Key Issues

Air Quality

The issue of air quality has been at the forefront of the Peace Bridge Capacity Expansion. A key concern is to insure that this project results in improvements to air quality for the surrounding neighborhood. This will be achieved through facilitation of traffic to reduce congestion and limit idling of vehicles, plaza design and significant improvements in diesel fuel and engine technology.

Current Air Quality

Three air quality pollutants can be directly related to vehicular traffic, Ozone, Particulate Matter (PM) and Carbon monoxide (CO). The Buffalo/Niagara region's air quality meets all EPA standards except for ground-level ozone. The ground-level ozone issue is a northeast U.S. regional problem not just here in western New York. The northeastern states have established emission control programs to reduce the emission of the pollutants that form ground-level ozone; these control programs control smokestack sources as well as limiting emissions from vehicle fuels, controls at the gas station to prevent gasoline vapors from escaping while vehicles are refueled and stricter emission controls for vehicles sold here. A new plaza design will not affect the level of this pollutant. On a local level, PM and CO pollutant levels are directly affected by vehicle movements. Particulate matter, in particular PM2.5, (particulate matter equal to or less than 2.5 microns in size), is a pollutant that can impact public health (i.e., affect asthma and breathing related problems). Governmental regional air quality monitors indicate that Peace Bridge air quality for PM is better than the existing EPA health-based ambient air quality standards. Carbon monoxide is a common air pollutant produced by vehicle engines and is most often tied to air quality concerns at or near roadway intersections or anywhere vehicles stop and start. Local levels of CO are well below EPA health-based ambient air quality standards.

The EPA establishes ambient air quality standards through comprehensive scientific study to "…protect public health, including the health of "sensitive" populations such as asthmatics, children, and the elderly." http://www.epa.gov/air/criteria.html

Expected Air Quality Improvements

The overall goal of any new plaza design is to reduce or eliminate vehicle idling and backups at customs inspection stations while also accommodating an increase in the number of vehicles using the plaza. Vehicles that are stationary on the plaza and idle for extended periods of time due to lack of Customs processing capacity create "area" source of emissions. These emissions will drift downwind into the areas surrounding plaza. When traffic is kept flowing through the plaza and not permitted to sit idling for any length of time, these "area" emission sources do not form, and therefore lessen the opportunity for emissions from the plaza to enter surrounding areas. CO emissions are directly affected by traffic flow. This is very evident in the modeling results that clearly show that the maximum CO impacts are lower for Build Alternatives compared to the No Build Alternative. This is a direct result of improved traffic flow through the new plaza designs.

A similar situation can be found with PM emissions. PM also impacts a limited or localized area. A study in Windsor Ontario near the Ambassador Bridge found that under the worst conditions traffic PM particles were not found beyond 900 feet from traffic lanes; with less congestion and weather conditions that help disperse pollutants, the distance from the roadway affected by PM was noticeably shorter.

Even though traffic is projected to increase during the life of the project the Plazas are designed to keep that traffic moving smoothly by providing the necessary number of inspection lanes. When combined with improvements to diesel fuel and engines discussed below the Build Alternatives will improve air quality surrounding the Peace Bridge.

Changes to Truck Emissions

In response to increased awareness of the overall impacts of vehicular emissions the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has instituted two new programs to reduce the allowable levels of vehicular emissions from vehicles using diesel fuel. Two such programs involve the use of Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD) and the lowering of emissions from diesel engines.

It wasn't that long ago, on February 28, 2001, when the U.S. EPA moved forward with the ULSD fuel and clean diesel engine programs. From 1993 until 2001, the sulfur content of on-road diesel fuel had been limited to 500 parts per million and was known as low-sulfur diesel. However, low sulfur diesel's fuel sulfur content remained too high to allow use of cleaner diesel engines (engines with installed catalytic converters and particulate filters). ULSD is 97% lower in sulfur than low-sulfur diesel.

Refineries and importers are required to produce and/or import a minimum of 80% of their diesel as ULSD. This requirement took effect on June 1, 2006. As a result, the vast majority of the diesel being sent to retailers today is ULSD. On June 1, 2010, 100% of diesel produced/imported must be ULSD and no low sulfur diesel can be sold after December 1, 2010. These same compliance dates are in effect in Canada, thus ensuring that trucks fueled in Canada prior to arriving at the Peace Bridge border crossing are fueled in the same manner as trucks fueled in the U.S.

In conjunction with the changes in diesel fuel described above, the U.S. EPA mandated that Model year 2007 and later new diesel engines must be designed to use only ULSD. These engines must be equipped with catalytic converters and particulate filters. Model year 2006 and older diesel engines can use either fuel.

Long-haul and international trucks are replaced (on average) every five to seven years; therefore trucks that are now being replaced, are being replaced with trucks that are equipped with the new cleaner diesel engines. Using this replacement cycle, it is expected that by 2010, on average, 50% of the long-haul diesel trucks will be equipped with the clean diesel engines and using ULSD exclusively. By 2014, it is projected that most of the long-haul diesel trucks will be burning ULSD in clean diesel engines.

What does that mean for the Peace Bridge plazas? It means significant reductions in emissions from the trucks utilizing the border crossing; EPA states in the final clean diesel rule that "diesel vehicles will achieve gasoline-like exhaust emission levels, in addition to their inherent advantages over gasoline vehicles with respect to fuel economy, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and lower evaporative hydrocarbon emissions." EPA estimates that these programs will result in more than a 90% reduction in emissions from diesel vehicles.

The Federal requirements for diesel fuel and diesel engines can be found at the following web site: http://www.epa.gov/cleandiesel/