Emissions Inventory Online Course and Resources
The Emission Inventory (EI)/Tribal Emission Inventory Software Solution (TEISS) Training Curriculum: Course 1-EI Fundamentals and Course 2-EI Advanced
Thanks for your interest in the EI and TEISS training. ITEP offers the EI/TEISS training in a series of two online courses, EI Fundamentals and EI Advanced. Most tribal professionals who need EI training begin with the first course, EI Fundamentals. Upon completing it, a participant will be able to conduct a Level 4 emissions inventory. The second course, EI Advanced, is appropriate for tribes that have more sources and need to conduct a Level 1, 2, or 3 emissions inventory.
TAMS Activity Guide & Timeline:
What are EI Levels? EPA has established four levels of EIs.
Emission Inventory Levels from
| Inventory Levels | Inventory Use | Requirements | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | Inventories supportive of enforcement, compliance, or litigation activities. | Requires the highest degree of defensibility. Generally involves source sampling or mass balance based on site-specific data; performance audits of equipment, traditional QA plan for source sampling activities. | Monitoring for compliance |
| II | Inventories that provide supportive data for strategic decision-making or standard setting. | Site-specific (or region-specific) data are generally required, but not necessarily direct source sampling, performance audits of equipment. | State Implementation Plan (SIP) inventory |
| III | Inventories developed for general assessments or research that will not be used in direct support of decision-making. | May or may not include direct measurement of sources, but often involves site-specific data of some type. QA requirements must be flexible. | Evaluation of effectiveness of alternative controls or mitigation methods; bench-scale or pilot studies |
| IV | Inventories compiled entirely from previously published data or other inventories; no original data gathering. | Flexible and variable. | Inventory developed for informational purposes; feasibility study; trends tracking |
Most tribes start with doing a Level 4 EI. This usually includes obtaining data from the NEI database for nearby counties. This simple summary is sometimes referred to as a “top-down” approach because you are starting with emissions data that someone else developed as an end product and analyzing it to determine how it affects your area. If you do not have any large sources on your reservation and you determine that the reservation is already adequately covered by the NEI data, this might be your stopping point.
If you determine that there are other sources that you want to include in the inventory or you want to calculate the reservation-level emissions instead of only the county-level emissions, you need to complete a Level 1, 2, or 3 EI. You then obtain original data from the sources and use that data to calculate the emissions for those sources. This comprehensive accounting is sometimes referred to as a “bottom-up” approach because you are starting at the ground level by collecting data from the sources and using that data to calculate emission estimates.
I am entirely new to the EI process. What can I do to best prepare for the ITEP EI/TEISS training?
BEGIN with completing the EPA AirKnowledge online training on Fundamentals of Air Emissions Inventories at:
I think I am ready for the training. Developing an emission inventory takes a huge amount of resources, time, and effort. The EI Fundamentals and EI Advanced trainings are designed for those that are ready to devote the time and effort into this project. It is important that you are at this point because the training is not going to be effective unless you are actively working on your QAPP and EI as you proceed through the training. The information in the trainings is likely not going to be retained unless you are actively working on your QAPP and EI. Remember that learning to develop an EI and use TEISS is not like learning to ride a bicycle; if you try to get on the EI again after not working on it for months since completing the training, your instincts usually do not kick in.
Our modules list for these two training courses can give you an idea of what we expect of you as you complete the training. As you can see from the description of the modules in this list, most of the homework exercises revolve around you completing portions of your EI QAPP or your actual emissions inventory. As you work through the training by completing the homework exercises, you get closer to your goal of developing your emissions inventory. Currently, both workshops are self-paced trainings. The presentations and demonstrations are provided as videos that are accessible from the training site. EI Fundamentals consists of six modules and requires approximately 50 hours of total learning time to complete the training. EI Advanced consists of eleven modules and requires approximately 120 hours of total learning time to complete the training. If you have any questions on whether or not you are ready to sign up for the training, please contact Angelique Luedeker at Angelique.Luedeker@nau.edu or Melinda Ronca-Battista at Melinda.Ronca-Battista@nau.edu, the course instructors.
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Christopher Lee
Program Manager
Christopher.Lee@nau.edu
TAMS Center:
702-784-8264
Darlene Santos
Administrative Assistant, Sr.
Darlene.Santos@nau.edu
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