WHO POLLUTES--AND WHAT

The South Coast Air Quality Management District recently compiled a list of the area’s top industrial and commercial polluters for 1986, keyed to the South Coast Air Basin’s most serious pollutants: reactive organic gases, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide and particulates. The data is used by the AQMD to levy emission fees.

District officials say the basin’s most serious air pollution health threat comes from ozone, which is formed when reactive organic gases, such as gasoline or paint fumes, react in the area’s sun-baked air with nitrogen oxides, which are products of combustion.

Particulates are non-gaseous emissions such as soot, wood or cement dust.

Although the polluters listed by the AQMD are of the stationary variety, most of the area’s air pollution still comes from motor vehicles. Eight million cars, trucks and buses contribute 49% of the basin’s reactive organic gases, 71% of the nitrogen oxides and 97% of the carbon monoxide.

Company Location REACTIVE HYDROCARBONS 1. General Motors Van Nuys 2. Chevron USA El Segundo 3. Atlantic Richfield Carson 4. Shell Oil Wilmington Complex 5. Texaco Refinery & Marketing Wilmington 6. Continental Can Co. Van Nuys 7. Unocal Wilmington 8. Catalina Yachts Woodland Hills 9. Shell California Product Huntington Beach 10. B.P. John Furniture Santa Ana NITROGEN OXIDES 1. Chevron USA El Segundo 2. Atlantic Richfield Carson 3. California Portland Cement Colton 4. Texaco Wilmington 5. Mobil Oil Torrance 6. Unocal Wilmington 7. Southern California Edison Redondo Beach 8. Shell Oil Wilmington Complex 9. So. Cal. Edison-Alamitos Long Beach 10. Southern California Gas Blythe SULFUR DIOXIDE 1. Atlantic Richfield Carson 2. Mobil Oil Torrance 3. Chevron USA El Segundo 4. Unocal Wilmington 5. West Newport Oil Costa Mesa 6. Texaco Wilmington 7. Shell Oil Wilmington Complex 8. Stauffer Chemical Carson 9. Champlin Petroleum Wilmington 10. Golden West Refinery Santa Fe Springs CARBON MONOXIDE 1. Chevron USA El Segundo 2. Universal Studios Universal City 3. Anaheim Foundry Anaheim 4. Douglas Aircraft Long Beach 5. BKK Corp. West Covina 6. Disneyland Anaheim 7. So. Cal. Edison-Seaside Long Beach 8. California Portland Cement Colton 9. Manville Sales Corona 10. UCLA Los Angeles PARTICULATE MATTER 1. Chevron USA El Segundo 2. Atlantic Richfield Carson 3. Shell Oil Wilmington Complex 4. Mobil Oil Torrance 5. California Portland Cement Colton 6. Unocal Wilmington 7. Texaco Wilmington 8. Champlin Petroleum Wilmington 9. Riverside Cement Riverside 10. Golden West Refining Santa Fe Springs

Company Emissions (in tons per year) REACTIVE HYDROCARBONS 1. General Motors 1,694 2. Chevron USA 1,669 3. Atlantic Richfield 1,291 4. Shell Oil 1,096 5. Texaco Refinery & Marketing 945 6. Continental Can Co. 928 7. Unocal 662 8. Catalina Yachts 616 9. Shell California Product 587 10. B.P. John Furniture 509 NITROGEN OXIDES 1. Chevron USA 5,418 2. Atlantic Richfield 3,558 3. California Portland Cement 2,769 4. Texaco 2,572 5. Mobil Oil 2,468 6. Unocal 2,130 7. Southern California Edison 1,980 8. Shell Oil 1,943 9. So. Cal. Edison-Alamitos 1,937 10. Southern California Gas 1,705 SULFUR DIOXIDE 1. Atlantic Richfield 4,005 2. Mobil Oil 1,983 3. Chevron USA 1,432 4. Unocal 1,343 5. West Newport Oil 838 6. Texaco 773 7. Shell Oil 697 8. Stauffer Chemical 626 9. Champlin Petroleum 576 10. Golden West Refinery 500 CARBON MONOXIDE 1. Chevron USA 3,065 2. Universal Studios 1,384 3. Anaheim Foundry 900 4. Douglas Aircraft 838 5. BKK Corp. 754 6. Disneyland 601 7. So. Cal. Edison-Seaside 534 8. California Portland Cement 517 9. Manville Sales 509 10. UCLA 470 PARTICULATE MATTER 1. Chevron USA 629 2. Atlantic Richfield 513 3. Shell Oil 381 4. Mobil Oil 340 5. California Portland Cement 288 6. Unocal 274 7. Texaco 266 8. Champlin Petroleum 209 9. Riverside Cement 169 10. Golden West Refining 167