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City of Santa Ana -Park View at Town and Country Manor <br />Draft EIR <br />State Implementation Plan to document the strategies and measures to be undertaken to reach <br />attainment of ambient air quality standards. While the SCAQMD does not have direct authority over <br />land use decisions, it is recognized that changes in land use and circulation planning are necessary to <br />maintain clean air. The SCAQMD evaluated the entire basin when it developed the AQMP. <br />According to the analysis contained in Impact 4.2.4, the project is not consistent with the AQMP <br />without mitigation measures. Therefore, the same mitigation measures for the AQMP impact <br />statement are required for this potential impact. <br />Criterion 3: Cumulative Health Impacts <br />The basin is in nonattainment for ozone, PM,,, and PM2.5, which means that the background levels of <br />those pollutants are at times higher than the ambient air quality standards. The air quality standards <br />were set to protect public health, including the health of sensitive individuals (i.e., elderly, children, <br />and the sick). Therefore, when the concentration of those pollutants exceeds the standard, it is likely <br />that some sensitive individuals in the population will experience health effects as summarized in <br />Table 4.2 -2. However, the health effects are a factor of the dose - response curve. Concentration of <br />the pollutant in the air (dose), the length of time exposed, and the response of the individual are <br />factors involved in the severity and nature of health impacts. If a significant health impact results <br />from project emissions, it does not mean that 100 percent of the population would experience health <br />effects. <br />The regional analysis of construction emissions (Impact 4.2.1) indicates that without mitigation, the <br />project would exceed the SCAQMD regional significance thresholds for VOC and NOx (ozone <br />precursors). Because ozone is a secondary pollutant (it is not emitted directly but formed by chemical <br />reactions in the air), it can be formed miles downwind of the project site. Project emissions of VOC <br />and NOx may contribute to the background concentration of ozone and cumulatively cause health <br />effects. Health impacts may or may not include the following: <br />(a) Pulmonary function decrements and localized lung edema in humans and animals. <br />(b) Risk to public health implied by alterations in pulmonary morphology and host defense in <br />animals. <br />(c) Increased mortality risk. <br />(d) Risk to public health implied by altered connective tissue metabolism and altered pulmonary <br />morphology in animals after long -term exposures and pulmonary function decrements in <br />chronically exposed humans. <br />Short-term exposure can result in breathing pattern changes, reduction of breathing capacity, <br />increased susceptibility to infections, inflammation of the lung tissue, and some immunological <br />changes. Children who live in high ozone communities and who participate in multiple sports have <br />been observed to have a higher asthma risk. This is a significant cumulative health impact associated <br />with ground -level ozone concentrations. <br />Michael Brandman Associates 4.2 -27 <br />H\Cl t(PN- Rnb327b32]003MMVB2]0030 Se 4GAvQ ity.DOc <br />