Section 812 Clean Air Act Cost-Benefit Study Air Toxics Case Study: Benzene Emission Reductions in Houston

摘要

The purpose of the study described in this report is to prepare the benzene emission estimates portion of a hazardous air pollutant (HAP) benefits assessment to accompany the main criteria air pollutant analysis in the second section 812 prospective study. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Science Advisory Board (SAB) advised EPA to select the representative HAP for which to perform a prototype 812 analysis. The SAB recommended benzene in part because of the wealth of available national ambient concentration data from monitors. The SAB feels that an 812 analysis using the available benzene data would: (1) Identify limitations and gaps in the database; (2) Provide an estimate of the uncertainties in the analyses and perhaps provide a reasonable lower bound on potential health benefits from control; and (3) Provide a scientific basis for deciding whether there is merit in pursuing a greater ability to assess the benefits of air toxics.