THE URBAN ATMOSPHERE OF THE 21 ST CENTURY. INHERITANCE FROM 20 TH CENTURY l Liquid fuel – secondary pollution – photochemistry – inversion l Yet traditional.

THETHE URBAN ATMOSPHERE URBAN ATMOSPHERE OF THEOF THE 21 21STST CENTURY CENTURY

INHERITANCE FROM 20INHERITANCE FROM 20THTH CENTURYCENTURY

Liquid fuel – secondary pollution – photochemistry – inversion

Yet traditional problems such as odour remain

POPs

WOOD SMOKE VOCs, O3

COAL SMOKE DIESEL SMOKE

LEAD H2SSMELLs

TIME

DOMINANCE of the DOMINANCE of the AUTOMOBILEAUTOMOBILE

2OPHOTOCHEMICALPOLLUTION

CARCINOGENS

NEUROTOXINENDOCRINE DISRUPTOR

TERATOGEN

OK EXCEPT OK EXCEPT FOR 2FOR 2NDND POLLUTIONPOLLUTION

EPA ambient air quality

trends

UK: QUALITY OF URBAN AIR UK: QUALITY OF URBAN AIR REVIEW GROUP (QUARG)REVIEW GROUP (QUARG)

Review groups and their context Networks and public

communication Preparation for EC directives

SMOG OF 1991SMOG OF 1991

12th to the 15th of December 1991 estimated that smog caused around

160 more deaths than normal Cardiovascular (up 14%) and

respiratory (up 22%) deaths increased Schwartz and Dockery

QUARG and OUTPUTQUARG and OUTPUT

Reports focus on particulate matter (especially PM10 and PM2.5 and diesel

KUZNETS CURVEKUZNETS CURVE

The environmental Kuznets curve relationship between indicators of environmental degradation

income per capita

Simon Kuznets' hypothesis- as a country develops, Simon Kuznets' hypothesis- as a country develops, there is a natural cycle of economic inequality driven there is a natural cycle of economic inequality driven by market forces which at first increases inequality, by market forces which at first increases inequality, and then decreases and then decreases

KUZNETS RELATIONSHIPKUZNETS RELATIONSHIP

Inverted U-shape curves of pollutants over time seen as economically driven

Pollutant concentrations in London follow a Kuznets curve

Such curves particularly evident for pollutants creating localised problems that offer local benefits via regulation. INCOME PER CAPITA

INEQUALITY

INDUSTRIALIZATION

POLLUTION

BRIMBLECOMBE & GROSSI Millennium-long damage to building materials in London, Science of the Total Environment 407, 1354 (2009).

NZNZ RESOURCE MANAGEMENT REGULATIONSRESOURCE MANAGEMENT REGULATIONS

Regulations of 2004 as allowed under Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA)

Note it is about management and quote Elsom on Air Quality Management Clean Air and Environmental Quality, Volume 38, 1.

(2004)

http://www.mfe.govt.nz/publications/rma/user-guide-draft-oct05/html/page3.html

NZNZ RESOURCE MANAGEMENT REGULATIONSRESOURCE MANAGEMENT REGULATIONS

Regional council plans determine paths to comply with the fine particle standard by 1 September 2013

http://www.mfe.govt.nz/publications/rma/user-guide-draft-oct05/html/page3.html

REGULATION OF PMREGULATION OF PM

Confusion over mechanisms and measurement

regulation of size not effects

Regulatory problems: uncertainty no-thresholds

Constitutional dilemmasTSP PM10 PM2.5

0

2.5

5

7.5

10

PM10 PM2.5

Dia

me

ter/

mic

ron

s

PROBLEMS WITH STANDARDSPROBLEMS WITH STANDARDS

Meeting limit values may not always reduce exposure most effectively

CONCENTRATIONCONCENTRATION

LIMITLIMITVALUEVALUE

Fails to meet limitFails to meet limitvalue, but much reducedvalue, but much reducedcumulative doescumulative does

CURRENTCURRENT

Meets limitMeets limitvaluevalue

PREVENTION OF SIGNIFICANT PREVENTION OF SIGNIFICANT DETRIMENT (PSD): embodied in CAA(1977)DETRIMENT (PSD): embodied in CAA(1977)

Sierra Club challenged EPA approval that allowed air quality degradation in areas having air quality better than the national ambient air quality standards.

Sierra Club v. Ruckelshaus (1972)

Giant Forest in Sequoia National Park http://www.nps.gov/archive/seki/snrm/air/visibility.htm

$$$$PARIS $$$$PARIS OZONE AND OZONE AND HEATWAVE HEATWAVE 20032003

Smog’n Paris (& 400 000 morts prématurées en Europe, chaque année)

Climate change and increasing ozone?

OZONEOZONE TREND TREND

Daily max 8 hour ozone Bridge Place London then Westminster – μg/m3

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

200

90.00 92.00 94.00 96.00 98.00 100.00 102.00 104.00 106.00 108.00 110.001990 2000 2008

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

1100 1300 1500 1700 1900 2100

Longer term issues – temperature and sunlight may increase ozone, but precursors may decline

INTERGRATED EXPOSURE TO INTERGRATED EXPOSURE TO SUMMER OZONESUMMER OZONE

AOT40 for forests in England (Harwell, Aston Hill and Ladybower)

April-September daytime ozone over threshold of 40 ppb

AIR POLLUTION AND AIR POLLUTION AND FREEDOMSFREEDOMS Mode of transport

– congestion charges

Regulation of indoor spaces and furnishings

Bonfires in gardens

HOPLEY, E. BRIMBLECOMBE, P. Clean Air & Env Prot. 32, 75-77 (2002)

THE SCHOOL RUN

POLLUTION & POLLUTION & PLEASUREPLEASURESUVs and 2-STROKESSUVs and 2-STROKES

Diesel soot 2-stroke particles -

condensed heavy hydrocarbons

Lawn-mowers contribute 5-12% CO/HC in Australian cities.

FIREWORKSFIREWORKS

Celebrations a complex issue for policy makers…

Nov 5th PM10 LONDON

1800 2400 0600

MILLENNIUM EDINBURGH

DOMESTIC /CULTURAL EMISSIONSDOMESTIC /CULTURAL EMISSIONS

Domestic indoor heating and cooking Wood and coal

Cultural outdoor burning Hangi Umu

Bonfires

Image source: Te ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand www.teara.govt.nz/EarthSeaAndSky/ClimateAndAtmosphere/Atmosphere/5/ENZ-Resources/Standard/2/2/

en#breadcrumbtop

NES does not regulate domestic fires

Plan includes rules for domestic fires, but regulation difficult

AGGRESSIVE AGGRESSIVE APPROACHESAPPROACHES

Mayor Ken Livingstone Legal challenges Congestion or pollution

control Profitability Transfer to other cities

CONGESTION CHARGINGCONGESTION CHARGING London from Feb 2003London from Feb 2003

12% reduction in NO2

15% reduction in vehicle km Expected increase from buses have been

offset by introduction of particle traps Reduction in NOX and PM10 from increases

in vehicle speed (~ 2.1 km h-1) Early lack of acceptance may have been

thwartedBeevers and Carslaw (2005a,b)

SECONDARY ORGANIC AEROSOLSECONDARY ORGANIC AEROSOL Recognising that the organic

material formed in the smog was important

Oxidized compounds, but necessarily non volatile – e.g. dicarboxylic acids

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

400 800 1200 1600 2000

hours

NO2

NO

O3

HC

RCHO

TRANSFORMATION ON PARTICLESTRANSFORMATION ON PARTICLES

PAH lifetime on wood smoke and gasoline soot

aldehyde of 5a,b-secobenzo(a)pyrene

2.2 min 200 min 5.7 days

anthanthrene pyrenebenzo(a)pyrene

ON SILICA ON SILICA SURFACESSURFACES

OXIDATION OF NAPTHALENEOXIDATION OF NAPTHALENE

hν, SiO2

OH, NO

SOLUBILIZATION OF NAPTHALENESOLUBILIZATION OF NAPTHALENE

0

5

10

15

0 2 4 6

Surfactant mMol/l

Kh

mo

l/l.

atm

K = mC10H8/pC10H8

Mario Massucci UEA

Surfactants in alveoli aid gas exchange, but also lung defence.

Would aerosol surfactants alter these functions?

PULMONARY SURFACTANTSPULMONARY SURFACTANTS

PULMONARY SURFACTANTS

ALVEOLIALVEOLI

0

10

20

30

40

50

Hydrocarbon CO NOx

gra

m/m

ile

gasoline

CNG

LPG

ALTERNATE ALTERNATE FUELSFUELS

g/mile H/C CO NOx

gasoline 3.1 42 6.2

CNG 0.5 8.6 2.1

LPG 0.45 1.0 1.1

Data gathered in the late 1980s…

METHANOLMETHANOL IMPACT IN A IMPACT IN A LARGE CITYLARGE CITY

Peak 1h ozone little change

Average O3 improves PAN reduced Increased peak HCHO,

but average does not change much

BIOFUELSBIOFUELS

Methanol –expensive to produce from biomass Ethanol - from sugar cane

automotive fuel in Brazil. Ethanol corn derived gasoline additive in the US, from cellulose waste, perhaps for NZ forest

products industry Biodiesel - Rudolf Diesel’s engine designed for

peanut oil Direct use of bagasse, rice husks

BIOFUELS - PROBLEMSBIOFUELS - PROBLEMS

Wasteful as it often comes from food crops such as corn, sugar, soya oil…

Methanol leads it high formaldehyde concentrations

Methanol/ethanol very water soluble Biodiesel may lead to high NOx emissions Bagasse, rice husks or wood

may have high hydrochloric acid emissions

http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jan2002/2002-01-04-06.asp