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DECISION SUPPORT TOOL FOR EVALUATING VULNERABILITY TO HAZARDOUS AIR POLLUTANTS IN THE SOUTHEAST
Citation:
MEHAFFEY, M. H., R. TANKERSLEY, L. MILLER, AND E. R. SMITH. DECISION SUPPORT TOOL FOR EVALUATING VULNERABILITY TO HAZARDOUS AIR POLLUTANTS IN THE SOUTHEAST. Presented at 2008 Science Forum, Washington, DC, May 20 - 22, 2008.
Impact/Purpose:
Presentation
Description:
Valued ecological endpoints such as threatened and endangered species and critical habitat are often evaluated for proximate impacts such as nearby development and direct impacts such as logging. Exposure to atmospheric pollutants can exacerbate the affects on these already vulnerable species and ecosystems. While EPA Region 4 only comprises one tenth of the United States land area, it is home to over 20% of the nation’s population and is responsible for over one third of the toxics chemicals released to the air from mid- to large size industry. Yet the southeast harbors significant populations of threatened and endangered species, valued ecological resources such as timber, and a large portion of habitat for a variety of species. This juxtaposition of important and diverse ecosystems and large quantity of toxic releases is what makes the southeast a prime location for exposure analysis. The study utilizes a new integration technique for spatially mapping relative toxicity to species groups across the southeastern states and presents the data via the Regional Vulnerability Environmental Decision Toolkit (ReVAEDT).