Air Quality Resources for Youth Soccer Decisions

Educational Webinar for NorCal Premier Members

For NorCal PremierSeptember 2020STI-7438

Disclaimers

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• This information is provided with no express or implied warranties or guarantees.

• Information and information sources provided here are subject to change.

• This presentation is for the use of the member organizations of NorCal Premier. It may be shared with a governing board and members of each NorCal member organization.

• This presentation, whole or in any part (other than URLs) may not be shared or re-posted publicly in either digital or printed form without the written consent of Sonoma Technology.

• Recipients and the organizations they represent are, and will remain, solely responsible for decisions made and for appropriate use of the information presented.

• Our mention of products does not imply our endorsement or validation of their usefulness, nor an endorsement of the respective manufacturer.

• Our mention of any government agency does not imply its endorsement of our services or products.

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While we all wish that air quality was always like this ⬆ and a protocol for go/no-go decisions for youth soccer practices and competitions was not necessary…

…that is sadly not the reality in northern California in 2020.

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Image © Tracy Press 2018 August 2020

Agenda

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• Introductions• The Problem• Air Quality Fundamentals• Health Impacts of Air Pollution – Focus on Smoke• Air Quality Assessment Resources• Decision Making / Takeaways• Q&A

About Sonoma Technology

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For over 35 years, we have provided innovative science and technology answers to air quality questions for clients around the world.

We are a green-certified small business with headquarters in Petaluma and offices in Washington, D.C., Colorado, North Carolina, and southern California.

Business Areas and Services

Air QualityMeteorology

Software DevelopmentFire and Fuels

Hilary Hafner

Hilary, with STI since 1989, has over three decades of real-world experience with air quality data. She especially enjoys helping state, local, and tribal air quality monitoring agencies measure, understand, and improve their air quality. She swims with a local masters team - challenges have included national and world competitions, and swims off the coasts of Spain, Croatia, and Sardinia.

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Bastian Schoell

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Bastian is an experienced creator of technology products. He is focused on identifying and executing on new product opportunities and partnerships. A native of Germany, Bastian is an experienced youth soccer coach, having coached both at the recreational and competitive levels for 6 years. He also has 4 years of experience managing a youth soccer organization as Vice President, President, and temporary Executive Director of Sonoma Valley Youth Soccer (now Sonoma United).

What’s The Problem?

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Current wildfire and smoke events demonstrate the need for better decision-making protocols for youth soccer related to air quality because:

• Coaches and league officials aren’t air quality scientists• Organizations are unsure ‒WHAT information to use? ‒HOW to make decisions?‒WHO should make them?

• Organizations struggle with the content and timeliness of messaging to members and staff (parents, coaches, players)

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Air Quality & HealthFundamentals

Air Pollution 101

• Major components‒ Ozone (O3) ‒ Particulate Matter (PM1, PM2.5, PM10)‒ NO2

• Trends – greatly improved by National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) from 2000 to present

• Locations and magnitudes of sources are well understood

• Formation, transport, and location of occurrences are well understood

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• Major components‒ Smoke is PM-dominated‒ Elevated NO2

‒ “Other” (VOCs, etc.)Reference: U.S. EPA Fire & Smoke Page

‒ Ozone is secondary

• Source locations and strengths are highly variable (fires)

• Fire creates its own weather

• Fires occur during exceptional meteorological events (strong winds, dry lightning, etc.)

Exceptional Event Regional and Local

Routine Regional

Smoke composition depends on:

• What is burning (grass, brush, trees, buildings)

• How efficiently the fuel burns

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What Exactly is in Wildfire Smoke?

Carbon dioxideParticulate matterCarbon monoxideHydrocarbons

Nitrogen oxides

Organic chemicals

Trace minerals

Water vapor

• Wind and weather conditions

• How old the smoke is (is it fresh or “aged”)

Wildfire Smoke – Wood Ash

• Solid combustion product: carbonates, hydroxides, and various mineral and metal oxides; composition varies widely, driven by nature of fire and fuel.

• Studies have measured average size of ash particles at 230 μm ( > PM10), so it is NOT measured by the PM sensor network.

• Composition generally such that it’s highly basic (PH < 7) and caustic when dissolved in water.

Large Particles

Even though ash does not reach into lungs, ash particles can irritate the skin, eyes, and throat

Reference: https://doi.org/10.1016/0960-8524(91)90207-Z

Particulate Matter

• A complex mixture of solid and liquid particles

• Composed of many different compounds

• Both emitted directly (primary) and formed in the atmosphere (secondary)

• Sizes vary tremendously• Forms in many ways

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Fine Particulate Matter – PM2.5

Health concerns:• Can aggravate lung diseases such

as asthma and bronchitis• Can increase susceptibility to

respiratory infections• Can aggravate heart diseases• Is associated with cardiac

arrhythmias and heart attacks

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Putting Data into Context

• Existing air quality standards and tools to interpret air quality – e.g., the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) and the Air Quality Index (AQI) – are based on data of 1-, 8-, or 24-hour averaging periods with underlying health studies and evidence.

• Actual health effects of very short-term elevated levels of most pollutants (e.g., 1-minute PM2.5) are not well understood.

Source: EPA Air Sensor Guidebook16

• AQI provides an indicator of the quality of the air and its health effects

• AQI color is key for communication

• 101 corresponds to the level that violates the federal health standard

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Air Quality Index (AQI)

https://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=aqi_brochure.index

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How Do We Measure PM?• Historically, only government-

sponsored locations with expensive instruments (regulatory monitors) were available to measure air quality

• Increasingly, small non-government operated low-cost sensors deployed by private citizens and organizations measure and distribute PM data

Regulatory Monitors

Low-Cost Sensors

Summary of Air Quality Sensors• Regulatory Monitors‒ VERY accurate‒ Used for legal decisions‒ Operated by professionals at an air quality agency:

maintained, checked, and quality controlled‒ Siting conforms to EPA requirements and standards‒ Sparsely deployed (big gaps between)

• Low-Cost Sensors ‒ Deployed by many individuals, widely distributed, &

frequent‒ Measurements not as precise or accurate‒ Not quality controlled and maintained to any

standard21

Legends on EPA Fire & Smoke Maps

PermanentRegulatory

Monitor

TemporaryRegulatory

Monitor

Low-cost sensor

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Weather / Meteorology

Three Scales of Meteorology

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Mesoscale(Bay Area, Central Valley)

Microscale(Sonoma Valley)

Macro Scale(U.S., CA)

Major weather systems (Highs, lows, storms, etc.)

Daytime sea breeze

Night time land breeze

Mountain and hillside slope-flows

Weather and Mixing

24Source: nasa.gov

Source: Victoria News, www.vicnews.com

Processes that influence air quality:• Sunlight causes surface heating, which

causes buoyant air to rise.‒ Creates vertical mixing ‒ Weakens temperature inversions that prevent

vertical mixing

• Macro-, micro-, and mesoscale winds drive horizontal dispersion and vertical mixing‒ Both types of mixing act as dilution processes

• Transport of pollutants in 3-dimensions• Clouds and precipitation

WindsMajor Factor for Smoke Transport and Dispersion

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Monday, Sept. 14, 1:00 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 16, 5:30 p.m.

Smoke Transport

Long Range

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Short / Medium Range

Source: NOAA HRR Smoke ModelSource: NASA

Temporal & Spatial VariabilityMacro-, Meso- and Microscale Effects Combined

Temporal

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Spatial

5-day time sequence of AQI at one location Spatial variation in AQI (PM) over NorCal area at a specific time

Place and Time Matter Greatly

28https://fire.airnow.gov/

Note: On this web site, you can obtain the time-

series of measurements by clicking each individual

sensor marker

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Air Quality InformationResources

Resource Overview• Federal Govt. Agency Resources‒ EPA AirNow Website and App‒ EPA AirNow Fire & Smoke Map

• Local Agency Resources‒ Bay Area AQMD‒ Sacramento Spare The Air‒ South Coast AQMD (Los Angeles basin)

• Commercial Resources‒ PurpleAir Map

Real-time Forecast10 min 1-2 hr

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• Fire/Air Quality Map• https://fire.airnow.gov/• 2-hr delay of regulatory and

small-sensor data

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Federal Agency: EPA AirNow

• AirNow.gov Web & App• https://www.airnow.gov• Combination of current

conditions (1-2 hr delay) and forecast

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AirNow Forecasts

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https://airnow.gov/

Based on Local Agency Data

Forecast Map on AirNow

33https://gispub.epa.gov/airnow/

Bay Area AQMD Zones & Measurements

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https://www.baaqmd.gov/about-air-quality/current-air-quality/air-monitoring-data/#/aqi-highs?date=2020-09-14&view=hourly

https://www.baaqmd.gov/about-air-quality/current-air-quality

Resources for Sacramento & Central Valley

35http://www.sparetheair.com/aqmaps.cfm

Understanding PurpleAir

• A network of small, individually (privately) purchased, deployed, and operated consumer-grade particulate sensors

• Uses light scattering to determine PM concentrations. Different types of particles scatter light differently.

• Connected to a data system that collects and then displays the data on the purpleair.com website.

Source: www.purpleair.com

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PurpleAir Specifics

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• Consider correction • Be sure to look at only outside sensors

• Be suspicious of obvious outliers

Source: www.purpleair.com

PurpleAir Can Be Very Useful

39Adjusted data, 1-hr average, big picture = cleaning out from the west

Source: www.purpleair.com

Source: airnow.gov(3 hours later)

Check OutliersRegardless of Tool

Source: fire.epa.gov41

• Federal Govt. Agency Resources‒ EPA AirNow Website and App‒ EPA AirNow Fire & Smoke Map

• Local Agency Resources‒ Bay Area AQMD‒ Sacramento Spare The Air‒ South Coast AQMD (Los Angeles basin)

• Commercial Resources‒ PurpleAir Map

Resource SummaryReal-time Forecast

Great and reliable data with 2-hr lag

Broad and general, best advance

decision tool for conservative

decision making

Feed their data to AirNow, so better to

use AirNow

Zonally specific forecast

(BAAQMD) helpful

Most timely but use with caveats

n/a

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Developing Decision-Making Protocols

Developing a Decision-Making ProtocolMake some fundamental decisions up front

Conservative

• Always protect sensitive groups!

• Prioritize the known over maximizing play time

Maximize Play

• Make calls that could be perceived as risky

• More effort to get right

Forecast

• Forecasts cover a wide area, are reliable & conservative

• Using forecasts in rapidly changing conditions can result in unnecessary cancellations

Near Real-time

• Real-time decisions are difficult to make, communicate, and act on

• Is your organization staffed and are your staff trained?

Be ConsistentUse same protocol each day Choose reliable data sources

Prioritization Timing & Data Sources

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Developing a Communications Protocol

• Be consistent‒ Message consistently, use same messaging each day

• Communicate proactively and keep sensitive groups in mind with special highlighted messaging to them‒ An AQI of 65 does not mean the same thing to all members!

• Consider that not all members use all communications tools‒ Many members may not have email access

• Ensure that your communications account for timing of recipients’ actions (e.g. transporting players to activities)

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Final Takeaways• WHAT information to use? ‒ Use vetted, reliable data sources: EPA AirNow & local agency‒ Use PurpleAir with caveats of use (correction, reliability)

• HOW to make decisions?‒ Make decisions either ahead (conservatively, forecast-based) or make

decisions in more real time only if your protocols and staff allow reliable decisions and communications

• WHO should make them?‒ Make sure staff who make this call are trained and know the WHAT and

HOW above

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Bastian SchoellHead of Productsbschoell@sonomatech.com

Hilary HafnerCOO & Sr. Air Quality Scientisthilary@sonomatech.com

SonomaTech.com 707-665-9900 47