Ap. Altshuller et As. Lefohn, BACKGROUND OZONE IN THE PLANETARY BOUNDARY-LAYER OVER THE UNITED-STATES, Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association [1995], 46(2), 1996, pp. 134-141
Reliable estimates of background O-3 in the planetary boundary layer a
re needed as part of the current review by the U.S. EPA of O-3 health
and welfare criteria and of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards
for O-3. Such estimates are especially necessary for comparing O-3 co
ncentrations at which vegetation effects occur to O-3 concentrations r
eported to represent background levels. Some vegetation researchers ha
ve used the seasonal average of the daily 7-h (0900-1559 h) average as
the exposure parameter in exposure-response models. The 7-h (0900-155
9 h) seasonal mean reference point for O-3 was assumed to be 0.025 ppm
. Ozone aerometric data are presented from the monitoring sites in the
United States which experience some of the lowest maximum hourly aver
age concentrations, as identified in the U.S. EPA AIRS database. Crite
ria are enumerated and discussed for determining whether O-3 concentra
tions at a given site can be considered to be ''background'' O-3. The
paper also suggests statistical techniques for estimating background O
-3 concentrations. Linear regression techniques yield valuable informa
tion about O-3 concentration data from the literature. Coupled with ot
her criteria, such analyses can be used to select sites that represent
''background'' sites for O-3. Selection of such sites thus allows est
imations of background O-3 in different areas of the country, at diffe
rent elevations, and for different averaging times. Using several tech
niques, the current O-3 background at inland sites in the United State
s and Canada for the daylight 7-h (0900-1559 h) seasonal (April-Octobe
r) average concentrations usually occurred within the range of 35 +/-
10 ppb. For coastal sites, the corresponding O-3 concentrations were s
omewhat lower, occurring within the range of 25 +/- 10 ppb for locatio
ns in the northern hemisphere, but with most O-3 concentrations at the
coastal sites in the range of 30 +/- 5 ppb. The 50th percentile conce
ntrations range from 16 ppb to 45 ppb at inland sites and range from 1
0 ppb to 33 ppb at coastal sites. The maximum hourly concentrations ra
nge from 50 ppb to 98 ppb at inland sites and range from 44 ppb to 80
ppb at coastal sites. We believe that the maximum hourly concentration
of 98 ppb experienced in 1988 was influenced by the massive fires in
Yellowstone National Park. These ranges suggest that the background O-
3 is somewhat dependent on a number of conditions such as the nature o
f upwind flow, lack of pollution sources, and terrain conditions inclu
ding deposition with respect to forest or agricultural areas.