Minor sources of air pollutant emissions.

Abstract

Emission source inventories for air pollutants have considered major categories such as transportation, domestic heating, electric power generation, refuse burning, industrial fuel consumption and process emissions, as well as commercial, institutional, and governmental space heat fuel burning. Not considered in such emission inventories are sources such as aerosol spray can, ground dust, leaf burning, cosmic dust, crop dusting, perfumes, smoking, marsh gas, and tire tread wear. This paper investigates and evaluates such minor emissions on a population density or land area basis. These minor pollutant sources have been overlooked in the past because of their assumed negligible emissions. It is shown, however, that minor sources of air pollutants normally not included in an emission inventory do contribute to the total pollution burden of an area. In areas where particulate emissions are important, natural sources of dust, sea salt, cigarette smoking, cigar smoking, spray can aerosol, foot wear use, and rubber from tire abrasion should be evaluated. In areas where photochemical air pollution is a major problem organic compounds from vegetation must be considered in the evaluation of the problem. Great strides have been made in the development of factors to be used in the calculation of air pollutant source emissionmore » inventories. It is suggested that emphasis should be also directed toward a more extensive study of minor sources of air pollutant emissions. 24 references, 1 table.« less