Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
2.11 AMFIC: Air Quality Modeling and Forecasting
in China
Wouter Lefebvre
1
, Karen Van de Vel
1
, Koen De Ridder
1
, Joachim Maes
1,2
,
Clemens Mensink
1
, Bas Mijling
3
, Ronald van der A
3
, Nele Veldeman
1
,
Peter Viaene
1
, and Jo Vliegen
1,4
1
Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO), Mol, Belgium
2
Now at Joint Research Center, Ispra, Italy
3
Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI), De Bilt, The Netherlands
4
Now at Katholieke Hogeschool Limburg (KHLIM), Hasselt, Belgium
Abstract
The AMFIC project (http://www.knmi.nl/samenw/amfic/) develops an
integrated information system for monitoring and forecasting tropospheric pollutants
over China. The system uses satellite and in situ air quality measurements together
with air quality modelling to generate consistent and continuous air quality
information. In this way it supplements and broadens the existing ground-level
monitoring and air quality assessment activities in China.
Within AMFIC, the AURORA air quality model is applied to zoom in to the
urban scale in order to identify hot spots of air pollution, to assess population
exposure and the impact of emission reduction strategies at the city level. In this
contribution we present our contribution to AMFIC (ESA Dragon Programme)
and focus on the megacity of Shenyang.
Here the AURORA model is used to investigate the impact of urban vegetation
abundance on air quality. First of all, some base runs were made and validated
using local measurement data. It is shown that the model results are close to the
measurements for most cases, especially taking into account the limited emission
data available for this region. Thereafter, urban greening scenarios were implemented
by artificially increasing and decreasing the percentage urban green vegetation
cover. Both the amount and the spatial distribution of green vegetation cover were
specified using a remotely sensed vegetation index.
This paper discusses both the methodology used to create high resolution
emission data over China as the results of the dispersion modelling.
Keywords
Modelling, air quality, China, urban greening, emission disaggregation
1. Introduction
China has one of the world's fastest-growing economies, but major cities such as
Beijing, Shanghai and Shenyang have problems with choking pollution levels. In
