An Assessment of the Impact of California's Phase 2 Reformulated Gasoline on Ozone Air Quality

ABSTRACT

California's Phase 2 Reformulated Gasoline (CaRFG), introduced early in 1996, represents an important step toward attainment of ozone standards. Studies of vehicle emissions and ambient air quality data have reported substantial reductions of ozone precursors due to CaRFG. This study uses daily measurements of regional ozone and meteorology to estimate the effect of CaRFG on ozone concentrations in three areas of California. In each area, a regression model was used to partially account for the daily effects of meteorology on area-wide ozone maxima for May-October. The statistical models are based on combinations of air temperature aloft (~5000 ft), surface air temperatures, and surface wind speeds. Estimated ozone benefits were attributed to CaRFG after accounting for meteorology, which improved the precision of the estimates by approximately 37-57% based on a resampling analysis. The ozone benefits were calculated as the difference in ozone times the proportion of the reductions of hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides attributed to CaRFG by the best available emission inventories. Ozone benefits attributed to CaRFG (with ~90% confidence) are 8-13% in the Los Angeles area, -2-6% in the San Francisco Bay area overall with greater benefits in two major subregions, and 3-15% in the Sacramento area.