

Air Quality Program

Municipality of Anchorage
Dr. Mary Ellen Gordian
UAA
Why monitoring airborne organic toxics?

• In 1996 study, benzene level in

Anchorage homes (attached garage) was
5-times higher than homes in lower 48

• Alaska gasoline has higher benzene content

(roughly 5%) than gasoline in lower 48

• EPA’s new regulation: max benzene content

in gasoline < 1.3 % by July 2012

Lower benzene levels in indoor & ambient air ?

Any effects on other toxics like other VOCs, PAHs ?
 Es timate d and Pro je c te d Anc ho rag e Bo wl
Be nze ne Emis s io ns fro m Mo to r Ve hic le s with and
Benzene emissions (lbs/day) witho ut I/M

2500
"Extra emissions" due to revocation of I/M
Emissions with I/M
2000

new rule
1500
Assume I/M is discontinued in 2012
and benzene content in gasoline
1000 drops from 5.1% to 1.3% in same

500

0
1996 2007 2009 2011 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023

Year
Study Methods (Oct 2008 – Oct 2009)

VOC in gasoline
Regular & premium grades were collected from 12 – 20
selected gas stations in Anchorage, bi-monthly for 6 times

VOC in indoor air

Selected 509 homes with attached garage
Passive organic-vapor monitoring badges were
exposed to indoor air for a week

VOC & PAH in ambient air

24-hour air samples were collected for VOC & PAH
once every 6 days at Airport Heights
(residential area near Merrill Field Airport)
Annual mean conc. in gasoline, indoor & ambient air

VOC types Gasoline Indoor air Ambient air

(%) (ppbv) (ppbv)
Benzene 5.1 4.7 1.06

Ethylbenzene 2.6 1.3 0.19

Toluene 18.4 12.8 1.85

Xylenes 14.4 5.8 0.87

Total BETX 40.5 24.6 3.96

4-7 times higher inside homes

Seasonal changes in ambient VOC & PAH
8

6
More air toxins in
Benzene (ppbv) 5

4 winter!!
3

2
1 Annual mean
0
800
10/1 12/1 1/31 4/2 6/2 8/2 10/2 What about
Date median?
700
Total PAH (ng/ m3)

600
500
400
300
200
100
Annual mean
0
10/1 12/1 1/31 4/2 6/2 8/2 10/2

2008 2009
Anchorage’s ranking in the Nation (2008-2009)
Source: EPA database (2008)
Mean Benzene
Rank City County State conc. (ppbv)
1 Asheville Buncombe Co NC 3.68
2 Steubenville Jefferson Co OH 2.63
3 Tonawanda Erie Co NY 2.59
What about
4 Tonawanda Erie Co NY 2.50
comparing to
other residential 5 Tonawanda Erie Co NY 2.02
monitoring sites in6 Port Arthur Jefferson Co TX 1.88
winter cities? 7 Galena Park Harris Co TX 1.12
Instead of 8 Yorkville Paulding Co GA 1.07
comparing with 9 Anchorage Anchorage AK 1.06
EPA’s Superfund10 Near Longview Gregg Co TX 1.02
areas? Anchorage
may be #1 for all
11 Houston Harris Co TX 0.99
categories…
....

100 Seattle King Co WA 0.33

267 Minneapolis Hennepin Co MN 0.17

Anchorage Seattle Minneapolis

Nat’l Ranking Ethylbenzene 7 40 247
of Other VOC Toluene 2 122 232
Xylene 7 37 214
Benzene ranking #3-5 --- Tonawanda, NY

Source: Clean air coalition of western New York (www.cacwny.org/site.html)

Other locations that made TOP 10 for 3 categories:
Azusa, Los Angels co, CA.
•High-volume traffic
•Heavy industrial area
Burbank, Los Angels co, CA
•Trucking/train hub
Elizabeth, NJ •Large facility of chemical company

280

78
78

Trucking & Newark Int’l

cargo hub 95 Airport