Current Conditions in Commerce City

 

Air Quality Index Levels of Health Concern	Numerical Value	Meaning
Good	0 to 50	Air quality is considered satisfactory, and air pollution poses little or no risk
Moderate	51 to 100	Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution.
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups	101 to 150	Members of sensitive groups may experience health effects. The general public is not likely to be affected.
Unhealthy	151 to 200	Everyone may begin to experience health effects; members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects.
Very Unhealthy	201 to 300	Health alert: everyone may experience more serious health effects
Hazardous	300 to 500	Health warnings of emergency conditions. The entire population is more likely to be affected.

 

The Air Quality Index (AQI) was developed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to measure common air pollution sources, including ground level ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide.

Overview

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is the primary agency responsible for permitting, inspecting, and monitoring air pollution sources. This includes the permitting of large stationary sources under the Title V program, and for smaller sources under the APEN Program. While Commerce City does not directly oversee permitting or inspection of emission sources, the city is exploring methods to further local and regional air quality outcomes through overall environmental policy development, and helping inform and educate residents about air quality and potential impacts to human health.

Air Pollution Control Division

The Air Pollution Control Division has launched a new online tool that makes it easy to visualize air pollution data; developed a guidance manual and a frequently asked questions resource to help with using the new tool. These documents are available on the tool’s website. The division welcomes input, and feedback can be submitted using the form at the bottom of the tool dashboard. 

Stay connected: 

Sign up for Air Pollution Control Division email updates.
Explore upcoming public participation opportunities on air quality.
For questions or comments, please email cdphe.commentsapcd@state.co.us. 

Ozone (O₃)

One of the key air quality concerns in our region is ground level ozone. Ground-level ozone is formed when Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) and Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) react in the presence of sunlight. Unlike atmospheric ozone, which protects from harmful UV rays, ground level ozone has negative impacts on human health. This includes short-term eye irritation or breathing difficulties, and long-term resistance to lung infections and colds. It may also trigger symptoms in individuals with pre-existing conditions such as asthma or bronchitis.

The Denver metro area has been out of compliance with the NAAQS 8 hour ozone standard since 2016, and was recently reclassified to serious nonattainment status. Under the Clean Air Act, the State of Colorado is responsible for developing a State Implementation Plan (SIP) for ozone, a set of enforceable rules and programs to achieve compliance with national air quality standards.

Learn more about the ozone standard, and the other “criteria” air pollutants regulated under the Clean Air Act (CAA).

Learn more about the State Implementation Plan process.

Particulate Matter (PM)

Another key air quality concern is Particulate Matter (PM). PM is primarily measured at the 10 micrometer and 2.5 micrometer thresholds, and typically represent particles that are too small to be filtered by the nose and lungs, and can enter the bloodstream. PM exposure has been linked to health problems involving the lungs and heart. PM is typically generated from windblown dust, wildfire activity, crushing and grinding operations, aggregate material storage, and other operations where loose materials can be easily picked up by winds. The Denver Metro area is currently in compliance with federal standards for PM.

Policy Development

As part of its overall environmental policy development, the city is exploring potential policies, regulations and standards that it can implement around air quality issues. The goal of this work is to help improve local air quality within the city and contribute positively to the discussion about air quality in the Denver Metro Area.

This includes developing a community air pollutant inventory, an air quality guidance report that will identify strategies to reduce hazardous air pollutants (HAPS) and particulate matter (PM), and plans for the implementation of a future community air quality monitoring system. The city is aware of a variety of different methods to monitor air quality in Commerce City from CDPHE, Cultivando, the Suncor Refinery, and CDOT (as part of the I-270 expansion), and would look to expand and enhance these efforts, rather than duplicate existing work.

Air Quality Impacts Report

The recently completed air quality community wide impacts report provides a comprehensive summary involving air pollutant data collected within the Commerce City and a one-half mile radius of the city boundary. Data were acquired from active air permits issued by the CDPHE Air Pollution Control Division (APCD), in addition to oil and gas wells in operation reported by the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC). The report provides air pollutant source data to Commerce City staff and informs the public on types, amounts, and locations of air pollutant sources. This report will also inform future policy work the city undertakes on air quality. The report can be accessed here.

CCND Air Monitoring - Suncor has voluntarily established a community air monitoring program. Montrose Air Quality Services runs the program and provides easy-to-access air monitoring information in English and Spanish from 10 sensors reporting in near real-time, as well as through laboratory analysis and a mobile monitoring van. The air quality index data presented on ccnd-air.com is taken from CDPHE regulatory-grade instruments and is not from the sensor network. The trend data presented on the website can be compared to health reference values.

Quick Links

Air Quality Monitoring locations near you 

EPA Air Now
Purple Air
CDPHE AQI Commerce City Air Quality Conditions - Boulder AIR (Cultivando program)
Commerce City-North Denver Air Monitoring

Suncor Exceedance Reports

The City tracks excess emission reports (EERs) from Suncor. The air data is categorized chronically by quarters; by particular pollutants and with connections to the community monitor data for certain emission exceedances. The database also list water discharges. 

1. Chronological listing if for the past nine quarters and includes start date, end date and duration of exceedance, lists pollutants that were above permit limits, units of the incident and cause.
2. Pollutants links to specific units
3. Emission code explanations 
4. Community Monitor tab has a detailed summary of the event, permit limit and community impact recorded through CCND monitoring network 
5. Health narrative lists advisory health levels, symptoms and susceptible subpopulation
6. Water point source discharge limits specified in permits issued by the state based on the receiving body of water’s designation.  

Current Air Quality Advisories

More information here

What Causes Air Pollution?

More information on the RAQC Website

Resources

Simple Steps. Better Air.
Simple Steps Flyer: English | Spanish
Love my Air Website