BY JASON THOMPSON
A lot of environmental changes have taken place in Greater Sudbury in the past 50 years; our lands are greener, our lakes are clearer and according to a recent report, our air is cleaner.
Clearing the Air, a report published by the non-profit group Clean Air Sudbury, focuses on atmospheric pollutants in the city and their effects on the environment and our health.
The report reveals that while dramatic improvements have been made in the past half-century, there are some troubling facts blowing in the wind.
Sudbury's annual amount of ground level ozone was the highest among seven Ontario cities compared in the report.
Ground level ozone, commonly referred to as smog, is created when nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere react with volatile organic compounds when exposed to sunlight.
The highest concentrations of ground level ozone in Sudbury are detected in the winter months and are not as high during the summer as cities in southern Ontario.
When it comes to the high levels of ozone present in Sudbury during the winter months, Bruce Mikkila and his counterparts at Clean Air Sudbury aren't sure what to make of the situation.
"It's one of those things where we need to do more monitoring or studies to help us understand because even the Ministry of the Environment hasn't been able to give us good explanations," said Mikkila, Inco's representative with Clean Air Sudbury. "It may not be a problem, but we don't necessarily understand what's happening."
While there isn't an explanation for the high ozone reading in the winter, there are some theories, says Mikkila.
One theory, said Mikkila, points to the hole in the ozone above the Canadian arctic.
"Because of winter wind patterns and the way the atmosphere works in the winter time, some of that ozone that is present in the arctic is blown down to southern latitudes. For example, Sudbury in the winter time."
Hydrocarbon emissions from the tailpipes of cars could also be the culprit, he said.
"When you start your car up in the winter time and you smell the unburned gas, those fumes react with sunlight and create ozone," he said. "All of those cars starting up in the morning generate these hydrocarbons."
Sulphur dioxide is another area of concern indicated in the report. Sudbury is ranked fourth out of the seven cities evaluated. But Sudbury is also the only city that exceeded the Ambient Air Quality Criteria (AAQC), set up by the province to measure air quality.
Smelters are the largest source of sulphur dioxide emissions in Sudbury and in Ontario, with more than two thirds of the gas originating in the province coming from smelters and refineries.
"In the past two years we've been constructing our Fluid Bed Roaster (FBR) project, and that is to be put online next year. It will drop our sulphur dioxide emissions as well as various metal emissions by about 25 to 30 percent," said Mikkila.
In 2003, Inco, in partnership with Falconbridge, took over the sulphur dioxide monitoring network in Sudbury from the Ministry of the Environment after they ordered the mining companies to manage and pay for its operation.
The monitoring network consists of 11 monitors in addition to Inco's own mobile sulphur dioxide surveillance network. This means sulphur levels in Sudbury are being monitored around the clock, said Mikkila.
"Clean Air Sudbury will continue to update the public on what air pollutants are of concern and what the public can do," said Sirola.
