DFW’s Ozone Problem and the Potential Fixes
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
Dallas-Fort Worth has poor air quality and 9 local counties are designated as a non-attainment zone under the Clean Air Act, meaning they exceeded limits of pollutants like ozone and are under scrutiny for its PM2.5 levels. The legal thresholds are lowered over time, going from 75 down to 70 ppb over 8 hours from 2008 to 2015. Under the new standard these counties are categorized as ‘serious’, meaning the situation needs to be addressed immediately.
These counties, through the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, must demonstrate an effective clean-up plan, or the EPA could levy fines under Section 185 of the Clean Air Act. If they fail to meet ozone standards, stationary sources of pollution could be hit with annual fines. There is also a threat to federal funding to the non-attainment counties, and imposition of additional command and control emissions regulations, if the categorization escalates from serious to severe.
Ozone is created by the reaction of emitted nitrogen oxides and VOCs in the heat and sunlight. Primary sources of these emissions include transportation, industrial emissions, upstream oil & gas, and heavy-duty construction equipment.
The best opportunities to reduce peak ozone periods is to target NOx emissions sources, which are the primary cause. Buses and diesel transportation overhauls have a high cost but are a substantial reduction opportunity. Electrification of predictable, highly trafficked corridors offer another opportunity for charging infrastructure which would have high optimization rates, although costs per truck can be three times as expensive up front.
Cement kilns can utilize selective catalytic reduction systems which can reduce the output between 70-90%. These advanced emissions controls work by injecting ammonia or urea into the flue gas, creating a reaction that turns NOx into harmless diatomic nitrogen and water vapor. Retrofits can cost around $10 million per kiln.
As with many sustainable solutions, the technical achievement has been reached and the issue can be remediated, however, economics are the main challenge with many of these environmentally friendly substitutes.
TX Energy Buyers: Easily Compare 100+ energy providers to get your best rate: https://go.comparepower.com/orgel
Follow ORGEL on multiple platforms:
