The Effects of NOx Emission Reductions from Power Plants over the Eastern United States

The effectiveness of NOx emission reductions from power plants to alleviate persistent ozone nonattainment in the esterm Unites States was investigated with a focus on the Northeast Corridor, centered on New York City. The 1995 ozone episode along with the 2007 base case emission scenario was used with the Variable-Grid Urban Airshed Model(UAM-V) to determine ozone concentrations. Several scenarios based on EPA's proposal issued on October 10, 1997 were examined. Although it is widely recognized that the eastern United States includes a large Nox-sensitive region(e.g., Sillman, 1999), the study revealed that reducing NOx emissions from power plants beyond 500 miles (800km) was not effective for reducing ozone exceedances in the region. It was also found that NOx emissions from power plants play an important role in local ozone exceedances.