Concerns over many provinces and cities suspended PM2.5 monitoring equipment procurement

Although the PM2.5 monitoring data was published, the procurement of equipment for monitoring PM2.5 in major cities in the Chinese Mainland has been suspended. Because the environmental protection departments of these cities are not clear, more than a decade of monitoring equipment and standards that have been used can no longer be used.

All originated from the "shock balance method" - the PM2.5 and PM10 values ​​of most of the first-tier cities in China are monitored by the instrument of this technical method. However, the reporter's investigation found that the value of PM10 and PM2.5 monitored by monitoring equipment produced by ThermoFisher Scientific of the United States based on this technology method is generally higher than that of the monitoring equipment used by the United States and its embassies. The average figure is 15% lower. At present, China Environmental Monitoring Center has noticed this issue.

However, as the authoritative organization for the development of China's environmental monitoring and technical standards, the China Environmental Monitoring Center is also in a dilemma. If we do not reconstruct the shock balance instrument, it means that the monitoring of PM2.5 in China has not been started. "But if you acknowledge this issue, it means that you have acknowledged that there has been a huge deviation in the past monitoring results of PM10 data in the country." A person close to China's environmental monitoring terminal told reporters.

From January 8, 2012, the technical specifications for PM2.5 monitoring have entered the pre-test and formulation stage. Time has not waited for "person."

Suspension of Equipment Purchases Due to the unclear attitude of the China Environmental Protection Monitoring Center to the shock balance method, the multi-site environmental protection monitoring agencies including Shanghai, Beijing and Tianjin have suspended the procurement of PM2.5 monitoring equipment.

“We have stopped further procurement of machinery. We are also inquiring from Beijing through various channels. Is it necessary to install an FDMS analyzer on the original equipment for shake-balance? Or is it necessary to uniformly replace the beta-ray equipment?” The person in charge of the monitoring agency told the reporter.

After finding that the monitoring results of the shock balance method were 15% lower than normal, the main manufacturer, ThermoFisher Scientific, designed and manufactured an FDMS analyzer to correct the monitoring results. However, the company and local governments in China did not propose to reconstruct the original equipment.

"Of course we know that the value measured by the shock balance method is low and it is low. We have bought it." On February 13, a former local environmental protection monitoring station chief told the reporter, "Does the local environmental protection bureau know that this is uncertain? , but the head of the station responsible for monitoring must be clear."

The most recent purchase of a shock balance instrument was from Haikou, Hainan Province. On December 30, 2011, the announcement of “Open Bidding and Procurement of Automatic Monitoring Equipment for Dual-channel Micro Oscillation Balance Airborne Particles” by the Government Procurement Center of Haikou City appeared on the website of the Haikou City Finance Office. According to the source of the procurement project, Chen Zeyuan, the Haikou City purchased a dual-channel product from the ThermoFisher Scientific Company that can measure both PM10 and PM2.5. Install FDMS. “We have heard of this measurement method showing that the value is 15% lower than the beta ray method.” Chen said, “We just bought a set according to the requirements of the country and the attention of the public.”

The Henan Province Environmental Monitoring Center Station is also a major province for procurement of shock and balance equipment. In 2009, 15 sets of PM10 analyzers were used for the procurement of vibration and balance method in the construction of an air pollution monitoring system in key areas of the Henan Province's comprehensive environment improvement project. Xu Guanghua, head of the Henan Provincial Environmental Monitoring Station, briefed the reporter: “Although the PM10 monitoring equipment in Henan Province was purchased in 2009, due to lagging work, the equipment will not be used until the second half of 2011.” Is this equipment installed? FDMX and Xu Guanghua answered "something was installed," but no further explanation was given.

According to the aforementioned unnamed sources, the reason why the environmental protection department is so sensitive is because it involves the blue sky number, qualified air quality, and the accuracy of energy conservation and emission reduction data reported by environmental protection agencies at all levels.

"The ultimate monitoring method to use is not a big problem. The key is to make sure that the oscillometric instruments must be used in conjunction with FDMS. Failure to fundamentally correct the problem of low measurement values ​​can mislead the country in its decision making on air pollution control. The measured value of the shock balance equipment is inaccurate. Before that, we may have serious deviations from the environmental protection data that may have been close to 10 years ago. We have introduced this equipment from the United States and we have such a big defect. Who will bear this responsibility?” .

“At present, the performance of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Monitoring Station is different because of different responsibilities. The Ministry of Environmental Protection intends to fully consider and focus on energy-saving and emission reduction, but the monitoring terminus represents the technical authority. Currently, the Ministry of Environmental Protection The attitude is to push this matter, but the monitoring terminus wants to minimize their responsibilities, because if you go on, it means that you need to deny your terminology judgment to the terminus. This is very difficult to accept.” A person who is close to the Ministry of Environmental Protection The expert analyzed the reporter.

From February 6th, China Environmental Monitoring Headquarters issued a total of 6 press releases on the official website of the station for the progress of the PM2.5 comparison test. However, the contents of the press release did not disclose materially about the detailed progress. China Environmental Monitoring Station rejected the reporter’s request for an interview.

According to news released by the website of the China National Environmental Monitoring Center, equipment manufacturers have learned that on January 8th, 2012, the Atmospheric Office of the Central Environmental Monitoring Station has mobilized nine types of PM2.5 automatic monitoring equipment from companies in both China and the United States (including the US ThermoFisherScientific. (FM) company TEOM1405F, TEOM1405, FH62C14, 5030-SHARP model PM2.5 monitor, MetOne company BAM-1020PM2.5 monitor, Hebei Xianhe environmental protection company XHPM-2000E monitor, Beijing Zhongyu Tyco company The 7201 monitor, TH2000TM monitor from Wuhan Tianhong Co., Ltd., and TEOM monitor from Anhui Bluetron Optoelectronics Co., Ltd., as well as 4 kinds of hand-sampling and monitoring instruments from domestic and foreign manufacturers, started to apply the PM2.5 automatic monitoring method for comparison of suitability.

A person involved in the experimental comparison told the reporter that from the current monitoring situation, the MetOne BAM-1020PM2.5 monitor and the XHPM-2000E monitor from Hebei Xianhe Environmental Protection Co., Ltd. have a consistent consistency of the β-ray monitoring results. However, the instrument data of the US Fisher ThermoFisher Scientific Inc. oscillating balance method did not install FDMS. Values ​​sometimes deviate from 20% to 40%. The instrumental value of FDMS installed can be basically consistent with the monitoring results of β-ray method.

To this end, the reporter contacted Zhou Xiaobin, general manager of the environmental division of the ThermoFisherScientific company. For media reports that the company's shock balance method measures 15% lower value than the beta ray method, Zhou said that monitoring PM10 in the US EPA certification does not require the installation of FDMS. Only the monitoring of PM2.5 requires installation. For this method, which is inherently 15% lower than the beta ray method, "this is just a comparison with the beta ray method, not a comparison with the standard method." Zhou Xiaobin said.

For the future PM2.5 market response, Zhou Xiaobin also mentioned that the company has proprietary technology for the shock balance method. But there are also beta ray products.

The reporter learned that environmental protection monitoring equipment suppliers from the United States and China have frequently visited the China National Environmental Monitoring Center since January. The representative companies of the shock balance method and the beta ray method are forming different forces. Behind the frequent public relations, they are targeting the future PM2.5 monitoring market with 3 billion yuan cake.

Regarding whether it will recall the sold instruments without FDMS installed, Zhou Xiaobin stated that it will wait for the introduction of national technical standards.

Unbearable weight?

China's environmental protection department responded promptly to the controversy and disturbance caused by the PM2.5-induced air quality monitoring results. At the end of December 2011, the new Ambient Air Quality Standard, which was reviewed and passed by the MEP Executive Meeting, added the PM2.5 average concentration limit for the first time. Starting in 2012, PM2.5 monitoring will be carried out in key areas such as the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta, as well as municipalities and provincial capitals. At this point, an important indicator that has long been neglected in the past has finally been included in the scope of air quality monitoring.

However, the above-mentioned experts who are close to the Ministry of Environmental Protection told reporters that in November 2011, when the US embassy began to release Beijing PM2.5 monitoring data, it was precisely at the time when the international climate conference was about to be held. For the equipment defect of the American company, the industry It is not unknown, so there is inevitably a problem of public opinion. “The environmental protection department responded quickly from the perspective of people’s livelihood, but now it is becoming more and more aware that the burden is heavy. The PM2.5 data may be particularly serious, which means that the management of PM2.5 will be very large. Now These inputs are all incalculable," the expert said to the reporter.

According to statistics, there are currently more than 20 cities that have announced the PM2.5 monitoring program in China. Zhou Wei, director of the Greenpeace Climate and Energy Project, judged that China has no corresponding solution to the current serious air pollution problem. "PM2.5 is not the key, but the core is how to solve the problem. At present, the industry is focused on the point that China needs to solve this pollution problem for at least 30 years."