The Air Quality section of Environment Services also conducts indoor air quality investigations, performs asbestos inspections at demolition sites, responds to hazardous materials incidents, investigates all air quality complaints in Sedgwick county, and provides education to citizens on air quality topics.

Program Goals

The Air Quality section works to reduce air pollution in Sedgwick County. This is accomplished by working cooperatively with other sections of Environment Services, other agencies, and the public to control air pollution sources and prevent degradation of the quality of our air, thus protecting the health of citizens of the county and adding to the quality of life enjoyed by all.

The most important goal of any environmental program can be stated in one word: Prevention. Preventing illness and degradation of our environment is cheaper, easier, and more effective than any curative treatments that we discover after the fact.

Baseline

The Air Quality section monitors ambient air for criteria pollutants (carbon monoxide, ozone, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, lead, and particulate matter) in accordance with regulations set forth in the federal Clean Air Act. Lead and sulfur dioxide are no longer monitored on a continuous basis.  Long-term monitoring data shows that ambient levels of these two air pollutants have dropped significantly since the 1970's.

Wichita has been in compliance with all six criteria air pollutants since 1989. Background levels of approximately 60 other air toxic compounds commonly found in urban air have also been measured since 1988.

Funding/Staffing

Two federal grants from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and one state grant from the Kansas Department of Health & Environment (KDHE) provide funds to operate the Air Quality program. The EPA grant requires a forty percent match by Wichita. No matching funds are required for the state grant. There are four full time staff positions in the Air Quality section: the Air Quality Program Supervisor and three Environmental Quality Specialists.

Status/Trends

The criteria pollutants are the only ones for which National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) have been established by EPA. Based on recent scientific health effects studies, EPA revised the standards for ozone and particulate matter in 1997. These changes effectively lowered allowable concentrations of these two pollutants. Ambient air measurements since 1997 show that Wichita is closer to exceeding the new standards but we are currently in attainment with both revised standards.

The Wichita-Sedgwick County air monitoring network consists of continuous monitors for ozone, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and particulates (See Air Sampling Site Map).

The pollutants present in urban air come from many sources. The major contributors are:

• Mobile sources (automobiles, trucks, buses, and trains),
• Area sources (smaller sources such as boilers, dry cleaners and citizen activities),
• Stationary (industrial), and natural sources (background) are also contributors.

Over the past three and a half decades, since authorization of the first federal Clean Air Act, the U.S. has made substantial progress in reducing air pollution, while, at the same time, experiencing strong economic growth.  In fact, since 1970, Gross Domestic Product has increased by 176 percent, energy consumption by 45 percent, vehicle miles traveled by 155 percent and the U.S. population by 39 percent.  Notwithstanding this progress, our nation continues to face significant public health and environmental problems as a result of emissions into our air.

Risk Factors

Air pollution is one of the greatest known environmental risks to human health. According to the EPA, the list of health problems brought on or exacerbated by one or another airborne pollutant includes:

• lung diseases, such as chronic bronchitis and pulmonary emphysema;
• cancer, particularly lung cancer; bronchial asthma; and
• allergic reactions such as eye, nose, and throat irritation.

Age appears to be the main factor that disproportionately affects the population. The young and the elderly are more at risk due to physical factors associated with their overall health. Fine particulates cause the greatest number of airborne pollutant related deaths and illnesses in the U.S.  In addition, animal studies have raised concerns that ozone may reduce our ability to fight respiratory infection and that frequent exposure may cause permanent lung damage.

Breathing the air in urban areas is a risk factor for all the above. This is probably due to the mix of manmade pollutants typical of urban air. In addition, persons with asthma, allergies, emphysema, and other respiratory problems are more at risk than the general population.

Significance

Economic growth and environmental protection can go hand-in-hand. Between 1970 and 2004, total emissions of the six principal pollutants decreased while gross domestic product, population, and total vehicle miles traveled all increased significantly. In addition, toxic air emissions from sources such as organic chemical plants, oil refineries, dry cleaning operations, and aerospace manufacturing are decreasing as federal air toxics regulations take effect. According to the American Lung Association, the annual health costs of human exposure to all outdoor criteria air pollutants from all sources in the U.S. range from $40 to $50 billion, with an associated 50,000 to 120,000 premature deaths per year.

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