Page 429 - Fundamentals of Air Pollution 3E

Questions 381

delay. The acceptable range provides adequate protection against adverse
effects. The desirable range defines a long-term goal for air quality and
provides the basis for a nondegradation policy for unpolluted parts of the
country (Table 22-9).
Some examples of air quality standards for other countries are given in
Table 22-10.

SUGGESTED READING

Atkisson, A,, and Gaines, R. S., eds., "Development of Air Quality Standards." Merrill,
Columbus, OH, 1970.
Cochran, L. S., Pielke, R. A., and Kovacs, E., Selected international receptor-based air quality
standards. /. Air Waste Manage. Assoc. 42, 1567-1572 (1992).
Kates, R. W., "Risk Assessment of Environmental Hazard." Wiley, Chicester, England, 1978.
Schwing, R. C, and Albers, W. A. (eds.), "Society Risk Assessment." Plenum, New York,
1980.
World Health Organization, "Air Quality Guidelines for Europe." Copenhagen, 1987.

QUESTIONS

1. Why are air quality criteria descriptive?
2. Why are air quality standards prescriptive?
3. Evaluate the use, effectiveness, and equity of local, state, provincial, or national air quality
standards in your community.
4. Prepare a table similar in format to Tables 22-1 through 22-6 for another pollutant not yet
required by the administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to have a
criteria document.
5. Discuss the relative merits of stating air quality standards as 1-hr, 3-hr, 8-hr, 24-hr, and
annual averages.
6. Discuss the relative merits of national versus local air quality standards.
7. Discuss the differences in approach in using air quality standards (as in the United States),
air quality objectives (as in Canada), and air quality goals (as in certain other countries).
8. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of promulgating only one set of air quality
standards (as in most countries) and of employing secondary and tertiary (PSD) standards,
as in the United States.
9. Discuss the problem caused by cigarette smoking in the evaluation of epidemiological data
on the effect of air pollution on respiratory disease.