Green Book Frequent Questions
This page provides answers to frequently asked questions about the information contained in the Green Book. The questions are divided into Data, GIS/Map, and Other categories.
- EPA provide exports of the type of area and/or county data in the Green Book reports?
- Is there a unique ID field for the nonattainment areas in the data exports?
- Is there a file export that shows the nonattainment status of all counties over a period of years in the past?
- Is it possible to obtain the information contained in the "Nonattainment/Maintenance Status for Each County by Year for All Criteria Pollutants" report in a spreadsheet or database format, preferably with county and state FIPS codes?
- Is there a way to get the information published in the "Criteria Pollutant Nonattainment Summary" report in spreadsheet or database format?
- Are GIS shapefiles available for all NAAQS nonattainment areas?
- Is there a way to get copies of all of the maps in the Green Book?
- A Green Book link to a Federal Register Notice on the GPO website results in a "No Documents Found" message. What does this mean?
- Is the information in the Green Book kept up-to-date as areas are redesignated or reclassified?
Frequent Questions about Data
1. Does EPA provide exports of the type of area and/or county data in the Green Book reports?
The Green Book includes a Data Downloads web page that provides various types of area and county-level exported data in xbase (dbf) and spreadsheet (xls) formats. When a data export relates to the data displayed in an existing Green Book report, links to example reports are provided. A data dictionary that contains additional details about all of the downloadable data files in PDF format is also available. Each file contains an export date (exportdt) field, which is duplicated on all rows.
Additional Information about data downloads is available here:
- Data Download section of the Green Book
- Data dictionary for Green Book data downloads (PDF)(7 pp, 31 K, About PDF)
2. Is there a unique ID field for the nonattainment areas in the data exports?
The area-level data exports contain a composID field containing a unique identifier developed by EPA for designated nonattainment areas for all National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). A complete list of the area composID values are included in the AREADATA file export available from the Data Downloads web page. This identifier was developed specifically for use across GIS applications, but it is also available for use as an area ID for other purposes. The composID is clearly recognizable, defining the pollutant, the pollutant standard/revision, and a general name for the area, e.g., Ozone_8-hr.2008.Chicago.
See: Data Download section of the Green Book.
3. Is there a file export that shows the nonattainment status of all counties over a period of years in the past? Ideally, it would be a spreadsheet that shows each year that a county was in nonattainment. So if 100 counties were in non-attainment each year, it would have 2,000 rows (100 counties x 20 years).
This information is available in xbase (dbf) and spreadsheet (xls) formats downloadable from the Green Book Data Downloads web page.
The PHISTORY file export contains the annual nonattainment status of each county since 1992 to the present.
See: Data Download section of the Green Book
This state/county report shows the annual nonattainment status of each county by NAAQS. The presence of a "W" (whole county) or "P" (part of the county) for a year indicates that the whole county or part of the county was in the boundary of one or more nonattainment areas for that year for that NAAQS. Any county not listed has been designated attainment since 1992. A county may be included in more than one area for a NAAQS. A blank cell for a year indicates either the area(s) the county is in: 1) were not designated nonattainment in that year, 2) had been redesignated to maintenance, or 3) are for NAAQS that were revoked prior to that year.
Please note that the example of 100 counties x 20 years is simpler than the reality. A county may be in a nonattainment area for more than one NAAQS, with the same, similar, or different boundaries for each area. This will result in multiple rows in PHISTORY for a single county.
The Whole or Part County Nonattainment Status by Year Since 199 for All Criteria Pollutants report displays by state the same data as contained in the PHISTORY file.
4. Is it possible to obtain the information contained in the "Nonattainment/Maintenance Status for Each County by Year for All Criteria Pollutants" report in a spreadsheet or database format, preferably with county and state FIPS codes?
This information is available in xbase (dbf) and spreadsheet (xls) formats downloadable from the Green Book Data Downloads web page.
See: Data Download section of the Green Book.
The NAYRO export file contains the information in this report, with the annual nonattainment status of each county. A separate row is listed for each area that the county is in from 1992 to the present. Each row lists the years a county was in a nonattainment area, along with the area status, classification, and redesignation dates (where applicable).
A blank year can mean that after a county has been in a nonattainment area, the area was redesignated back to attainment and has a maintenance plan in place, or the area was designated for a NAAQS that is revoked. However, a county may also show up as no longer being in a nonattainment area (blank in a row rather than "P" or "W"), but not be in a maintenance area. Counties in areas where the standard has been revoked are displayed this way (e.g., 1979 1-Hour Ozone, 1997 8-Hour Ozone). It should be noted that a multi-state nonattainment area is not counted as a maintenance area until all states in the area are redesignated.
The "Whole" and "Part" distinction refers to whether the county is wholly or partially in a nonattainment area for a NAAQS. If parts of a single county are within more than one nonattainment area for a single NAAQS, these are listed with a separate row for each nonattainment area.
5. Is there a way to get the information published in the "Criteria Pollutant Nonattainment Summary" report in spreadsheet or database format?
This information is available in xbase (dbf) and spreadsheet (xls) formats downloadable from the Green Book Data Downloads web page.
See: Data Download section of the Green Book.
The ALLPOLLS_NAA export contains the information in this report, with an area-level listing of all NAAQS areas currently in nonattainment. Areas in different NAAQS that have similar boundaries are grouped together under a common area name. This export includes a identifying code for the common area names (Common_CD), area classifications, county counts and 2010 census populations.
Questions about GIS
6. Are GIS shapefiles available for all NAAQS nonattainment areas?
EPA began using ESRI shapefiles in the 2004 Ozone designation process. Shapefiles are now available for download in the Green Book for both those developed for the designation process in addition to pre-2004 shapefiles that were developed outside of the nonattainment designation process. For these pre-2004 nonattainment area designations, the boundaries in the shapefiles were based on the Part 81 table description.Both sets of shapefiles, containing boundary information for the originally designated areas for these NAAQS, are available for download in the Green Book on the GIS Downloads web page. Also available for download on this web page are external data files in both xbase (dbf) and spreadsheet (xls) formats. These files contain information about the current status of the designated areas. The external data files can be linked to the shapefiles with the composID field in each file.
See: GIS Download section of the Green Book.
Disclaimer: Nonattainment shapefile/map services are intended for mapping and visualization purposes only. EPA makes no claim that these shapefiles/map services represent the exact legal definitions of nonattainment areas. The legal definitions of nonattainment areas are available at 40 CFR part 81.
7. Is there a way to get copies of all of the maps in the Green Book?
The Green Book includes a Map Downloads web page containing sets of maps available in the Green Book. Maps are updated as needed each time a new version of the Green Book is posted. Each map displays a month/year date indicating the Green Book posting date. Links for new sets of maps will be added to the download page as the first nonattainment areas are redesignated to maintenance for newer standards, and as new NAAQS are promulgated.
See: Map Download section of the Green Book
The maps are downloadable as sets of zipped PDF files. The individual state maps have been generated with ESRI shapefiles for areas designated since 2004. These maps are zipped into a file of nonattainment state maps by NAAQS, maintenance state maps by NAAQS, and national maps. Since shapefiles are not available for NAAQS other than those designated since 2004, maps for older pollutant standards are national maps based on whole county boundaries.
Other Frequent Questions
8. A Green Book link to a Federal Register Notice on the GPO website results in a "No Documents Found" message. What does this mean?
The Green Book Federal Register Notice (FRN) citations are linked directly to Government Printing Office (GPO) notices. The GPO stores electronic copies of FRNs (in PDF format) from 1995 to the present. The Green Book contains HTML versions of FRNs published prior to 1995.
Occasionally, an FRN is not available on the GPO site, and the "No Documents Found" message will be displayed on the GPO search page. When a Green Book FRN citation is discovered to not have a FRN available on the GPO website, an HTML or PDF version of the FRN is added to the Green Book and the GPO link is removed. If you experience the "No Documents Found" for a Green Book citation, please click on the Green Book "Contact Us" link and specify the FRN citation that was not found so that it can be added to the Green Book.
9. Is the information in the Green Book kept up-to-date as areas are redesignated or reclassified?
The complete Green Book reports and maps are updated approximately every quarter, reflecting any changes in an area's status. If interested, you can regularly check the Recent Update report that lists Federal Register Notices published or effective since the last Green Book posting. A link to this report is on the Green Book home page and the sidebar. The FRN citations on the report are linked to electronic copies of the notices on the GPO website.
See: Recent Update report