Our Approach
Straughan completed an air quality analysis in support of the Food and Drug Administration’s Master Plan to accommodate the future growth and consolidation of FDA programs at the FDA Headquarters Complex in Silver Spring, Maryland. The Master Plan Build Alternatives would support development of 1.5 million square feet of office space and 18,000 additional employees. The stationary source analysis measured existing and predicted emissions from point sources of pollution such as boilers, chillers, and generators, most of which are housed in the Central Utility Plant, using EPA’s AERMOD dispersion model. The mobile source analysis used EPA’s Cal3QHC dispersion model and considered the increase in traffic anticipated with additional employees and measured mobile source emissions at intersections anticipated to have the worst level of service and highest concentrations of carbon monoxide.
The stationary and mobile source air quality analyses indicated that none of the Master Plan alternatives would result in impacts to air quality, either during construction or operation of the proposed development. The air quality analysis demonstrated that the project would comply with air quality regulations, with no exceedances of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. The analysis was documented in a technical report and summarized for inclusion in the Environmental Impact Statement prepared in 2018 for the FDA master planning process.
