UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ….doc

UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY WASHINGTON D.C. 20460 August 26, 2008 EPA-CASAC-08-020 OFFICE OF THE ADMINISTRATOR SCIENCE ADVISORY BOARD The Honorable Stephen L. Johnson Administrator U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20460 Subject: CASAC Ambient Air Monitoring Methods (AAMM) Subcommittee Peer Review of the Draft Federal Reference Method (FRM) for Lead in PM10 Dear Administrator Johnson: EPA’s Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards (OAQPS), within the Office of Air and Radiation, requested that the Agency’s Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) Ambient Air Monitoring Methods (AAMM) Subcommittee (CASAC Subcommittee) conduct a peer review of EPA’s “Draft Federal Reference Method (FRM) Lead in PM10 (Pb-PM10)” —that is, lead (Pb) in particulate matter less than 10 micrometers in diameter (PM10) — dated June 15, 2008. The CASAC Subcommittee roster is enclosed as Enclosure A to this letter, Subcommittee members’ individual written comments are found in Enclosure B, and the Agency’s background and charge memorandum to the Subcommittee is provided in Enclosure C. The Agency solicited CASAC’s advice on this topic as part of EPA’s current review of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for Lead. Several options being considered for the final Lead NAAQS would require the Agency to develop FRM and Federal Equivalent Method (FEM) criteria for the collection of Pb-PM10 in ambient air, in order for monitoring data to be used in determining attainment with the NAAQS. The Agency has proposed a FRM for Pb-PM10 based on the existing, low-volume PM10c sampler (i.e., a PM10 sampler that meets special requirements that are part of a PM10-2.5 reference method sampler, as specified by Federal regulation), coupled with analysis by the x-ray fluorescence (XRF) analytical method. The Agency released its Proposed Rule for the Revision of the NAAQS for