Trends In Atmospheric Pollution Research Articles

Trends in atmospheric pollution in the Third Pole: analyses of tropospheric NO2 for the period 2005–2020

The Third Pole, i.e. the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) and Tien Shan mountains, has been closely monitored for the past few decades because of its deteriorating environmental conditions.

General Trends in the Environmental State of the Atmosphere of the Industrial Territory of the Nizhny Novgorod Region and the Sanitary Protection Zone of Nizhny Novgorod's City-Forming Enterprise

The paper presents the trends in atmospheric pollution of the Balahna agglomeration (Nizhny Novgorod region, Russia), identified based on the ecological and chemical analysis of snow masses accumulated in 2019 and 2020, and also describes some features of the pollution of snow accumulated in 2020 in the protective zone of one of the city-forming enterprises of Nizhny Novgorod. Within Balahna-Pravdinsk, the presence of chlorides, sulfates, and hydrocarbonates in the snow waters was revealed, which may indicate the presence of corresponding ecotoxicants in the gas and dust emissions of the enterprise. Within Nizhny Novgorod, the presence of increased concentrations of ammonia, as well as the presence of nitrogen oxides and dust-like pollution in the atmosphere of an industrial area, was established.

Biomonitoring of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Deposition in Greenland Using Historical Moss Herbarium Specimens Shows a Decrease in Pollution During the 20th Century.

Although most point sources of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), are at lower latitudes, the Arctic region is contaminated. In particular, PAHs now dominate the POP body burden of the region’s marine biota at the lower trophic levels. Greenlandic Inuits have the most elevated levels of POPs in their blood compared to any other population, due to their consumption of seal meat and other marine mammals. PAHs, the by-products of the incomplete combustion of petroleum products, are known carcinogens and have been shown to affect the immune system, reproduction, endocrine functions, and the nervous system. With industrial activities and climate change set to increase local PAH emissions, it is paramount to document changes in atmospheric PAH deposition to further investigate PAH exposure in the region and attribute contaminations to their sources. As a measure of atmospheric pollution, we sampled bryophyte herbarium specimens of three common and widespread species collected in Greenland between the 1920s and 1970s after which time new collections were not available. They were analyzed for 19 PAHs using GC-MS (gas chromatography mass spectrometry). The presence of more low-molecular-weight PAHs than high-molecular-weight PAHs is evidence that the PAH contamination in Greenland is due to long-range transport rather than originating from local sources. The results show peaks in PAH atmospheric deposition in the first part of the 19th century followed by a trend of decrease, which mirror global trends in atmospheric pollution known from those periods. PAHs associated with wood and fossil-fuel combustion decrease in the 1970s coinciding with the disappearance of charcoal pits and foundries in Europe and North America, and a shift away from domestic heating with wood during the 19th century. The results highlight the value of bryophytes as bioindicators to measure PAH atmospheric pollution as well as the unrealized potential of herbaria as historical records of environmental change.

Temporal Changes in Mountain Slope Gradients in the Concentrations of Pollutants and Pb Isotope Ratios Near the Ostrava Conurbation (Upper Silesia, Czech-Polish Border)

The Upper Silesian basin belongs to the largest industrial pollution sources in Europe and the city of Ostrava ranks among the worst-polluted urban areas in the European Union. To assess temporal and spatial trends in atmospheric pollution, we determined concentrations of S, Pb, Cu, Zn, As, Cd, Sb, and Al in snow in downtown Ostrava and at the Lysa Hora Mt. (LH), situated 33 km southeast. Snowpack surfaces were sampled in February 2011/2012, 2018, and 2019. At LH, we collected snow samples at four elevations (700, 900, 1100, and 1300 m) in order to quantify mountain slope gradients in the pollution that, in turn, might reflect vertical stratification of air masses in a region frequently affected by temperature inversions. 206Pb/207Pb and 208Pb/207Pb isotope ratios and back trajectories of air masses were used for pollution source apportionment. In year 1, there were clear-cut upslope decreases in concentrations of soluble pollutants. By year 3, the concentrations of soluble pollutants at LH decreased by 90% and the concentration gradients ceased to exist. Because annual precipitation totals at LH increase upslope by 75%, rates of deposition of soluble pollutants are now higher at the summit than those at the foot of the mountain. Hydrological control of deposition rates of soluble pollutants thus plays a more important role under lower pollution levels. Concentrations of soluble pollutants in Ostrava were up to 36 times higher compared with those at LH and also decreased by 90%. Lead isotopes indicated the continuing presence of gasoline Pb in the atmosphere, despite its ban in 2000.

Energy policy and environmental pollution: a look to the future

Over the past twenty years, environmental pollution has reached truly global proportions. Today's pollutants are more toxic in ever smaller amounts, and pose an equal threat in developed and developing countries. Three phenomena of the global environment exemplify these trends in atmospheric pollution: acid rain, stratospheric ozone destruction, and the greenhouse effect. A key to solving these global challenges lies in energy policy. Specific steps include: increasing energy efficiency and developing renewable energy sources, employing less–polluting technologies, using market forces to reflect the true social costs of pollution, and initiating innovative international efforts to reduce pollution and mitigate its effects.

Impacts of atmospheric pollution on climate change – laboratory studies

Abstract Through many interactions, the composition and chemistry of the atmosphere are inherently connected to the climate system since atmospheric pollutants initiate chemical reactions affecting the climatically important compounds such as greenhouse gases. Therefore, when considering climate–chemistry interactions in the atmosphere, it is not only important to study the emissions of the climate compounds, but also to consider the chemical processes and the distribution of the compounds in the atmospheric regions by assessing their atmospheric sources and fates and determining their lifetimes. A considerable amount of kinetic studies has been carried out in this field. Consequently, progressive improvements in the database for reactions involving atmospheric pollutants and the quantification of their atmospheric lifetimes are made. This is fundamental to understanding the relationship between the budget and the trends of atmospheric pollutants and thus, their impact on the climate. This issue is an essential step helping to develop effective control strategies and to establish appropriate legislations in order to prevent the emission of pollutants and to protect the atmosphere. In this respect, this paper focus on the impact of the gas phase chemistry on the climate and briefly presents the future changes in the Mediterranean climate. The major kinetic methods used in this field in laboratory studies are then reviewed and emphases on their limitations are indicated.

Multivariate statistics as means of tracking atmospheric pollution trends in Western Poland

This study was carried out over a period of 4 years (2002–2005) at 2 sites located in western Poland differing as regards to human impact by analysis of chemical composition of bulk precipitation. The aim of the study was to determine the sources of pollutions and assess their quantitative contribution to the bulk precipitation composition and to analyse long term-changes in the chemical quality of precipitation. Based on this information the possible transboundary impacts of pollution were also determined. The samples were characterized by determining the values of pH, electrolytic conductivity and concentration levels of Cl−, F−, SO4 2−, NO3 −, Na+, K+, Mg2+, Ca2+ and NH4 +. Analytical measurements were connected with application of principal component regression (PCR) and time series analysis (TS). Based on PCR results three major sources of pollutants in central part of Poland have been identified and quantitatively assessed as follows: “combined” (Poznań – 31%, WNP – 32%), “soil-particulates” (Poznań – 2%, WNP – 26%), “anthropogenic-fossil fuels” (Poznań – 43%, WNP – 23%). Time series analysis enabled discovering 12-month time cycle for NO3 −, NH4 +, Cl−, F− and SO4 2− in average monthly concentration values in bulk precipitation collected in Wielkopolski National Park. Seasonal variation in the emission of precursors of NO3 − and NH4 + was caused by changes in intensity of fertilizer application in agriculture and automobile exhaust emissions. Decreasing trend was visible for sulphates, nitrates, chlorides and fluorides which is an important indication of the acid rain reduction in the ecologically protected area and in Poznań.

Regional variation in forest health under long-term air pollution mitigated by lithological conditions

Forest defoliation and discoloration have been monitored extensively in Europe over the past decade, yet the number of published studies seeking to interpret these data in light of environmental parameters such as lithology and airborne pollution are few. In this study we summarize and compare data on defoliation and discoloration of Norway spruce dominated stands from three regions of the Czech Republic that differ in their lithology. In the Šumava and Krkonoše regions these measures increased over the monitoring period, which is interpreted as an effect of residual soil acidification. At Beskydy, a general stability in forest health parameters was observed. Regional differences are attributed to underlying lithography—the greater calcium carbonate content of the flysch bedrock at Beskydy provides better buffering against acid deposition. These results are supported by evidence of similar trends in atmospheric pollution (ambient air concentrations and deposition) between Beskydy and the Krkonoše region and higher sulphur inputs than at Šumava. Stand elevation and age, collected as explanatory variables, did not affect this interpretation. Additionally, in the Krkonoše region forest health data were examined for four soil type categories (extreme, acidic, enriched and nutritive) specific to forest conditions in the Czech Republic. Simple time series analysis of defoliation and discoloration demonstrated that extreme and acidic soils accounted for the majority of the increasing trend of forest decline in Krkonoše. However, multivariate non-linear regression analysis using elevation and stand age revealed that defoliation was not significantly different between acidic and nutritive soil type categories; rather, this was an artefact of the experimental design. The implications of the research are that acidic and nutritive soil type categories respond similarly to acid deposition while enriched, the most nutrient rich type category is most resistant. As such our results support the interpretation that lithology is a factor mitigating forest decline in Norway spruce dominated forests in the Czech Republic. Our results have implications for zonation strategies like those being used in Krkonoše National Park which seek to prescribe specific restoration measures based upon abiotic factors for acid-damaged forests.

The pine needle as a monitor of atmospheric pollution

THE concentrations of toxic chemicals in the atmosphere and their deposition and long-range transport are becoming one of the more prominent issues in environmental chemistry. In 1986, a report1 was published documenting the levels of DDT (p,p′-dichlorodiphenyl-trichloroethane) and other organochlorine contaminants in the muscle tissue of pike and herring from areas in and around Sweden. There has previously been a downward trend in residue levels but in parts of Sweden and the south Baltic during 1983-84, the ratio of p,p′-DDT to its metabolites significantly increased, indicative of freshly released DDT from a source south of Sweden. (DDT has been restricted or banned in most of Europe since the 1970s.) It was established2 that an increased forest spraying program using DDT was implemented in 1984 in the southern part of East Germany. DDT can be transported over very long distances3 and in light of the above there is a need for an extensive field programme to monitor such pollution and locate its source. Here we test the hypothesis that the pine needle is a suitable monitoring matrix and delineate the extent of the DDT contamination of 1983–84. We conclude that the pine needle is a suitable monitor of atmospheric pollution and that because of the widespread distribution of the pine, it may provide time-series data for much of the Northern Hemisphere from which trends in atmospheric pollution may be discerned.

Climatology and Environment

A significant share in the solution of modern problems of environment in Czechoslovakia have both meteorology (as a discipline of physical sciences) and climatology (as a discipline of geographical sciences). According to definition the atmospheric pollution is to be understood as an element of the weather. Similarly, in the study of climate, it is necessary to take into consideration even the effects of man's activities on weather and climate. But the climatological problems of air pollution are only one side of applied climatology. In areas with a lower concentration of industry (such as districts of Břeclav and Jihlava) the problems of the effects of weather and climate on man and his economic activities are much more immediate. In agriculture it is not only the influence on yields but climatic conditions play an important role even in the use of mechanization etc. It appears that there are no sufficient data available in Czechoslovakia as to the main laws governing the distribution in space and time of dangerous weather phenomena (e. g. in the case of thunderstorms not only their frequency, but direction and velocity in the various parts of the country, the density of damage caused by lightnings too - for planning of high-voltage lines etc.). A similar situation can be registered even in the case of hailstorms, late frosts, ice accretion etc. It would be necessary to try to elaborate a regionalization of similar phenomena with respect to physical and geographical points of view. In the compilation of mesoclimatic maps it will be necessary to try to pass over from teoretical methods to methods of remote-sensing. As late as after the solution of the basic methodical approach to the elaboration of partial phenomena the synthesis can be started such as of effects of weather and climate on economic activities and, vice versa, effects of economic activities of man on weather and climate. The prognoses of environment must be based not only on trends of atmospheric pollution but also on the dynamics of climatic oscillations.