Abstract
Air pollution from industrial point sources accounts for a large proportion of air pollution issues affecting many communities around the world. However, emissions from these sources are technically controllable by putting in place abatement technologies with feasible and stringent regulatory conditions in the operation licenses. Pollution from other sources such as soil erosion, forest fires, road dust, and biomass burning, are subject to several unpredictable natural or economic factors. In this study, findings from dispersion modelling and spatial analysis of pollution were presented to evaluate the potential impacts of PM10 concentrations from point sources in the Greater Tubatse Municipality of Limpopo, South Africa. The Air Pollution Model (TAPM) was used to model nested horizontal grids down to 10 km for meteorology and 4 km resolution for air pollution was used for simulation of PM10. An analysis of annual and seasonal variations of PM10 concentrations from point sources was undertaken to demonstrate their impact on the environment and the surrounding communities based on 2016 emissions data. A simple Kriging method was used to generate interpolation surfaces for PM10 concentrations from industrial sources with the purpose of identifying their areas of impact. The results suggest that valley wind channeling is responsible for the distribution of pollutants in a complex terrain. The results revealed that PM10 concentrations were higher closer to the sources during the day and distributed over a wide area during the night.
Highlights
Particulate matter (PM) is a complex mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets suspended in the air that vary in size, composition and concentration
An air quality assessment in a highly industrialized rural area of Limpopo, South Africa was performed by means of The Air Pollution Model (TAPM) as a predictive modelling tool
Pollutants emitted from point sources can be deposited closer to or at a further distance from the sources depending on the wind strength, the atmospheric stability and particle size
Summary
Particulate matter (PM) is a complex mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets suspended in the air that vary in size, composition and concentration. Dispersion models can be used to predict concentrations at selected downwind receptor locations depending on the emissions, topographical and meteorological inputs These models can be used in the development of strategies for the management of pollution impacts on the environment and the assessment of air quality [25]. An air quality assessment in a highly industrialized rural area of Limpopo, South Africa was performed by means of The Air Pollution Model (TAPM) as a predictive (meteorological) modelling tool. The model output was imported into Geographic Information System to spatially display the seasonal and annual impact of PM concentrations from ferrochrome smelters in the region The meteorological parameters such as wind, humidity, radiation, mixing height and temperature, were examined to evaluate potential influences on the PM10 concentrations
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