National Academies Press: OpenBook

Air Quality Management in the United States (2004)

Chapter: Appendix B: Statement of Task

« Previous: Appendix A: Committee Biosketches
Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Statement of Task." National Research Council. 2004. Air Quality Management in the United States. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10728.
×

Appendix B
Statement of Task

Develop scientific and technical recommendations for strengthening the nation’s air quality management system with respect to the way it identifies and incorporates important sources of exposure to humans and ecosystems and integrates new understandings of human and ecosystem risks. To this end, the committee will conduct a scientific and technical evaluation of the effectiveness of the major air quality provisions of the Clean Air Act and their implementation by federal, state, and local government agencies.

The committee’s review will address scientific and technical aspects of the policies and programs that are intended to manage important air pollutants including, but not limited to, national ambient (“criteria”) pollutants and air toxics. It will evaluate scientific and technical aspects of current approaches for health and environmental problem identification, regulatory standards development, air quality management plan development, plan implementation, and progress evaluation. Stratospheric ozone protection and greenhouse gas emissions will not be included in the scope of the study, except in regard to strategies to control emissions from sources in tropospheric air quality control programs.

The committee will address:

Scientific and technical bases for identifying and controlling air quality problems and for understanding the importance of various emissions sources;

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Statement of Task." National Research Council. 2004. Air Quality Management in the United States. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10728.
×

Scientific and technical bases of current approaches used to set technology-based standards, emission standards, and ambient air quality standards;

Scientific and technical bases of current approaches for developing and implementing air quality management plans, including procedures for developing emissions inventories, models for evaluating management strategies and relating emissions to air quality; and the State Implementation Plans and other air quality management programs;

Measures of performance used to determine progress toward public health and environmental goals, and the use of these measures to modify management systems as needed;

Potential for new scientific concepts and methods, such as those related to human exposure assessment, intermedia transfer, and source-receptor modeling, to be utilized more effectively in the management of air quality;

Scientific and technical aspects of policies and tools (e.g., emissions trading) for air quality management;

Balance between the need for national consistency and the need for local flexibility in carrying out the major air quality provisions of the Clean Air Act;

The extent to which one can rely on anticipated technological advances for achieving emissions reductions in SIPs and other air quality management plans;

Adequacy of current and future expertise, resources, and infrastructure at federal, state, and local agencies to implement air quality management programs;

The effectiveness of federal research programs to enhance the nation’s capacity to manage air pollution.

Sponsor: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Statement of Task." National Research Council. 2004. Air Quality Management in the United States. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10728.
×
Page 363
Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Statement of Task." National Research Council. 2004. Air Quality Management in the United States. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10728.
×
Page 364
Next: Appendix C: 188 Hazardous Air Pollutants »
Air Quality Management in the United States Get This Book
×
Buy Hardback | $68.00 Buy Ebook | $54.99
MyNAP members save 10% online.
Login or Register to save!
Download Free PDF

Managing the nation’s air quality is a complex undertaking, involving tens of thousands of people in regulating thousands of pollution sources. The authors identify what has worked and what has not, and they offer wide-ranging recommendations for setting future priorities, making difficult choices, and increasing innovation. This new book explores how to better integrate scientific advances and new technologies into the air quality management system.

The volume reviews the three-decade history of governmental efforts toward cleaner air, discussing how air quality standards are set and results measured, the design and implementation of control strategies, regulatory processes and procedures, special issues with mobile pollution sources, and more. The book looks at efforts to spur social and behavioral changes that affect air quality, the effectiveness of market-based instruments for air quality regulation, and many other aspects of the issue.

Rich in technical detail, this book will be of interest to all those engaged in air quality management: scientists, engineers, industrial managers, law makers, regulators, health officials, clean-air advocates, and concerned citizens.

Â

  1. ×

    Welcome to OpenBook!

    You're looking at OpenBook, NAP.edu's online reading room since 1999. Based on feedback from you, our users, we've made some improvements that make it easier than ever to read thousands of publications on our website.

    Do you want to take a quick tour of the OpenBook's features?

    No Thanks Take a Tour »
  2. ×

    Show this book's table of contents, where you can jump to any chapter by name.

    « Back Next »
  3. ×

    ...or use these buttons to go back to the previous chapter or skip to the next one.

    « Back Next »
  4. ×

    Jump up to the previous page or down to the next one. Also, you can type in a page number and press Enter to go directly to that page in the book.

    « Back Next »
  5. ×

    Switch between the Original Pages, where you can read the report as it appeared in print, and Text Pages for the web version, where you can highlight and search the text.

    « Back Next »
  6. ×

    To search the entire text of this book, type in your search term here and press Enter.

    « Back Next »
  7. ×

    Share a link to this book page on your preferred social network or via email.

    « Back Next »
  8. ×

    View our suggested citation for this chapter.

    « Back Next »
  9. ×

    Ready to take your reading offline? Click here to buy this book in print or download it as a free PDF, if available.

    « Back Next »
Stay Connected!