The are 7 'criteria pollutants' for which data must be reported to EPA and stored in AIRS: PM 10 (particulate matter less than 10 microns in size); Carbon Monoxide (CO), Sulfur Dioxide (SO2), Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), Lead (Pb), Reactive Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC), and ozone. States are required by the Code of Federal Regulations to report ambient air quality data on a quarterly basis and point-source emission data on an annual basis for the above mentioned 'criteria pollutants'. The air samples are collected by over 50 various instruments known as the Federal Reference Monitoring System depending on the species, and are mounted at ground level at heights ranging from 2-15 meters. Data from the National Acid Precipitation Assessment Program (NAPAP) Emissions Inventory (1985) were originally stored in the NEDS system and is now in the AIRS (AFS) system.
The AFS is used to track emissions and compliance data from industrial plants. AFS data are utilized by states to prepare State Implementation Plans to comply with regulatory programs and by EPA as an input for the estimation of total national emissions. AFS is undergoing a major redesign to support facility operating permits required under Title V of the Clean Air Act. AFS has emissions and compliance data on air pollution point sources tracked by EPA and state and local environmental regulatory agencies.
AQS is used to assess the overall status of the nation's air quality and to prepare reports for Congress as mandated by the Clean Air Act. AQS contains measurements of ambient concentrations of air pollutants and associated meteorological data.
GCS provides reference information, such as Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) codes, that are used with all of the other AIRS subsystems. GCS stores reference information (such as codes and code descriptions to identify places, pollutants, processes, geopolitical entities, and numerical values) to be used with all of the AIRS subsystems.
AMS provides methods for computing emissions as well as serving as an inventory of emissions from area and mobile sources. AMS contains estimates of area-wide emissions from mobile sources, forest fires, fugitive transport, and other area-wide emission sources.
AG presents data from all of the subsystems in the form of maps or statistical charts. Users may create maps or charts to share with other users for data quality assurance procedures and a wide variety of other uses. Popular PC graphic program metafile support is available for local printing. AG provides users with Geographic Information System (GIS) type display/search capabilities in a user friendly format.
The system features online updating daily and the system software is ADABAS NATURAL and COBOL. The menu-driven system offers online browse, online and batch update, flexible and fixed-format report retrievals, and search capabilities. Users are profiled and determinations are made as to the data they will be allowed to access. Only certain users, determined by the system manager, may access confidential air pollution data. EPA, state and local governments, and their contractors do not pay any fees. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requesters must agree to pay computer search costs in excess of $25 and submit retrieval requests to EPA via the FOIA process. Available user documentation includes 13 volumes of the AIRS User's Guides.
Entry_ID: AIRS_EPA (MD Identifier: 4227)
Temporal Coverage:
From: 1955-01-01 TO:
Geographic Coverage:
Southwest Extent: 25N,172W Northeast Extent: 72N,65W
Source:
GROUND STATIONS
Storage Media:
Magnetic Tape
On-line
Discipline, Subdiscipline:
EARTH SCIENCE > ATMOSPHERE
Location Keyword:
BOUNDARY LAYER
EQUATORIAL
MID-LATITUDE
NORTH AMERICA
POLAR
TROPOSPHERE
Parameter Group, Parameter:
ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION > AIR QUALITY
ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION > CARBON MONOXIDE
ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION > CONTAMINANTS
ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION > HUMIDITY
ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION > NITROGEN DIOXIDE
ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION > NITROGEN OXIDES
ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION > OZONE
ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION > TRACE GASES
ATMOSPHERIC DYNAMICS > ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE
ATMOSPHERIC DYNAMICS > HUMIDITY
ATMOSPHERIC DYNAMICS > PRECIPITATION
ATMOSPHERIC DYNAMICS > PRESSURE
ATMOSPHERIC DYNAMICS > WINDS
General Keywords:
ACID RAIN
AFS
AIR POLLUTION
AIRS DATA SYSTEM
ANNUAL DATA
AQS
CO
DAILY DATA
EPA
GCS
HOURLY DATA
LEAD
MONTHLY DATA
NAPAP
NEDS
NO2
PARTICULATE MATTER
PM-10
QUARTERLY DATA
SAROAD
SO2
STATISTICS
SULFUR DIOXIDE
SURFACE
UPPER AIR
VOC
VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
Revision Date: 1994-01-10
Quality Statement:
Internal edit checks and logic checks are used within the system.
Archive:
AIRS>Aerometric Information Retrieval System, EPA
Data Set ID: AIRS
Contact: LINK, TOM
EPA/Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards
Data Request, Technical Support Division
National Air Data Branch
Research Triangle Park, NC 27711
USA
Phone: (919) 541-5456
FAX (919) 541-5663
Tech Contact: WILDER, GARY
EPA/Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards
AQS/GCS, Technical Support Division
National Air Data Branch
Research Triangle Park, NC 27711
USA
Phone: (800) 333-7909
(919) 541-5447
Entry Author: SCIALDONE, JOHN N.
Hughes STX
7701 Greenbelt Road, Suite 400
Greenbelt, MD 20770
USA
Electronic Mail: INTERNET> SCIALDONE@NSSDCA.GSFC.NASA.GOV
NSI/DECnet> NCF::SCIALDONE
Phone: (301) 441-4214
Information in this entry provided by AIRS
'AIRS Brochure', EPA, National Air Data Branch, Office of Air Quality Planning &
Standards, Research Triangle Park, NC.
'Access EPA', EPA, Office of Information Resources Management, Information
Access Branch, Washington, DC, EPA/220-B-92-014, 1992 Edition.
***** No Supplementary Information available for this selection *****