Observations of greenhouse gas and short-lived pollutants in the Baltimore Washington area: Quantification and mitigation
- 1The University of Maryland (rrd@umd.edu)
- 2NOAA Air Resources Laboratory
- 3National Institute of Standards and Technology
- 4SUNY Stonybrook
For the past five years, we have been measuring greenhouse gases CO2, and CH4 along with a suite of pollutants related to photochemical smog (O3, NO2, VOCs, CO) and particulate matter (SO2 (sulfate precursor), & aerosol optical properties) from a research aircraft. These complement a network of tower-based monitors and provide input to a variety of models used to determine emissions. Initial findings include identification of landfills and leakage from the natural gas delivery system as major local sources of CH4, as well as substantial upwind sources such as oil and gas operations in the Marcellus shale play. Quantification of emissions and flux is complicated by uncertainties in background concentrations and mesoscale dynamics. Comparison of short-lived species has shed light on the efficiency of combustion and pollution control as well as the temperature dependence of emissions. Ratios of CO:CO2, for example, are consistent with emissions inventories and verify the high efficiency catalytic converters.
How to cite: Dickerson, R., Canty, T., Ren, X., Salawitch, R., Shepson, P., Lopez Coto, I., and Whetstone, J.: Observations of greenhouse gas and short-lived pollutants in the Baltimore Washington area: Quantification and mitigation, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-11032, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-11032, 2020