Conditions in the Paso del Norte Air Basin: Three-State, Two-Nation Cooperation

The Paso del Norte Air Basin includes the El Paso area of Texas, parts of Doña Ana County in New Mexico and Ciudad Juárez in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. Air quality in the Airshed is a shared resource for over 2.7 million people residing in three states, two countries, Native American tribal lands, and dozens of cities. Protecting and restoring air quality in the Paso del Norte requires effective planning and coordinated efforts across multiple jurisdictions.

On the U.S. side of the border, air monitors indicate that air quality in the Air Basin exceeds the National Ambient Air Quality Standards(NAAQS) for Ozone and PM 2.5. Generating reliable data from air monitors is necessary to achieve compliance with air quality standards. The goal is to continue to improve air quality in the Air Basin to improve the health and quality of life for all the people that reside in and visit the area.

All the states and cities included in the Air Basin have programs to monitor and report the air quality. In the Municipality of Juarez, monitoring and air quality management is done by the Dirección de Ecología . Population growth in Ciudad Juárez and increased vehicle emissions negatively affects air quality. Traffic problems exist in the busiest areas, coupled with longer travel distances for commuters and slower travel times that result in increasing levels of air pollution. The municipality operates three air monitoring stations which are in the process of being upgraded. PM10 has and continues to be the primary pollutant of concern with 20 days in 2016 with an índice Metropolitano de la Calidad del Aire (IMECA) level of Unsatisfactory.

In the State of Chihuahua, there are three monitoring stations operated by the Secretariat of Urban Development and Ecology (SEDUE). Information on the air quality monitored by these stations may be found at Chihuahua Air Monitoring. Data from air quality monitoring equipment operated by researchers at Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez is also presented on the Chihuahua Air Monitoring link. In 2016 PM10 was the primary pollutant of concern with 103 days with an IMECA level of Unsatisfactory. PM2.5 was in the Unsatisfactory category only 2 days and Ozone (O3) 1 day.

In New Mexico the New Mexico Department of the Environment conducts continuous air monitoring in Doña Ana County and is developing a new inventory of emissions for the part of the county considered by US EPA to be in non-attainment of the NAAQS. In recent years significant expansion of oil and gas extraction in the county has added new emission sources. Air Quality conditions, and a discussion of the air quality management planning in progress by New Mexico is available at Dona Ana County Air Quality.

In Texas, El Paso is the only Border area that historically had been designated non-attainment for Ozone, Carbon Monoxide and PM10. Effective air quality management practices have achieved attainment for Ozone and Carbon monoxide. PM 10 continues to be a problem is areas of El Paso especially experiencing significant development. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) supports coordination with state, local and federal organization involved with air quality management in the Paso del Norte Airshed. Air Quality conditions, and a discussion of the air quality management planning in progress by the State of Texas is available at El Paso Air Quality. A current project is developing an improved emissions inventory for Juarez that will improve the ability to model air quality in the Airshed and facilitate more effective management practices.