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AMBIENT AIR QUALITY STANDARDS AND DATA <br />The four pages that follow present: (1) the currently adopted <br />ambient air quality standards, (2) episode criteria, (3) avail- <br />able episode data, and (4) ambient air quality data from the most <br />representative monitoring station for the most recent three years <br />in terms of both state and federal standards. Irregularities <br />caused by changes in the standards are discussed below. <br />The California Air Resources Board (CARE) periodically reviews <br />the state's ambient air quality standards considering new health <br />effect studies and recommendations by the Department of Health <br />Services. On September, 1982, new sea level carbon monoxide <br />standards were adopted by the CARE. The one -hour standard was <br />revised downward from 40 to 20 ppm. The 12 -hour standard of 10 <br />ppm was dropped in favor of an 8-hour standard of 9.0 ppm. These <br />revised standards were designed to prevent carboxyhemoglobin <br />concentrations from exceeding 2% in the blood and thereby avoid <br />adverse health effects in persons with heart disease, chronic <br />obstructive pulmonary disease, anemia or pregnant women and their <br />unborn fetuses. <br />The national ambient carbon monoxide standards are also under <br />review by the United States Environmental Protection Agency <br />(EPA). They are currently set at 35 ppm for one -hour averages <br />and 9.0 ppm for an eight -hour average. <br />The state 24 -hour standard for total suspended part Sculates (TSP4 <br />was changed (effective July 1, 1983) from 100 ug /m to 50 uglm <br />for particulate matter with an aerodynamic d, eter equal to or <br />less than 10 microns. In addition, the 60 ug�m annual geometric <br />mean (AGM) standard for TSP was replaced by a 30 ug /m3 standard <br />for total thoracic particulates (TTP). Both of these changes <br />reflect health concerns related to smaller particles that pene- <br />trate deeply into the human respiratory tract and the effect of <br />these particles on visibility. <br />F <br />