Autumn conferences

Posted by dshnayder on Friday, August 23rd, 2019 in Newsletters

What’s Happening Now

EPA News

12^th Conference on Air Quality Models – EPA has scheduled the 12^th Conference on Air Quality Models for October 2‑3, 2019 in Research Triangle Park, NC at the EPA campus. This triennial Clean Air Act-mandated conference will provide the opportunity for public input to EPA’s ongoing model and modeling guidance development. The Federal Register notice was recently published (https://www3.epa.gov/ttn/scram/12thmodconf/EPA-HQ-OAR-2019-0454-0001.pdf) and we have a new website containing registration information and a draft agenda: https://www.epa.gov/scram/12th-conference-air-quality-modeling. We hope to see you there!

New AERMOD – On August 21, 2019 EPA released the new version of AERMOD (version 19191). Changes in the new version include:

A LOWWIND alpha (experimental) option
A new RLINEXT source type for modeling depressed roadways and roadside barriers (alpha option)
A new RLINE source type for modeling roadways (beta option)
Two new building downwash alpha options, AWMADWNW and ORD_DWNW

New AERMET – On August 21, 2019 EPA released the new version of AERMET (version 19191). Changes in the new version include bug fixes related to reading precipitation from surface data files and reading station pressure from upper air data files.

New BPIPPRM – On August 21, 2019 EPA released the new version of BPIPPRM (version 19191_DRFT). This draft version has been released for public review and testing. After the informal comment period ends, EPA will incorporate the public feedback and release an updated version of BPIPPRM for regulatory applications.

AERMOD Development Webpage – EPA has created a new web page on SCRAM called AERMOD Modeling System Development. This site serves the user community as a place where we can keep up with near-term and longer-term enhancements to AERMOD, AERMET, AERMAP, etc. We will be able to keep up with the various AERMOD White Papers here as well. Visit https://www.epa.gov/scram/aermod-modeling-system-development to learn more.

Conferences and Workshops

The aforementioned 12^th Conference on Air Quality Models is but one of our list of upcoming autumn conferences. We also have…

**HOT** TCEQ’s Autumn Environmental Conference and Expo – The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s 2019 Autumn Environmental Conference and Expo has been set for October 8‑10, 2019 at the Palmer Events Center in Austin, TX. This event will include both an advanced air permitting seminar and a wastewater/stormwater permitting workshop. For more information on this event, click here. We’ll be there and hope to see you there, too!

**HOT** AMWA Louisiana Section Annual Conference – The Louisiana Section of AWMA will be holding their annual conference October 16‑17, 2019 at the L’Auberge Casino and Hotel in Baton Rouge, LA. For more on registration, sponsor or exhibitor information, click here. Providence will be there and we hope to see you there, too!

**HOT** CAPCA Fall Technical Workshop and Forum – The Carolinas Air Pollution Control Association’s (CAPCA’s) Fall Technical Workshop and Forum will be held October 23‑25, 2019 at the Hilton Myrtle Beach Resort in Myrtle Beach, SC. For more information on this event, including registration, click here.

If your company, organization, agency, State, etc. has an upcoming modeling or air quality-related event and you’d like it publicized in Providence/Oris Notes, please send that information to us at info@providenceoris.com, and we’ll be happy to include it.

Simply the Best!

End of support for Windows 7

Microsoft announced in June 2019 that they will stop supporting Windows 7 on January 14, 2020. We will stop supporting Windows 7 on March 31, 2020. Software updates released between August 2019 and March 31, 2020 will run and will be supported on Windows 7. Software updates released after March 31, 2020 will only be supported on Windows 8.1 and later versions of Windows.

BEEST Suite

BEEST 11.14 is now out and includes these updates:

Ability to delete receptors, sources, buildings, and tanks within an irregularly shaped polygon
Three options for creating sloped roof structures
Enhanced on-screen editing options for buildings
QA checks when creating output ranks and creating AUTO source groups
A right-click option in Show Current Data Graphically to convert grid receptors to discrete receptors
The Terrain Files Converter program!

Terrain Files Converter allows you to convert the ArcGrid-formatted NED data to GeoTIFF format in an easy, painless manner! (Remember, AERMAP can only read GeoTIFF.)

We presented a webinar on August 8, 2019 demonstrating the new features in BEEST 11.14. If you wish to view it, please go to Webinars → BEEST Suite.

As always, users in maintenance can download the most recent version of BEEST from Support → Software Updates.

"Go BEEST Mode!" — What? You still don’t have your own "Go BEEST Mode" t-shirt? Don’t worry, we’ve got plenty left – so email your request to info@providenceoris.com and receive your very own "Go BEEST Mode" T-shirt! You’ll be the envy of modelers everywhere!

AerScreen for Windows

Since AerScreen for Windows uses both AERMOD and AERMAP, we released AerScreen for Windows 3.06 on May 31, 2018. This new version fully supports AERMOD 18081 and AERMAP 18081.

Users in maintenance can download the most recent version of AerScreen for Windows from Support → Software Updates.

Professional CalPuff

Our most recent version of Professional CalPuff (4.00) was released on August 26, 2016 and is available to all registered users with current maintenance.

Users in maintenance can download the most recent version of Professional CalPuff from Support → Software Updates.

AERMOD Wizard

AERMOD Wizard is here! We think that this handy tool will be a game changer and so will you! Imagine being able to download ambient monitoring data and creating a temporally-varying (e.g. HROFDY, SEASHR) AERMOD-ready background file with just a few clicks! Or what about being able to do multiple Class I area Q/D analyses with just a few clicks? Or building wind roses and/or pollutant roses and be able to export them to Google Earth – also with just a few clicks?

AERMOD Wizard 1.01 was released on June 24, 2019 and it includes the capability to do backward and forward trajectories – and these trajectories can also be exported to Google Earth. Check AERMOD Wizard out here and get your own copy!

We presented a webinar on July 9, 2019 demonstrating the new features in AERMOD Wizard 1.01. If you wish to view it, please go to Webinars → AERMOD Wizard.

*We’re off to see the Wizard!*

If you have suggestions for an enhancement to any of our modeling software products, please let us know and we’ll do our best to incorporate it into the software ASAP!

“Our expertise is contagious. Catch it!”

New this autumn: Special Topics in Modeling webinars

Would you like to know more about certain dispersion modeling topics, but don’t have a couple of days to take off to attend our AERMOD classroom training? Now, Providence/Oris is providing special modeling topics training in a convenient, 1-hour webinar format. The first of these will be on the topic of Modeled Emission Rates for Precursors (MERPs) and is scheduled for September 26, 2019. Click here to register for this webinar. Oh, and if you miss it or want to revisit the webinar afterwards, don’t worry – all webinars will be recorded, and students can always view them later.

Stay tuned for announcements of other upcoming training webinars! Future topics include Terrain Data Processing and Source Culpability. If there are other specific modeling topics you’d like to see us cover in future training webinars, send your request to info@providenceoris.com.

AERMOD Modeling for Permits

Our last scheduled AERMOD Modeling for Permits class for 2019 will be December 3‑4 in Austin, TX. Register today and plan to join us in the Live Music Capital of the World. Click here to register!

Advanced AERMOD

Similarly, our last scheduled Advanced AERMOD class for 2019 is going to be December 5‑6, also in Austin.

Advanced AERMOD covers those topics that are near and dear to modelers, such as:

NAAQS modeling for 1-hour NO2, 1-hour SO2 and 24-hour PM2.5 (including MaxDCont Viewer)
Meteorological data processing with AERMET / AERMINUTE / AERSURFACE
AERSCREEN
Changes related to the new Appendix W (Guideline on Air Quality Models)
MAXIFILE and ARRAY2 processing
AERMOD alpha options, such as PSDCREDIT
AERMOD Wizard and its uses

Click here to register!

We will be releasing our tentative 2020 class dates in next month’s newsletter.

**Don’t forget, if our schedule of classes doesn’t mesh with your schedule, or if you have several people that need to be trained at once, contact us about setting up an on-site class. Have laptop, will travel!**

BeestXpress

**BeestXpress has been upgraded to run AERMOD 18081**

In addition, BeestXpress users have some great system enhancements to work with:

The "Job Details" webpage now displays the pollutant being modeled;
The "Job Details" webpage now displays run progress for MAXDCONT calculations;
Modeling runs with multiple partitions now include a combined AERMOD input file (*.DTA) in the output .ZIP file;
Added an option to the "Submit Job" webpage that affects modeling runs with multiple partitions: the intermediate output files created by each partition can be omitted from the output .ZIP file
The "Job Search" webpage now includes the option to search by project number
Users have access to up to 50 partitions per AERMOD run

To date, BeestXpress has processed over 300,000 AERMOD runs. Wow!

If you’ve never used BeestXpress, or it has been a while since you did, you may want to log on at www.beestxpress.com to take advantage of our AERMOD "force multiplier". That AERMOD run that might have taken a day to run on your desktop computer can finish in an hour or less on BeestXpress. When time is money, BeestXpress is the best modeling return on investment there is!

Meteorological Data Processing Services

Do you need AERMOD-ready or CalPuff-ready meteorological data? If so, we can help! Whether it’s running the AERMET / AERMINUTE system or a full CalMet run, Providence has the background, know-how, and experience to have your data processed and ready for you ASAP. Need on-site data processed? We do that, too! If you’d like more information, contact us at info@providenceoris.com or jamesred@providenceeng.com.

Consulting Solutions

One thing that we’re very proud of is the depth and range of our modeling experience and expertise. The kinds of air quality models we’ve used include all types, ranging from simple screening tools like SCREEN3 and AERSCREEN to plume models like ISC and AERMOD to CalPuff to CAMx. The types of analyses included basic Significant Impact Level, NAAQS, PSD increment consumption, Class I analyses, air toxics, and SIP attainment demonstrations. Most recently, we have begun conducting nonattainment permit inter-pollutant trading (NOx for VOC) modeling using CAMx. So, we’ve seen it all. To that end, should you or your clients need additional modeling assistance or just a second set of eyes to QA or peer review your modeling (ranging from initial protocol up to final submission), we stand ready to help. Feel free to contact us at (512) 258-8855 or info@providenceoris.com.

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