Feb. 18/03

RECORD OF MEETING OF
THE INTERNATIONAL AIR QUALITY ADVISORY BOARD
WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 13 TO FRIDAY NOVEMBER 15, 2002
SECRETARIAT OF THE CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
OFFICE 300, 393 ST. JACQUES ST. MONTREAL P.Q.

Dr. Gary Foley chaired the meeting. Those present on the first day included Gary Foley, Kathy Tonnessen, Rick Artz, Ed Piché and Michael Brauer, along with John McDonald, Ted Bailey, and Christina Cheng of the Commission. Peggy Farnsworth, Harold Garabedian, and Don McKay joined the meeting from the beginning of the second day.

A request was made to include an item on SUMAS 2 and a discussion on future energy sources.

A further item on USEPA and NOAA efforts to work with local weather forecasters on the inclusion of air quality forecast information was added to agenda 9.0 'Other Business.'

The revised agenda was approved.

• Record of Meeting - Missoula Montana - July 30 to August 1, 2002

Minor corrections to the meeting record and presentation/discussion will be incorporated into the final version of these two documents.

• Record of Conference Call Tuesday, October 1, 2002

The Board approved the record of the conference call.

Don McKay provided an overview of the evolution of Board and SOLEC interaction on the development of air quality indicators, and a brief comment on the workshop highlights. The IAQAB presentation to SOLEC reviewed indicator development in the east and west coast portions of the boundary with an emphasis on limiting the number of indicators significantly below those under consideration by the SOLEC.

A recent report published by the Heinz Foundation in which selected environmental indicators were used to develop an overview of ecosystem quality across the United States was noted. The Secretary was asked to pursue a possible presentation from the Heinz Foundation for the Spring Semi-Annual.

The Board will remain involved in the air quality indicator arena; however the extent of involvement, particularly with SOLEC, remained to be defined. The Board's concerns will be discussed between Don McKay and the Canadian Chair of the SOLEC Committee.

The Commissioners appeared to support all IAQAB activities. Given the progress of the Board in defining loading of persistent toxic substances via the atmospheric pathway to the Lakes, the Board made it clear that other pathways such as effluent discharges and sediment cycling need to be further explored to estimate the ultimate accumulation in fish and subsequent human exposure.

The main foci of the February SAB/IAQAB mercury workshop are intended to be on human health impacts associated with mercury and deposition patterns.

1. Status of Proceedings of CEC/IAQAB Mercury Workshop

A recommendation on the need for improved surveillance of mercury content in seafood was noted as the main addition to the document. An account of the Las Vegas 1998 IAQAB/SMOC-CEC Mercury Conference will be edited and included into the body of the proceedings.

It was suggested that the wording of the recommendations should be limited and made more forthright.

The CEC is supportive of this joint publication. The report is expected to be available for the February 2003 SAB/IAQAB/HPTF Mercury Workshop.

2. Update on IAQAB/SAB-WEH/HPTF Mercury Workshop - February 26-27, 2003

The workshop is to open with an examination of sources followed by a consideration of human health impacts, with an emphasis on the fish consumption pathway.

3. CEC Children's Health Initiative: Interaction with Erica Phipps, Program Manager, Pollutants and Health, CEC Staff

CEC activities focus on; asthma and respiratory disease; exposure to water borne disease; effects of lead (paint/ceramic finishes); exposures to toxic substances including pesticides; strengthening a knowledge database for long term solutions; and public information, outreach and education. Copies of the Cooperative Agenda for Children's Health and the Environment in North America and Making the Environment Healthier for Our Kids were provided. Asthma appears to be at epidemic (20% of population) levels in young children in the US and Canada.

Regarding the lead project, a first step was the identification of products (paints and finishes) applied to windows, doors and other trim that would be accessible to children. Ceramic products in Mexico will also be under consideration and some sampling of children's blood for lead content may be conducted.

The CEC will be hosting a trilateral meeting in February 2003 to review risk assessment and human health; the Health Professionals Task Force will be involved, particularly in the discussion of ways to influence the education of health professionals on the impacts of environmental factors on children's health.

A pre-meeting to consider a feasibility study for development of indicators of the health of children will be held with members of the HPTF in Montreal on Dec 10 to 12/02. There are only a few indicators specific to children, principally developed by the World Health Organization and the European Union; UNICEF is also involved. Some of the outputs of the Global Conference on Children's Health, held in Washington D.C. in September 2001, would be useful as the workshop attempts to define 15 to 20 indicators.

4. Status of HYSPLIT Mercury Modeling and Utilities Scenario

The HYSPLIT model performed very well when compared to available ambient measurements. New estimates of deposition to the Great Lakes using the model are under development, particularly from the utility sector, where the most recent SO2 emissions data are being used as indicative of changes in mercury emissions. The revised mercury deposition estimates and the model inter-comparison should be a prominent part of the report on IAQAB activity in the 2001/03 IJC Great Lakes Priority Report.

A paper on the HYSPLIT modeling of the transport and deposition of dioxin to the Great Lakes basin should appear in the November issue of Environmental Science and Technology.

Thursday, November 14, 2002
8:30 a.m.

Meeting resumes - Chair: Don McKay

5. Other Great Lakes Activities
• SAB/PIWG Urban Land Use Workshop, Windsor, ON

This workshop has been postponed to January 8, 2003 to a location in Toronto. The need for inclusion of air quality as one impact of continued urbanization was expressed by Board members.

• WQB Climate Change Workshop - Windsor/Detroit – February 19-20, 2003

The WQB white paper is to be completed by November 15, 2002.

An unrelated climate change workshop, sponsored by NOAA, will be held in Washington, December 4, 5 and 6, 2002 to review the most current research.

• Compilation of IJC Great Lakes Recommendations

The Board responded favourably to the placement of the Board's Great Lakes recommendations on the Commission's website and suggested that an appropriate preface providing background information and a reference to the original entire documents be incorporated into the website presentation.

6. Production of 2001/03 Great Lakes Priority Report

It was suggested that the HYSPLIT Mercury Model data as well as outcomes of the February IAQAB/SAB/HPTF mercury workshop be adapted into the priority report. Future energy sources may also be considered as an item in the report.

7. IAQAB Participation in IJC Great Lakes Biennial Forum – Ann Arbor, MI – September 19 and 20, 2003

The Commission is considering a proposal to profile issues such as Urbanization and Climate Change into a limited number of workshops. The 2 ^nd day will determine restoration plans of various organizations and provide a venue for public questions and comments.

Air quality in the Detroit/Windsor region was suggested for discussion.

An Overview and Review of Progress to Date on the Metaalicus Project
Dr. Holger Hintelmann, Trent University

Metaalicus is attempting to track the fate of a marked direct deposition of a small quantity of mercury on land (including wetlands) and directly into a small lake in the Experimental Lakes Area of Northwestern Ontario to its ultimate destination in fish. The majority of mercury placed into the confined sub-basin volatized into the air and has not been captured in the sediment as was predicted.

Further detail on the Metaalicus project can be found at http://www.umanitoba.ca/institutes/fisheries/METAALICUS1.html.

A further presentation on work under the Collaborative Mercury Research Network (COMERN) was made.

Further information on COMERN, can be found at http://www.unites.uqam.ca/comern.

Lunch break - 11:45 a.m.

The Lung Associations' International Centre for Air Quality and Health Canadian Air Quality Index update and development of health messages, Kenneth Maybee, Barbara MacKinnon (New Brunswick Lung Association) Norman Anderson (American Lung Association of Maine)

The association is presently incorporating a new focus on air quality and pollution.

The NB Association will be sponsoring a workshop to be held in Spring 2003 meant to address strategies for emissions reduction, advance legislative initiatives, promote market-based reductions and further engage the public. The intent is to use the outcome of the workshop as part of building a coalition to involve other US and Canadian Lung Associations in the issue of air quality and air pollution.

The Maine Lung Association noted the absence of much coordination between the Maritime provinces and New England states in the past. There is a need for cross boundary co-ordination of this issue.

One identified possibility was for the Lung Association to relay Commission activities to the public and note reactions of the public on these issues. As well, the Associations can notify the Board of emerging issues/public concerns while updating them on successes in obtaining and analyzing the transboundary impact of air quality as reflected in pooled hospital admissions data. Such information could be noted as a regional effort in the next Special Report on Transboundary Air Quality.

Break - 2:30

1. Further Development of Special Report on Transboundary Air Quality II

Board members agreed the report should be completed by March 2003 for tabling with the Commissioners at the 2003 Spring Semi-Annual meeting in April.

2. Further Consideration of State/Provincial Utility Template

The substantial contribution of aging coal fired plants is an issue in the Midwest, while the projected growth in capacity (SUMAS 2 etc.) is the focus in the West. In many cases, a majority of the emissions is associated with a small number of facilities.

3. Presentation and Interaction with Paul Miller, Program Manager, Air Quality, CEC on Utilities Emissions

Two areas of focus by the CEC were presented by Paul Miller: 1) Proposed 2003 Air Program Activities; and 2) CEC Article 13, Electricity and Environment Report.

1. Proposed 2003 Air Program Activities

The CEC has proposed to undertake a number of activities in 2003 including: continued sponsorship of the North American Air Working Group, exchange opportunities of experts; continued work on North American emissions and Greenhouse Gas (GHG) inventories; assessments of transboundary air issues; and common methods to assess vehicle exhaust exposure in trade corridors.

Further detail can be found at the CEC website http://www.cec.org.

2. CEC Article 13, Electricity and Environment Report

The objective of this recently published report was to examine environmental challenges and opportunities presented by the evolving continental electricity market and identify ways for further electricity market integration to promote sustainable development, while maximizing economic and environmental benefits. The final report issued by CEC can be found on http://www.cec.org.

4. Consideration of Outcomes of Health Professionals Task Force Public Meeting – Vancouver, September 2002 – Sumas 2 Hearings and other issues

A letter was sent to the Commissioners by the HPTF and IAQAB, outlining specific concerns of the public including; location in an environmental sensitive transboundary air-shed; further increase in nitrogen oxide emissions; and lack of an appropriate bilateral mechanism to respond to Canadian residents' concern over an increase in air pollution.

5. Support to the Proposed Commissioners' Health Symposium

A proposed health symposium to brief the Commissioners would include mercury and human health, particularly in the Great Lakes basin, air quality and common and hazardous air pollutants, and other work under the SAB and HPTF. Further development will await the appointment of the new US Commissioners.

6. Update on Detroit/Windsor Reference - Commission letter to Governments

In response to the IJC's letter in support of convening a binational meeting for consideration of the Detroit/Windsor reference, the letter from the U.S. State Department responds that this issue had been adequately considered at the IJC Spring 2002 Semi-Annual meeting and no further action would be required. No formal response has been received from the Canadian government to this most recent Commission letter.

7. Comments from Governments on IAQAB "Report Card"

The Board will consider government responses to the Board's Report Card, as the content of the next Special Report is developed. The Board noted the comments particularly on dry deposition and recommended that the IJC respond and thank the agencies for these insights.

Friday, November 15, 8:30 a.m.
Chair: Don McKay

Meeting resumes

1. Review and comfirmation of assignments – Special Report on Transboundary Air Quality II

See agenda item 7.0 i.

2. Other assignments

No other assignments were made at this time.

1. Trail Smelter Decision Revisited

The paper forwarded to the Secretary by Commissioner Blaney, If So, Then What? The Struggle for TEIA, reviewing the evolution of bilateral air quality management by John D. Wirth of Stanford was referred to in the discussion of the SUMAS 2 proposal earlier in the meeting.

2. SUMAS 2

The Board reinforced its earlier decision to continue to communicate with the HPTF regarding SUMAS 2 and to be the first line of response to the Commissioners on this issue.

3. Future Energy Workshop/Conference

Previous and ongoing electricity activities of the CEC will be identified. However, it was cautioned to limit the scope of the workshop/conference as this would be a new event.

The Board is interested in and supportive of such an initiative. IJC staff are preparing a preliminary paper on this matter and that paper would be circulated upon completion.

4. Air Quality Forecasting/Forest Fire Impacts as Illustrations

More proscribed burn activities in the US and Canada plus natural fires, would continue to be a significant particulate source regionally, and in some cases, on a continental basis. The impact on compliance with regional haze rules in the United States could be very significant.

Further air quality forecasting and modeling efforts are required to assess associated impacts; further identification of tools used by other organizations would assist in these efforts. Cities known to be frequently impacted by forest fires, such as Denver, Missoula and Montréal, should establish monitoring sites for PM2.5 to allow development of a reference data set.

The next conference call has been scheduled for Monday, December 2/02 12:30-2:00pm.

A winter meeting on January 21/22, 2003 was scheduled to continue work on the Special Report II for tabling with the Commission at Spring Semi-Annual 2003.

The meeting was adjourned at approximately 11:45 a.m., Friday, November 15, 2002.