Governor Phil Murphy • Lt.Governor Sheila Oliver
NJ Home | Services A to Z | Departments/Agencies | FAQs  
State of New Jersey-Department of Environmental Protection-Bureau of Stationary Sources
State of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
DEP Home | BoSS Home | About DEP | Index by Topic | Programs/Units | DEP Online 
Analysis of the 1990 CEP Results

WHAT ARE THE 1990 CEP ESTIMATES OF AIR TOXICS LEVELS IN NEW JERSEY?

In their CEP study for 1990, USEPA identified 39 critical pollutants out of the 148 HAPs included in the study which are important nationwide. The CEP study estimated that 25 of these pollutants exceed the health benchmarks in New Jersey.

The map below shows how the estimated levels of benzene, one of the 25 pollutants, varied across the state for 1990.

CEP Estimated 1990 Benzene Concentrations in New Jersey

 

Maps of the 1990 CEP estimates for other pollutants are also available:

  • Acrolein
  • 1,3 Butadiene
  • Carbon tetrachloride
  • Chloroform
  • Chromium VI Compounds
  • Formaldehyde
  • Vinyl chloride
  • ESTIMATING RISK

    The table below shows the average statewide estimated risk from concentrations of 39 nationally important air toxics, as predicted by the CEP for 1990. County-level estimates are also available.

    Health effects caused by air toxics can be broadly grouped into either cancer or noncancer effects. U.S. EPA and NJDEP use cancer and noncancer health benchmarks to evaluate risks from pollutants that people are exposed to in the environment. These benchmarks are based on studies that show just how toxic a specific chemical is, by estimating how much of a dose it takes to either cause cancer over a lifetime or to cause some other noncancerous effect (for example, on a particular organ). The benchmarks can be compared to the air concentrations predicted in the CEP. This comparison of the air concentration to the benchmark concentration gives us a number we call the "risk ratio." If the risk ratio for a specific chemical is less than one, the air concentration does not pose a health risk. If it is greater than one, it may be of concern. The risk ratio shows just how much higher the air concentration is than the health benchmark.

    1990 COUNTY-LEVEL ESTIMATES







  • * Asterisks indicate that the health benchmark and risk ratio for the pollutant are based on non-cancer effects.
    ug/m3 means micrograms per cubic meter, a measure of how concentrated a substance is. For comparison, levels of carbon monoxide, a pollutant that comes primarily from motor vehicles, are usually several thousand micrograms per cubic meter in New Jersey.

    We have summarized the 1990 CEP estimates of the 39 nationally-critical toxic pollutants for each county in New Jersey:

         Statewide

    Atlantic
    Bergen
    Burlington
    Camden
    Cape May
    Cumberland
    Essex

    Gloucester
    Hudson
    Hunterdon
    Mercer
    Middlesex
    Monmouth
    Morris

    Ocean
    Passaic
    Salem
    Somerset
    Sussex
    Union
    Warren

    To view the 1990 sources of air toxics in New Jersey click here.

    back to top