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Greater Houston is designated as a non-attainment area under the federal Clean Air Act. A complex interaction of regional factors — petrochemical production and petroleum refining, urban sprawl that increases automobile miles traveled, and meteorological conditions — contributes to one of the most intractable air quality problems in the country.
Inextricably tied to air emissions is the mounting evidence linking human activity to global climate change. As an international energy capital, Houston finds itself as a central actor in the dialog on greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.
HARC's Air Quality & Climate Program includes efforts in several areas: air quality research and management; air emissions technologies; urban heat island mitigation planning; scenario building for transportation and air quality; the links between air quality and human health; air quality and the built environment; and regional impacts and solutions related to climate change.
HARC is helping Texas improve the science behind its air quality policymaking through its role as Research Management Organization to the Texas Environmental Research Consortium. This initiative has become a nationally recognized process by which key economic, environmental, and political stakeholders in the greater Houston and Dallas regions work with the research community to better understand regional air science, speed the adoption of air emissions control technologies, and make informed policy decisions.
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HARC works on behalf of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the Texas Environmental Research Consortium to manage air quality research for east Texas, especially in the Houston and Dallas areas. HARC employs nationally and internationally recognized air quality experts to perform research which is used by policymakers to develop effective legislation for reducing pollution.
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ARII combines Google Maps and Google Earth tools, data warehousing/On-Line Analytical Processing (OLAP) software, and data mining algorithms to enable researchers and the general public to access and analyze air quality observations, model predictions, and emissions inventories, including the visualization of air pollution trajectories in three dimensions.
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HARC was selected by U.S. EPA to develop strategies to reduce the urban heat island effects in Dallas, Texas. The role of vegetation, roofing and paved surfaces in raising urban temperatures will be examined as part of this study.
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The Houston Regional Forest Initiative involves HARC with the Texas Forest Service and area stakeholders in activities that are fostering increased forestation in the Houston region. Activities include educational efforts targeted for regional decision makers, assistance to communities in the region on related forest initiatives, and support and leadership on efforts to incorporate urban forestry and heat island mitigation provisions in the State Implementation Plan (SIP).
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Cool Houston! is a program designed to address the urban heat island effect through use of cool technologies - reflective and green roofing, paving with light colored or porous materials, and a greatly expanded forest canopy.
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Hybrid drivetrains are a promising technology for truck applications that entail a significant amount of stop-and-go driving, such as refuse haulers, urban delivery trucks or school buses. A major benefit of a hybrid vehicle is the ability to capture and use a large percentage of the energy normally lost in vehicle braking. By allowing engine speed to be controlled independently of vehicles speed, significant additional emissions and fuel consumption reductions can be achieved.
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HARC serves as the research management organization for the Texas Enviromental Research Consortium to implement Texas' New Technology Research & Development Program. This program assists those who are developing new technologies to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions from diesel engines. Approximately $8 million dollars are awarded for research grants each year.
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The Sustainable Transportation Program has been created to provide a focal point within HARC for transportation, air quality, energy and technology projects that involve the skills and experience of HARC's multi-disciplinary staff and mission.
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The Texas Joint Center for Air Quality is a multi-year, multi-organization program utilizing applied and field research to better understand and solve air quality problems in Texas. The Center brings together research activities of a major air quality field study (TexAQS II) and an applied transportation/air quality program, called the Transportation and Air Quality Forum.
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| Page Updated/Reviewed: 09/25/2008 1:39 PM |
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