Puget Sound Clean Air Agency
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Air Quality Benefits from the New Washington Motor Vehicle Standards

By adopting California’s motor vehicle emission standards, Washington will reduce several important air pollutants, allowing for more room in our air-shed for business and economic development throughout our region without exceeding National Ambient Air Quality Standards or increasing potential health risks.

  • The new standards will reduce volatile organic compounds (VOCs), over the federal standards, by up to 15 to 20 percent.1 VOCs are the precursors to ozone formation in our region.

  • Ozone has been shown to exacerbate asthma in young children and can even have adverse health impacts, such as decrements in lung function, in healthy adults.2

  • In the past three years, the Puget Sound region has experienced ozone concentrations that approach the National Ambient Air Quality Standard for ozone (see Figure #1 below).

  • Current voluntary programs do not provide enough margin of safety to assure the region remains in attainment of the standard.

  • If Puget Sound becomes non-attainment for ozone,3

    • Transportation projects are delayed as they are subject to additional regulatory requirements under the federal Clean Air Act.

    • Business development is deterred in our region, and new businesses are required to meet even more stringent limits on pollution emissions.

Chart: 8-hour ozone

Figure #1: 8-hour Ozone Concentrations in the Puget Sound Region.  Click on the button to view a large version in a new window.

By reducing VOCs, the new vehicle emission standards provide additional assurance that the Puget Sound region will remain in attainment of the National Ambient Air Quality Standard for ozone.

The new standards will also reduce air toxics in the Puget Sound region, reducing potential cancer risks from air pollution.

  • According to the USEPA, King County is in the top 5th percentile of the country for potential cancer risks from a variety of air toxics.4,5

  • These air toxics risks are almost 100 times the clean-up goal for hazardous waste sites in Washington state.6

  • Risks are similar for surrounding counties such as Snohomish, Pierce and Kitsap.7

  • Chemicals include known and probable human carcinogens such as benzene, formaldehyde, and 1,3 butadiene.8

  • Figure #2 below illustrates the cancer risks from air toxics in the Puget Sound region in comparison to other areas in Washington state:9

  • A recent study concludes that the new motor vehicle emission standards will reduce air toxics, particularly benzene and 1,3 butadiene, over the federal motor vehicle standards by up to 20 percent.10

Chart: 1996 Estimated Cancer Risks for Washington State, by county

Figure #2: 1996 Estimated Cancer Risks for Washington State, by county.  Click on the chart to view a larger version in a new window.

Figure #2: 1996 Estimated Cancer Risks for Washington State

The new standards also reduce 30 percent of global warming pollution from motor vehicles, which contribute half the greenhouse gases in Puget Sound and Washington state (see Figure #3 below).11

  • Although the US does not currently regulate greenhouse gases, international, regional and local communities are embracing greenhouse gas reduction programs and regulations, such as the Kyoto Protocol, the West Coast Governors Global Warming Initiative and our agency’s Climate Protection Collaborative Process.

  • Historically, the transportation sector has been slow to reduce their air pollutant emissions. As a result, regulatory agencies have focused their efforts on other businesses to attain ambient air standards. This can create an unfair regulatory burden on the business community.

  • By reducing greenhouse gases from motor vehicles, the new emissions standards will obtain necessary reductions from the region’s largest contributor to global warming pollution.

  • These reductions will provide more room in the air-shed for business development, transportation projects, and regional expansion.

  • In addition, our Climate Protection Advisory Committee found that the standards will reduce fuel use and save consumers in the region over $1.1 billion by 2020, and promote our regional economy.

Figure #3: Puget Sound Greenhouse Gas Emissions, for 2000
Chart: Puget Sound Greenhouse Gas Emissions, for 2000 - Electricity 17%, Agriculture, Forestry and Waste 11%, Buildings and facilities 22%, Tranport 50%
For more information, please contact our climate change specialist, Leslie Stanton.

1 NESCAUM. White Paper: Comparing the Emission Reductions of the LEV II Program to the Tier 2 Program. October 2003.
2 USEPA. Ozone: Good Up High, Bad Nearby. EPA-451/K-03-001, June 2003
3 In order to register an official violation of the 8-hour ozone standard, the 3-year average of the 4th highest 8-hour ozone concentration must exceed 0.08 ppm.
4 USEPA. National Air Toxics Assessment. Download for King, Pierce, Snohomish, and Kitsap Counties.
5 Keill and Maykut. Final Report: Puget Sound Air Toxics Evaluation. Puget Sound Clean Air Agency. October 2003.
6 Washington Administrative Code: Chapter 173-340 Model Toxics Control Act.
7 Upper bound risks range from 59 to 76 in a million, or 59 to 76 times the state hazardous waste site clean up goal.
8 USEPA Integrated Risk Information System. Toxicity Files for Benzene, Formaldehyde, and 1,3 Butadiene.
9 USEPA National Air Toxics Assessment.
10 NESCAUM, 2003.
11 Puget Sound Clean Air Agency Climate Protection Advisory Committee. Roadmap for Climate Protection: Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Puget Sound. Prepared by the Facilitator, Ross and Associates. December 29, 2004.
Pub No. 20-3w 1/4/05 LS, revised 3/31/2005