Division of Air Quality
Cleveland Department of Public Health, Division of Air Quality (DAQ) serves as Ohio EPA’s Delegated Agent for air pollution control for all of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County. As a contractual representative with Ohio EPA for performing air monitoring, air permits and enforcement work in Cleveland and Cuyahoga County in Ohio, Federal grant money that Ohio EPA receives for air pollution work is "passed through" to the Cleveland agency.
The Division of Air Quality is driven by its primary objective to ensure that regulated industrial and commercial sources within Cleveland and Cuyahoga County are in compliance with federal, state and local air quality regulations. CDAQ installs, operates and maintains the monitoring equipment, and reports resultant data of ambient levels of criteria air pollutants throughout Cleveland and Cuyahoga County as a component of a statewide monitoring and reporting network.
The DAQ is composed of three sections that work together to achieve the objective of meeting Federal clean air standard. The Field Monitoring Section measures air pollution levels at more than 21 sites in Cuyahoga County for six National Ambient air Criteria Pollutants. These measurements determine the overall air quality in the city and county. The Engineering Section operates the permit system, which requires all industrial sources of air pollution to register and obtain permits. The permit system identifies sources and establishes limits on the amount of emissions released into the atmosphere. The Enforcement Section maintains surveillance on pollution sources and responds to complaints from the public about a variety of air pollution problems.
All sections work together on the common goal to improve the quality of life in the City of Cleveland, allowing Cleveland to be a desirable place to live and work.
Read more about the history of the Division of Air Quality here.
Enforcement Section
The enforcement section ensures that industrial and commercial air pollution sources within Cuyahoga County that are regulated by OEPA air pollution regulations are in compliance with the OEPA rules and regulations. The Enforcement section responds to citizen complaints about those regulated sources and regulates asbestos abatement in Cuyahoga County for sources that are subject to the National Environmental Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants.
Engineering Section
The Engineering Section prepares and issues permits to stationary sources of air pollution (including power plants, gas stations, incinerators, and other fixed sources of air pollution that do not move around). Permits are required to be obtained before construction begins, and to operate the source. The permits developed by the Engineering Section apply Federal, State and local laws to control air pollution from regulated sources.
Field Monitoring Section
The field monitoring section of the Division of Air Quality (DAQ) operates a network of ambient air monitors throughout Cuyahoga County. The network measures "criteria pollutants". The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) uses six "criteria pollutants" as indicators of air quality, and has established for each of them a maximum concentration above which adverse effects on humans may occur. The threshold concentrations are known as the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. The "criteria pollutants" include carbon monoxide, lead, sulfur dioxide, ozone, particulate matter, and nitrogen oxides.