BOARD MEETING DATE: November 4, 2005
AGENDA NO. 11

Recognize, Appropriate, and Reallocate Funds for U.S. EPA Enhanced Particulate Monitoring Program and U.S. Department of Defense Study to Demonstrate Feasibility of Measuring Low-Level Pollutant Concentration

SYNPOSIS:

As part of a special national particulate monitoring program, the U.S. EPA requested assistance from the AQMD to collect samples at various air monitoring stations in the South Coast air basin during Calendar Year 2005. This special particulate monitoring program is fully funded through the U.S. EPA, with a total allocation of $604,910. Although these funds are to cover the one-year period starting December 31, 2004, the grant was received only recently. This action is to recognize $604,910 from U.S. EPA for the monitoring program and appropriate $121,530 to the FY 2005-06 Budget to cover expenditures through the end of 2005. Additionally, in 2003, the U.S. Department of Defense granted an award for the adaptation of urban air monitoring instruments to measure low-level pollutant concentrations. The contract was extended with an additional $876,000 in funding to expand the scope of the original work. Under the provided funding, the AQMD will evaluate various, and purchase the best suited, measurement instruments to detect low-level concentrations. This action is to appropriate unspent, unbudgeted first year funds in the amount of $241,048 into the FY 2005-06 Budget and recognize additional revenue of $876,000 to conduct the study.

COMMITTEE:

Administrative, October 14, 2005. Less than a quorum was present during the discussion of this item; those Committee Members who were present communicated their concurrence.

RECOMMENDED ACTIONS:

1. Recognize revenue of $604,910 from U.S. EPA for the Special Particulate Air Monitoring program.
    
2. Appropriate $121,530 from Undesignated Fund Balance to the Science and Technology Advancement FY 2005-06 Budget as provided in Attachment 1 to cover expenditures through the end of Calendar Year 2005. (Expenditure appropriation excludes Salary and Employee Benefit amounts, which were included in the FY 2005-06 adopted Budget).
    
3. Appropriate unspent first-year U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) funds in the amount of $241,048 from the Undesignated Fund Balance to the Science and Technology Advancement FY 2005-06 Budget as set forth in Attachment 2 to Demonstrate Feasibility to Measure Low-Level Pollutant Concentrations. (Expenditure appropriation excludes Salary and Employee Benefit amounts, which were included in the FY 2005-06 adopted Budget).
    
4. Recognize second-year revenue in the amount of $876,000 from U.S. DOD to Demonstrate Feasibility to Measure Low-Level Pollutant Concentrations.
    
5. Appropriate $355,000 from Undesignated Fund Balance to the Science and Technology Advancement FY 2005-06 Budget as set forth in Attachment 3 to conduct the second-year elements of the U.S. DOD study. (Expenditure appropriation excludes Salary and Employee Benefit amounts, which were included in the FY 2005-06 adopted Budget).

Barry R. Wallerstein, D.Env.
Executive Officer

Background

The AQMD has been providing special particulate monitoring support to U.S. EPA as part of a national monitoring program since 2003. Actual sample collection began in early February 2003 and will continue for the foreseeable future. To date, U.S. EPA has provided funding for training, sampling instruments, associated consumables, and AQMD labor resources. U.S. EPA is providing funds for Calendar Year (CY) 2005. However, the AQMD was informed only recently of the actual award of funds for CY 2005. The funds are for the AQMD to meet its obligations under the monitoring program. In addition, U.S. EPA has indicated a desire to expand the core program. Staff is in discussion with U.S. EPA on the scope and cost of the expanded program and will bring this item to the Board at a future meeting.

Also in 2003, the AQMD received an award from U.S. DOD to demonstrate the feasibility to measure low-level pollutant concentrations. The contract was extended with the Board’s approval at its May 6, 2005 meeting. The contract extension included an additional $876,000 in funding to expand the scope of the original work.

As part of the May 2005 Board approval, staff indicated that a budget allocation for the second-year funds will be brought to the Board upon receipt of the U.S. DOD award. The expanded scope seeks to further assess, develop, and adapt various technologies for both field analysis and sample collection to assist in the measurement of air pollutants including the release of chemical agents. The best candidate instruments will be purchased, modified as necessary, and mounted in either a van and or trailer purchased under the first year of this contract, or at an air monitoring station for real-world condition testing and evaluation. Another task under the study will be to develop "real-time" predictive air dispersion capabilities that the U.S. DOD is interested in pursuing. A global positioning system and a meteorological system with integrated dispersion modeling software is proposed to be developed to evaluate the dispersion of potential chemical releases. Given that many of the agents have molecular weights between 140 and 270, heavier hydrocarbons will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of these technologies. This evaluation is needed since most existing analysis software and dispersion models are based on lower molecular weight compounds. Part of the contract funds would be used to enhance the computer software for the heavier hydrocarbons.

Proposal

Staff has discussed with U.S. EPA the funding needed to conduct the special particulate monitoring program for CY 2005 in late 2004 and upon request from U.S. EPA, applied for the funds on May 27, 2005. On September 15, 2005, U.S. EPA informed staff that the requested funding amount of $604,910 was approved. This action is to recognize revenue of $604,910 from U.S. EPA and allocate funds to the Science and Technology Advancement FY 2005-06 Budget as provided in Attachment 1. The remaining $300,839 of the $604,910 covered the cost of the program for the first six months of the calendar year.

In order to complete the first year’s work under the U.S. DOD contract, staff is requesting that $241,048 in unspent first-year funds be appropriated to the Science and Technology Advancement FY 2005-06 Budget as provided in Attachment 2. A significant portion of the funds will cover staff time and supplies needed to conduct field evaluations.

Relative to the second-year funding under the U.S. DOD contract, staff has prepared a budget to conduct the second-year work. The proposed budget provided in Attachment 2 is acceptable with U.S. DOD with the understanding that Board approval is necessary before work can begin. This action is to recognize $876,000 from U.S. DOD and appropriate $355,000 to the Science and Technology Advancement FY 2005-06 Budget as provided in Attachment 3.

Resource Impacts

U.S. EPA funding will fully support the special particulate monitoring program for the period including training, consumables, FTEs, communications, and mileage. U.S. DOD funding will fully support the contract extension effort.

Attachments (EXE 45kb)

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