Clean Snowmobile Facts
- CONCERNS
- National Parks
- Air Quality
- Water Quality
- Personal Exposure
- Other Concerns
- SOLUTIONS
- Engine Technologies
- Two-Stroke Engine Principles
- Two-Stroke Engine
Modifications - Four-Stroke Engines
- Electric Snowmobiles
- Fuels & Lubricants
- Oxygenated Fuels
- Biodegradable Lubes
- Low PM Lubes
- Clean Snowmobile Challenge
- What You Can Do
- REGULATIONS
- MONTANA ISSUES
Concerns - Personal Exposure
Overview
Personal exposure refers to pollution that is breathed by employees or persons in a work area. Personal exposure standards differ from air quality standards that are considered to be measured in "ambient" air unaffected by structures or human activity.
As directed by the Clean Air Act of 1994, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets National Ambient Air Quality Standards. In addition to EPA's standards, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) establish occupational standards that are not to be exceeded in the workplace. These include 15-minute average standards, 1-hour average standards, and 8-hour average standards.
In the late 1990s the National Park Service received employee complaints and cases of documented illness at the West Entrance of Yellowstone National Park. A February 2000 OSHA study in Yellowstone indicated that snowmobile mechanics, toll booth workers, and patrol rangers were exposed to high levels of benzene, toluene, and fine particulate matter, exposures that could impact their long-term health.
Selected Links
There is a large body of technical literature on engine emissions and personal exposure standards. Included here are only a few representative works with direct relevance to the topic of snowmobiles. Go to the Publications and Links section for a more complete list, including related or overlapping topics.
In 1997 OSHA completed a study of snowmobile emissions exposure by Yellowstone National Park employees:
Radtke, T. 1997. Industrial Hygiene Consultation Report. Report No. 970101. U.S. Department of the Interior, Office of Managing Risk and Public Safety, Lakewood, Colorado.
See also:
Kado, N.Y., Kuzmicky, P.A., Okamoto, R.A., 1999. Measurement and Exposure to Airborne Particulate Matter and Toxic Air Pollutants Emitted from Snowmobiles at Yellowstone National Park.
The National Park Service Air Resources has surveyed personal exposure issues in Yellowstone, concluding that OSHA personal exposure standards have been violated, "particularly on those days with peak snowmobile traffic.
National Park Service Air Resources Division, February 2000. Air Quality Concerns Related to Snowmobile Usage in National Parks. (282k pdf file, 34 pages)
Dr. Lori Fussell has studied carbon monoxide exposure by national park visitors traveling on snowmobile trails:
Fussell, Lori Marie Snook, July 1997. Carbon Monoxide Exposure by Snowmobile Riders. Park Science Vol. 17 (1).
Supported jointly by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and industry, the Health Effects Institute (HEI) is an independent, nonprofit corporation chartered in 1980 to provide high-quality, impartial, and relevant science on the health effects of pollutants from motor vehicles and from other sources in the environment. Along with EPA, HEI maintains the searchable Particulate Matter Research Activities website.
