1995 Sea-to-Sky Airshed Emissions Inventory of Common Air Contaminants
An "emission inventory" is an accounting of all sources of air pollution within a defined geographical area and provides information on the types of emissions, their sources, and the quantity of contaminants emitted within a specific geographical area. Due to the increased knowledge of the adverse health effects related to air contaminants, as well as their negative impact on the natural environment, air quality management planning has become a prominent activity. Emission inventories have become a major tool in the development of air quality management plans as information from an emissions inventory can be used to determine which steps should be taken in an air quality management plan in order to reduce harmful emissions and to improve ambient air quality. Air quality management planning is in progress in various regions of British Columbia including Prince George, Quesnel and Williams Lake, and the Bulkley Valley.
An airshed is defined as the mass of air contained within a definite boundary (usually defined by topography). The STS corridor (and thus airshed) extends approximately 150 kilometres from the Howe Sound entrance at the Strait of Georgia (Vancouver, BC) to the confluence of the Pemberton and Lillooet valleys at Pemberton, BC. The corridor has a resident population of approximately 30,000 with most residents located in the communities of Squamish, Whistler and Pemberton, which are located approximately 60, 120 and 150 kilometres, respectively, north of Vancouver. A coastal fjord (Howe Sound), steep river valleys, glaciated terrain and coniferous forest are prominent biophysical features within the STS corridor and scenic vistas are among its greatest attributes. Accordingly, the STS corridor is extensively utilized for recreation, tourism and backcountry activities.
This report summarizes results of the 1995 emission inventory for the Sea-to-Sky Airshed and is the first emissions inventory produced for the area. Five contaminants (carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulphur oxides, volatile organic compounds, total particulate matter [with PM10 and PM25 breakdowns]) were inventoried with emission estimates grouped into four categories (point, area, mobile, and natural) based on emission source. It is important to note that an emissions inventory involves a large number of estimations as it is unfeasible to obtain the exact amount of contaminants emitted in such a large airshed; consequently, emission inventory results should be analyzed collectively as relative proportions and not as specific numbers.
Results of the STS Emissions inventory indicate point sources are the greatest source of carbon monoxide, sulphur oxides, total particulate, PM10 and PM25 emissions in the airshed. The greatest source of nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compound emissions within the STS airshed appear to be from mobile sources and natural sources, respectively.
The 1995 Sea-to-Sky Airshed Emissions Inventory of Common Air Contaminants report is available here (PDF/1.9MB/85 pages).
The 2000 British Columbia Emissions Inventory of Criteria Air Contaminants: Methods and Calculations report is available here (PDF/113 pages)
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