Concentrations and Loads of Nutrients and Suspended Sediments in Englesby Brook and Little Otter Creek, Lake Champlain Basin, Vermont, 2000-2005

USGS Publications Warehouse

Medalie, Laura

2007-01-01

The effectiveness of best-management practices (BMPs) in improving water quality in Lake Champlain tributaries was evaluated from 2000 through 2005 on the basis of analysis of data collected on concentrations of total phosphorus and suspended sediment in Englesby Brook, an urban stream in Burlington, and Little Otter Creek, an agricultural stream in Ferrisburg. Data also were collected on concentrations of total nitrogen in the Englesby Brook watershed. In the winter of 2001-2002, one of three planned structural BMPs was installed in the urban watershed. At approximately the same time, a set of barnyard BMPs was installed in the agricultural watershed; however, the other planned BMPs, which included streambank fencing and nutrient management, were not implemented within the study period. At Englesby Brook, concentrations of phosphorus ranged from 0.024 to 0.3 milligrams per liter (mg/L) during base-flow and from 0.032 to 11.8 mg/L during high-flow conditions. Concentrations of suspended sediment ranged from 3 to 189 mg/L during base-flow and from 5 to 6,880 mg/L during high-flow conditions. An assessment of the effectiveness of an urban BMP was made by comparing concentrations and loads of phosphorus and suspended sediment before and after a golf-course irrigation pond in the Englesby Brook watershed was retrofitted with the objective of reducing sediment transport. Results from a modified paired watershed study design showed that the BMP reduced concentrations of phosphorus and suspended sediment during high-flow events - when average streamflow was greater than 3 cubic feet per second. While construction of the BMP did not reduce storm loads of phosphorus or suspended sediment, an evaluation of changes in slope of double-mass curves showing cumulative monthly streamflow plotted against cumulative monthly loads indicated a possible reduction in cumulative loads of phosphorus and suspended sediment after BMP construction. Results from the Little Otter Creek assessment of agricultural BMPs showed that concentrations of phosphorus ranged from 0.016 to 0.141 mg/L during base-flow and from 0.019 to 0.565 mg/L during high-flow conditions at the upstream monitoring station. Concentrations of suspended sediment ranged from 2 to 13 mg/L during base-flow and from 1 to 473 mg/L during high-flow conditions at the upstream monitoring station. Concentrations of phosphorus ranged from 0.018 to 0.233 mg/L during base-flow and from 0.019 to 1.95 mg/L during high-flow conditions at the downstream monitoring station. Concentrations of suspended sediment ranged from 10 to 132 mg/L during base-flow and from 8 to 1,190 mg/L during high-flow conditions at the downstream monitoring station. Annual loads of phosphorus at the downstream monitoring station were significantly larger than loads at the upstream monitoring station, and annual loads of suspended sediment at the downstream monitoring station were larger than loads at the upstream monitoring station for 4 out of 6 years. On a monthly basis, loads of phosphorus and suspended sediment at the downstream monitoring station were significantly larger than loads at the upstream monitoring station. Pairs of concentrations of phosphorus and monthly loads of phosphorus and suspended sediment from the upstream and downstream monitoring stations were evaluated using the paired watershed study design. The only significant reduction between the calibration and treatment periods was for monthly loads of phosphorus; all other evaluations showed no change between periods.

Local source impacts on primary and secondary aerosols in the Midwestern United States

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jayarathne, Thilina; Rathnayake, Chathurika M.; Stone, Elizabeth A.

2016-04-01

Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) exhibits heterogeneity in composition across urban areas, leading to poor representation of outdoor air pollutants in human exposure assessments. To examine heterogeneity in PM composition and sources across an urban area, fine particulate matter samples (PM2.5) were chemically profiled in Iowa City, IA from 25 August to 10 November 2011 at two monitoring stations. The urban site is the federal reference monitoring (FRM) station in the city center and the peri-urban site is located 8.0 km to the west on the city edge. Measurements of PM2.5 carbonaceous aerosol, inorganic ions, molecular markers for primary sources, and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) tracers were used to assess statistical differences in composition and sources across the two sites. PM2.5 mass ranged from 3 to 26 μg m-3 during this period, averaging 11.2 ± 4.9 μg m-3 (n = 71). Major components of PM2.5 at the urban site included organic carbon (OC; 22%), ammonium (14%), sulfate (13%), nitrate (7%), calcium (2.9%), and elemental carbon (EC; 2.2%). Periods of elevated PM were driven by increases in ammonium, sulfate, and SOA tracers that coincided with hot and dry conditions and southerly winds. Chemical mass balance (CMB) modeling was used to apportion OC to primary sources; biomass burning, vegetative detritus, diesel engines, and gasoline engines accounted for 28% of OC at the urban site and 24% of OC at the peri-urban site. Secondary organic carbon from isoprene and monoterpene SOA accounted for an additional 13% and 6% of OC at the urban and peri-urban sites, respectively. Differences in biogenic SOA across the two sites were associated with enhanced combustion activities in the urban area and higher aerosol acidity at the urban site. Major PM constituents (e.g., OC, ammonium, sulfate) were generally well-represented by a single monitoring station, indicating a regional source influence. Meanwhile, nitrate, biomass burning, food cooking, suspended dust, and biogenic SOA were not well-represented by a single site and demonstrated local influences. For isoprene SOA, product distributions indicated a larger role for the high-NOx pathway at the urban site. These local sources are largely responsible for differences in population exposures to outdoor PM in the study domain located within the Midwestern US.

Research on the optimization of air quality monitoring station layout based on spatial grid statistical analysis method.

PubMed

Li, Tianxin; Zhou, Xing Chen; Ikhumhen, Harrison Odion; Difei, An

2018-05-01

In recent years, with the significant increase in urban development, it has become necessary to optimize the current air monitoring stations to reflect the quality of air in the environment. Highlighting the spatial representation of some air monitoring stations using Beijing's regional air monitoring station data from 2012 to 2014, the monthly mean particulate matter concentration (PM10) in the region was calculated and through the IDW interpolation method and spatial grid statistical method using GIS, the spatial distribution of PM10 concentration in the whole region was deduced. The spatial distribution variation of districts in Beijing using the gridding model was performed, and through the 3-year spatial analysis, PM10 concentration data including the variation and spatial overlay (1.5 km × 1.5 km cell resolution grid), the spatial distribution result obtained showed that the total PM10 concentration frequency variation exceeded the standard. It is very important to optimize the layout of the existing air monitoring stations by combining the concentration distribution of air pollutants with the spatial region using GIS.

Assessment of daytime outdoor comfort levels in and outside the urban area of Glasgow, UK.

PubMed

Krüger, Eduardo; Drach, Patricia; Emmanuel, Rohinton; Corbella, Oscar

2013-07-01

To understand thermal preferences and to define a preliminary outdoor comfort range for the local population of Glasgow, UK, an extensive series of measurements and surveys was carried out during 19 monitoring campaigns from winter through summer 2011 at six different monitoring points in pedestrian areas of downtown Glasgow. For data collection, a Davis Vantage Pro2 weather station equipped with temperature and humidity sensors, cup anemometer with wind vane, silicon pyranometer and globe thermometer was employed. Predictions of the outdoor thermal index PET (physiologically equivalent temperature) correlated closely to the actual thermal votes of respondents. Using concurrent measurements from a second Davis Vantage Pro2 weather station placed in a rural setting approximately 15 km from the urban area, comparisons were drawn with regard to daytime thermal comfort levels and urban-rural temperature differences (∆T(u-r)) for the various sites. The urban sites exhibited a consistent lower level of thermal discomfort during daytime. No discernible effect of urban form attributes in terms of the sky-view factor were observed on ∆Tu-r or on the relative difference of the adjusted predicted percentage of dissatisfied (PPD*).

Validation of crowdsourced automatic rain gauge measurements in Amsterdam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Vos, Lotte; Leijnse, Hidde; Overeem, Aart; Uijlenhoet, Remko

2016-04-01

The increasing number of privately owned weather stations and the facilitating role the internet to make this data publicly available, has led to several online platforms that collect and visualize crowdsourced weather data. This has resulted in ever increasing freely available datasets of weather measurements generated by amateur weather enthusiasts. Because of the lack of quality control and the frequent absence of metadata, these measurements are often considered as unreliable. Given the often large variability of weather variables in space and time, and the generally low number of official weather stations, this growing quantity of crowdsourced data may become an important additional source of information. Amateur weather observations have become more frequent over the past decade due to weather stations becoming more user-friendly and affordable. The variables measured by these weather stations are temperature, pressure and dew point, and in some cases wind and rainfall. Meteorological data from crowdsourced automatic weather stations in cities have primarily been used to examine the urban heat island effect. Thus far, these studies have focused on the comparison of the crowdsourced station temperature measurements with a nearby WMO-standard weather station, which is often located in a rural area or the outskirts of a city, generally not being representative of the city center. Instead of temperature, the rainfall measurements by the stations are examined. This research focuses on the combined ability of a large number of privately owned weather stations in an urban setting to correctly monitor rainfall. A set of 64 automatic weather stations distributed over Amsterdam (The Netherlands) that have at least 3 months of precipitation measurement during one year are evaluated. Precipitation measurements from stations are compared to a merged radar-gauge precipitation product. Disregarding sudden jumps in station measured precipitation, the accumulative rainfall over time in most stations showed an underestimation of rainfall compared to the accumulative values found in the corresponding radar pixel of the reference. Special consideration is given to the identification of faulty measurements without the need to obtain additional meta-data, such as setup and surroundings. This validation will show the potential of crowdsourced automatic weather stations for future urban rainfall monitoring.

The model SIRANE for atmospheric urban pollutant dispersion. PART III: Validation against NO2 yearly concentration measurements in a large urban agglomeration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soulhac, L.; Nguyen, C. V.; Volta, P.; Salizzoni, P.

2017-10-01

We present a validation study of an updated version of the SIRANE model, whose results have been systematically compared to concentrations of nitrogen dioxide collected over the whole urban agglomeration of Lyon. We model atmospheric dispersion of nitrogen oxides emitted by road traffic, industries and domestic heating. The meteorological wind field is computed by a pre-processor using data collected at a ground level monitoring station. Model results are compared with hourly concentrations measured at 15 monitoring stations over the whole year (2008). Further 75 passive diffusion samplers were used during 3 periods of 2 weeks to get a detailed spatial distribution over the west part of the city. An analysis of the model results depending on the variability of the meteorological input allows us to identify the causes for peculiar bad performances of the model and to identify possible improvements of the parameterisations implemented in it.

Distributed On-line Monitoring System Based on Modem and Public Phone Net

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Dandan; Zhang, Qiushi; Li, Guiru

In order to solve the monitoring problem of urban sewage disposal, a distributed on-line monitoring system is proposed. By introducing dial-up communication technology based on Modem, the serial communication program can rationally solve the information transmission problem between master station and slave station. The realization of serial communication program is based on the MSComm control of C++ Builder 6.0.The software includes real-time data operation part and history data handling part, which using Microsoft SQL Server 2000 for database, and C++ Builder6.0 for user interface. The monitoring center displays a user interface with alarm information of over-standard data and real-time curve. Practical application shows that the system has successfully accomplished the real-time data acquisition from data gather station, and stored them in the terminal database.

Geochemistry and carbon isotopic ratio for assessment of PM10 composition, source and seasonal trends in urban environment.

PubMed

Di Palma, A; Capozzi, F; Agrelli, D; Amalfitano, C; Giordano, S; Spagnuolo, V; Adamo, P

2018-08-01

Investigating the nature of PM 10 is crucial to differentiate sources and their relative contributions. In this study we compared the levels, and the chemical and mineralogical properties of PM 10 particles sampled in different seasons at monitoring stations representative of urban background, urban traffic and suburban traffic areas of Naples city. The aims were to relate the PM 10 load and characteristics to the location of the monitoring stations, to investigate the different sources contributing to PM 10 and to highlight PM 10 seasonal variability. Bulk analyses of chemical species in the PM 10 fraction included total carbon and nitrogen, δ 13 C and other 20 elements. Both natural and anthropogenic sources were found to contribute to the exceedances of the EU PM 10 limit values. The natural contribution was mainly related to marine aerosols and soil dust, as highlighted by X-ray diffractometry and SEM-EDS microscopy. The percentage of total carbon suggested a higher contribution of biogenic components to PM 10 in spring. However, this result was not supported by the δ 13 C values which were seasonally homogeneous and not sufficient to extract single emission sources. No significant differences, in terms of PM 10 load and chemistry, were observed between monitoring stations with different locations, suggesting a homogeneous distribution of PM 10 on the studied area in all seasons. The anthropogenic contribution to PM 10 seemed to dominate in all sites and seasons with vehicular traffic acting as a main source mostly by generation of non-exhaust emissions Our findings reinforce the need to focus more on the analysis of PM 10 in terms of quality than of load, to reconsider the criteria for the classification and the spatial distribution of the monitoring stations within urban and suburban areas, with a special attention to the background location, and to emphasize all the policies promoting sustainable mobility and reduction of both exhaust and not-exhaust traffic-related emissions. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Separating the air quality impact of a major highway and nearby sources by nonparametric trajectory analysis.

PubMed

Henry, Ronald C; Vette, Alan; Norris, Gary; Vedantham, Ram; Kimbrough, Sue; Shores, Richard C

2011-12-15

Nonparametric Trajectory Analysis (NTA), a receptor-oriented model, was used to assess the impact of local sources of air pollution at monitoring sites located adjacent to highway I-15 in Las Vegas, NV. Measurements of black carbon, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and sulfur dioxide concentrations were collected from December 2008 to December 2009. The purpose of the study was to determine the impact of the highway at three downwind monitoring stations using an upwind station to measure background concentrations. NTA was used to precisely determine the contribution of the highway to the average concentrations measured at the monitoring stations accounting for the spatially heterogeneous contributions of other local urban sources. NTA uses short time average concentrations, 5 min in this case, and constructed local back-trajectories from similarly short time average wind speed and direction to locate and quantify contributions from local source regions. Averaged over an entire year, the decrease of concentrations with distance from the highway was found to be consistent with previous studies. For this study, the NTA model is shown to be a reliable approach to quantify the impact of the highway on local air quality in an urban area with other local sources.

The 1979 Southeastern Virginia Urban Plume Study. Volume 1: Description of experiments and selected aircraft data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gregory, G. L.; Lee, R. B., III; Mathis, J. J., Jr.

1981-01-01

The Southeastern Virginia Urban Plume Study (SEV-UPS) utilizes remote sensors and satellite platforms to monitor the Earth's environment and resources. SEV-UPS focuses on the application of specific remote sensors to the monitoring and study of specific air quality problems. The 1979 SEV-UPS field program was conducted with specific objectives: (1) to provide correlative data to evaluate the Laser Absorption spectrometer ozone remote sensors; (2) to demonstrate the utility of the sensor for the study of urban ozone problems; (3) to provide additional insights into air quality phenomena occuring in Southeastern Virginia; and (4) to compare measurement results of various in situ measurement platforms. The field program included monitoring from 12 surface stations, 4 aircraft, 2 tethered balloons, 2 radiosonde release sites, and numerous surface meteorological observation sites. The aircraft monitored 03, NO, NOX, Bscat, temperature, and dewpoint temperature.

[Spatial representativeness of monitoring stations for air quality in Florence (Tuscany Region, Central Italy) according to ARPAT e LaMMA. Critical observations].

PubMed

Grechi, Daniele

2016-01-01

On March 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency of Tuscany Region (Central Italy) and the Laboratory of monitoring and environmental modelling published a Report on spatial representativeness of monitoring stations for Tuscan air quality, where they supported the decommissioning of modelling stations located in the Florentine Plain. The stations of Signa, Scandicci, and Firenze-Bassi, located in a further South area, were considered representative Believing that air quality of the Plain could be evaluated by these stations is a stretch. In this text the author show the inconsistency of the conclusion of the Report through correlation graphs comparing daily means of PM10 detected in the disposed stations and in the active ones, showing relevant differences between the reported values and the days when the limits are exceeded. The discrepancy is due to the fact that uncertainty of theoretical estimates is greater than the differences recorded by the stations considered as a reference and the areas they may represent. The area of the Plain has a population of 150,000 individuals and it is subject to a heavy environmental pression, which will change for the urban works planned for the coming years. The population's legitimate request for the analytical monitoring of air pollution could be met through the organization of participated monitoring based on the use of low-cost innovative tools.

Interdisciplinary Study of Urbanization and Impacts - the Poplex 2014 Field Campaign

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nghiem, S. V.; Masetti, M.; Stevenazzi, S.; Bonfanti, M.; Conforto, A.; Filippini, M.; Fabbri, P.; Pola, M.; Sorichetta, A.; Linard, C.; Pampaloni, P.; Paloscia, S.; Santi, E. S.; Catani, F.; Neumann, G.

2014-12-01

Haphazard urban development may have far reaching impacts not only around the urban vicinity but also across regional and perhaps global scales. To investigate urban change and impacts, the PO PLain EXperiment (POPLEX) was conducted in May 2014. The focus of POPLEX was to conduct the most effective study, by closely coordinating the field campaign with the science team in different zones of the Po Plain in northern Italy, and also with an extension to Florence in the Tuscany region. Northern Italy is one of the most populated areas in Europe and most of its cities registered an urban sprawl pattern in the 2000s. In this view, the POPLEX domain represents a pertinent "pilot area" to identify environmental impacts due to urban sprawl. This is to identify and understand the influence of urban characteristics and urban change on important environmental topics such as: (a) groundwater resource quality assessment and management, (b) air quality assessment, and (c) temperature assessment. POPLEX involved 25 participants from 15 institutions from 5 countries using data from 12 satellites and extensive field networks including approximately 220 meteorological stations, 170 air monitoring stations, hundreds of groundwater monitoring wells, and 20 river gauges together with demographic census data and detailed survey maps of land cover and land use. Innovative processing, with the Dense Sampling Method and Rosette Transform applied to satellite scatterometer data, has allowed a successful development of a spatially and temporally consistent dataset delineating urban extension and thus to monitor the annual rate of changes, in each pixel of a 1-km grid, throughout the decade of 2000s across the landscape without spatial gaps. Such dataset enables the introduction of the time dimension into dynamic analyses combining both anthropogenic and natural factors including atmospheric, geophysical, and hydrogeological characteristics of each study area. Initial results have been obtained and will be presented on: (i) accelerated urbanization gradient in Milan transition areas, (ii) air pollution over urban areas and its constrain in the Po Plain surrounded by mountains, (iii) water contaminations due to urbanization in Lombardy, and (iv) hot-spot urbanization pattern of new built-up pockets in the Florence-Prato plain.

Using geo-targeted social media data to detect outdoor air pollution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jiang, W.; Wang, Y.; Tsou, M. H.; Fu, X.

2016-06-01

Outdoor air pollution has become a more and more serious issue over recent years (He, 2014). Urban air quality is measured at air monitoring stations. Building air monitoring stations requires land, incurs costs and entails skilled technicians to maintain a station. Many countries do not have any monitoring stations and even lack any means to monitor air quality. Recent years, the social media could be used to monitor air quality dynamically (Wang, 2015; Mei, 2014). However, no studies have investigated the inter-correlations between real-space and cyberspace by examining variation in micro-blogging behaviors relative to changes in daily air quality. Thus, existing methods of monitoring AQI using micro-blogging data shows a high degree of error between real AQI and air quality as inferred from social media messages. In this paper, we introduce a new geo-targeted social media analytic method to (1) investigate the dynamic relationship between air pollution-related posts on Sina Weibo and daily AQI values; (2) apply Gradient Tree Boosting, a machine learning method, to monitor the dynamics of AQI using filtered social media messages. Our results expose the spatiotemporal relationships between social media messages and real-world environmental changes as well suggesting new ways to monitor air pollution using social media.

Ground Subsidence Along Shanghai Metro Line 6 BY PS-InSAR Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, J.; Liao, M.; Li, N.

2018-04-01

With the rapid development of urban economy, convenient, safe, and efficient urban rail transit has become the preferred method for people to travel. In order to ensure the safety and sustainable development of urban rail transit, the PS-InSAR technology with millimeter deformation measurement accuracy has been widely applied to monitor the deformation of urban rail transit. In this paper, 32 scenes of COSMO-SkyMed descending images and 23 scenes of Envisat ASAR images covering the Shanghai Metro Line 6 acquired from 2008 to 2010 are used to estimate the average deformation rate along line-of-sight (LOS) direction by PS-InSAR method. The experimental results show that there are two main subsidence areas along the Shanghai Metro Line 6, which are located between Wuzhou Avenue Station to Wulian Road Station and West Gaoke Road Station to Gaoqing Road Station. Between Wuzhou Avenue Station and Wulian Road Station, the maximum displacement rate in the vertical direction of COSMO-SkyMed images is -9.92 mm/year, and the maximum displacement rate in the vertical direction of Envisat ASAR images is -8.53 mm/year. From the West Gaoke Road Station to the Gaoqing Road Station, the maximum displacement rate in the vertical direction of COSMO-SkyMed images is -15.53 mm/year, and the maximum displacement rate in the vertical direction of Envisat ASAR images is -17.9 mm/year. The results show that the ground deformation rates obtained by two SAR platforms with different wavelengths, different sensors and different incident angles have good consistence with each other, and also that of spirit leveling.

Petroleum hydrocarbon pollution of urban topsoil in Ibadan city, Nigeria

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Onianwa, P.C.

The distribution of total petroleum hydrocarbon in topsoils from various parts of Ibadan city, Nigeria, was studied. Samples were selected from around the following zones: (a) railway tracks, (b) petrol stations, (c) refuse dumps, (d) residential areas, (e) high traffic density areas, (f) mechanical workshops, and (g) control zones. Contamination of the topsoil with hydrocarbons was significant only around petrol stations and mechanical workshops where the factors of accumulation were 10.1 and 4.72, respectively. The general trend in hydrocarbon levels was petrol station > mechanical workshop > refuse dumps > high traffic areas {ge} rail tracks > control residential areas.more » The results highlight the need to monitor urban environments that are remote from petroleum exploration activities for petroleum hydrocarbon contamination. 19 refs., 3 tabs.« less

Numerical Simulation and Monitoring of Surface Environment Influence of Waterless Sand Layer Shield Tunneling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shang, Yanliang; Han, Tongyin; Shi, Wenjun; Du, Shouji; Qin, Zhichao

2017-10-01

The development of urban subway is becoming more and more rapid and plays an increasingly important role. The shield tunneling method has become the first choice for the construction of urban subway tunnel in the construction of urban subway. The paper takes the interval of Shijiazhuang Metro Line 3 Administrative Center Station and Garden Park Station as the engineering background. The establishment of double shield finite difference model by considering the thickness of covering soil, tunnel excavation and excavation at the same time, distance and other factors, the surface deformation, and soil thickness. The ground deformation law is obtained, the surface settlement is inversely proportional to the overburden thickness and the double line spacing, and the gradual excavation is smaller than the synchronous excavation.

Effects of urban runoff and wastewater effluent on Wilsons Creek and James River near Springfield, Missouri

USGS Publications Warehouse

Berkas, Wayne R.

1980-01-01

Statistical analysis on water-quality parameters from James River upstream and downstream from the confluence of Wilsons Creek shows a significant difference for all parameters except temperature and dissolved silica at the 0.05 probability level. Regression analysis shows correlation for discharge with dissolved sodium, dissolved chloride, and dissolved potassium, and for specific conductance with dissolved chloride and dissolved sulfate at the station downstream from Wilsons Creek. This is due to the consistent quality of the effluent from the Southwest Wastewater Plant on Wilsons Creek. Water-quality monitor stations upstream and downstream from the wastewater plant indicate that the plant has a degrading effect on dissolved oxygen in Wilsons Creek and James River. The monitors also indicate that rainfall flushes momentarily poor quality water into Wilsons Creek from the urbanized Springfield area. Overall, the runoff is diluting the effluent from the wastewater plant. Rainfall and runoff stations indicate a rapid response of runoff to rainfall due to the high percentage of imperviousness and the filling or paving of sinkholes. (USGS)

Effects of urbanization on stream water quality in the city of Atlanta, Georgia, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Peters, N.E.

2009-01-01

A long-term stream water quality monitoring network was established in the city of Atlanta, Georgia during 2003 to assess baseline water quality conditions and the effects of urbanization on stream water quality. Routine hydrologically based manual stream sampling, including several concurrent manual point and equal width increment sampling, was conducted ???12 times annually at 21 stations, with drainage areas ranging from 3.7 to 232 km2. Eleven of the stations are real-time (RT) stations having continuous measures of stream stage/ discharge, pH, dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, water temperature and turbidity, and automatic samplers for stormwater collection. Samples were analyzed for field parameters, and a broad suite of water quality and sediment-related constituents. Field parameters and concentrations of major ions, metals, nutrient species and coliform bacteria among stations were evaluated and with respect to watershed characteristics and plausible sources from 2003 through September 2007. Most constituent concentrations are much higher than nearby reference streams. Concentrations are statistically different among stations for several constituents, despite high variability both within and among stations. Routine manual sampling, automatic sampling during stormflows and RT water quality monitoring provided sufficient information about urban stream water quality variability to evaluate causes of water quality differences among streams. Fecal coliform bacteria concentrations of most samples exceeded Georgia's water quality standard for any water-usage class. High chloride concentrations occur at three stations and are hypothesized to be associated with discharges of chlorinated combined sewer overflows, drainage of swimming pool(s) and dissolution and transport during rainstorms of CaCl2, a deicing salt applied to roads during winter storms. One stream was affected by dissolution and transport of ammonium alum [NH4Al(SO4)2] from an alum-manufacturing plant; streamwater has low pH (<5), low alkalinity and high metals concentrations. Several trace metals exceed acute and chronic water quality standards and high concentrations are attributed to washoff from impervious surfaces.

Long-term atmospheric deposition wet-dry fluxes. Critical loads exceedences in an urban area.

PubMed

Morselli, L; Brusori, B; Cecchini, M; Olivieri, P; Silingardi, D; Passarini, F

2001-01-01

The present work provides an overview of the most relevant results concerning a five years monitoring programme of wet and dry deposition (1995-1999) in the city of Bologna. The aim of this research is to get an overall picture of atmospheric pollutants deposition inventory in an urban territory and to allow an assessment of the vulnerability of the area by comparing actual fluxes of acidity and nutrient nitrogen with the respective "critical loads" associated to the territory, in the framework of the UNECE LRTAP (Long Range Transboundary Air Pollution Convention). This comparison, for the Bologna monitoring station, shows "exceedance classes" from 4 to 6 for acidity and from 1 to 5 for nutrient nitrogen, reflecting an urban-industrial context, though a trend in reducing occurs from 1995 to 1999. A water layer surface sampler (DAS-MTX sampler) was employed for "surrogate" dry deposition collection. The contribute of dry fraction to the total deposition fluxes appears to prevail on wet fraction for many pollutants (up to more than 90% for total calcium and alkalinity). A comparison with long term monitoring results from some stations in Italian territory, shows that the differences among chemical species deposition fluxes may be ascribed both to the long distance aerial transport of pollutants and to site characteristics.

High resolution remote sensing of densely urbanised regions: a case study of Hong Kong.

PubMed

Nichol, Janet E; Wong, Man Sing

2009-01-01

Data on the urban environment such as climate or air quality is usually collected at a few point monitoring stations distributed over a city. However, the synoptic viewpoint of satellites where a whole city is visible on a single image permits the collection of spatially comprehensive data at city-wide scale. In spite of rapid developments in remote sensing systems, deficiencies in image resolution and algorithm development still exist for applications such as air quality monitoring and urban heat island analysis. This paper describes state-of-the-art techniques for enhancing and maximising the spatial detail available from satellite images, and demonstrates their applications to the densely urbanised environment of Hong Kong. An Emissivity Modulation technique for spatial enhancement of thermal satellite images permits modelling of urban microclimate in combination with other urban structural parameters at local scale. For air quality monitoring, a Minimum Reflectance Technique (MRT) has been developed for MODIS 500 m images. The techniques described can promote the routine utilization of remotely sensed images for environmental monitoring in cities of the 21(st) century.

High Resolution Remote Sensing of Densely Urbanised Regions: a Case Study of Hong Kong

PubMed Central

Nichol, Janet E.; Wong, Man Sing

2009-01-01

Data on the urban environment such as climate or air quality is usually collected at a few point monitoring stations distributed over a city. However, the synoptic viewpoint of satellites where a whole city is visible on a single image permits the collection of spatially comprehensive data at city-wide scale. In spite of rapid developments in remote sensing systems, deficiencies in image resolution and algorithm development still exist for applications such as air quality monitoring and urban heat island analysis. This paper describes state-of-the-art techniques for enhancing and maximising the spatial detail available from satellite images, and demonstrates their applications to the densely urbanised environment of Hong Kong. An Emissivity Modulation technique for spatial enhancement of thermal satellite images permits modelling of urban microclimate in combination with other urban structural parameters at local scale. For air quality monitoring, a Minimum Reflectance Technique (MRT) has been developed for MODIS 500 m images. The techniques described can promote the routine utilization of remotely sensed images for environmental monitoring in cities of the 21st century. PMID:22408549

Assessment of an air pollution monitoring network to generate urban air pollution maps using Shannon information index, fuzzy overlay, and Dempster-Shafer theory, A case study: Tehran, Iran

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pahlavani, Parham; Sheikhian, Hossein; Bigdeli, Behnaz

2017-10-01

Air pollution assessment is an imperative part of megacities planning and control. Hence, a new comprehensive approach for air pollution monitoring and assessment was introduced in this research. It comprises of three main sections: optimizing the existing air pollutant monitoring network, locating new stations to complete the coverage of the existing network, and finally, generating an air pollution map. In the first section, Shannon information index was used to find less informative stations to be candidate for removal. Then, a methodology was proposed to determine the areas which are not sufficiently covered by the current network. These areas are candidates for establishing new monitoring stations. The current air pollution monitoring network of Tehran was used as a case study, where the air pollution issue has been worsened due to the huge population, considerable commuters' absorption and topographic barriers. In this regard, O3, NO, NO2, NOx, CO, PM10, and PM2.5 were considered as the main pollutants of Tehran. Optimization step concluded that all the 16 active monitoring stations should be preserved. Analysis showed that about 35% of the Tehran's area is not properly covered by monitoring stations and about 30% of the area needs additional stations. The winter period in Tehran always faces the most severe air pollution in the year. Hence, to produce the air pollution map of Tehran, three-month of winter measurements of the mentioned pollutants, repeated for five years in the same period, were selected and extended to the entire area using the kriging method. Experts specified the contribution of each pollutant in overall air pollution. Experts' rankings aggregated by a fuzzy-overlay process. Resulted maps characterized the study area with crucial air pollution situation. According to the maps, more than 45% of the city area faced high pollution in the study period, while only less than 10% of the area showed low pollution. This situation confirms the need for effective plans to mitigate the severity of the problem. In addition, an effort made to investigate the rationality of the acquired air pollution map respect to the urban, cultural, and environmental characteristics of Tehran, which also confirmed the results.

Space-Time Urban Air Pollution Forecasts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Russo, A.; Trigo, R. M.; Soares, A.

2012-04-01

Air pollution, like other natural phenomena, may be considered a space-time process. However, the simultaneous integration of time and space is not an easy task to perform, due to the existence of different uncertainties levels and data characteristics. In this work we propose a hybrid method that combines geostatistical and neural models to analyze PM10 time series recorded in the urban area of Lisbon (Portugal) for the 2002-2006 period and to produce forecasts. Geostatistical models have been widely used to characterize air pollution in urban areas, where the pollutant sources are considered diffuse, and also to industrial areas with localized emission sources. It should be stressed however that most geostatistical models correspond basically to an interpolation methodology (estimation, simulation) of a set of variables in a spatial or space-time domain. The temporal prediction of a pollutant usually requires knowledge of the main trends and complex patterns of physical dispersion phenomenon. To deal with low resolution problems and to enhance reliability of predictions, an approach based on neural network short term predictions in the monitoring stations which behave as a local conditioner to a fine grid stochastic simulation model is presented here. After the pollutant concentration is predicted for a given time period at the monitoring stations, we can use the local conditional distributions of observed values, given the predicted value for that period, to perform the spatial simulations for the entire area and consequently evaluate the spatial uncertainty of pollutant concentration. To attain this objective, we propose the use of direct sequential simulations with local distributions. With this approach one succeed to predict the space-time distribution of pollutant concentration that accounts for the time prediction uncertainty (reflecting the neural networks efficiency at each local monitoring station) and the spatial uncertainty as revealed by the spatial variograms. The dataset used consists of PM10 concentrations recorded hourly by 12 monitoring stations within the Lisbon's area, for the period 2002-2006. In addition, meteorological data recorded at 3 monitoring stations and boundary layer height (BLH) daily values from the ECMWF (European Centre for Medium Weather Forecast), ERA Interim, were also used. Based on the large-scale standard pressure fields from the ERA40/ECMWF, prevailing circulation patterns at regional scale where determined and used on the construction of the models. After the daily forecasts were produced, the difference between the average maps based on real observations and predicted values were determined and the model's performance was assessed. Based on the analysis of the results, we conclude that the proposed approach shows to be a very promising alternative for urban air quality characterization because of its good results and simplicity of application.

A multi-objective assessment of an air quality monitoring network using environmental, economic, and social indicators and GIS-based models.

PubMed

Pope, Ronald; Wu, Jianguo

2014-06-01

In the United States, air pollution is primarily measured by Air Quality Monitoring Networks (AQMN). These AQMNs have multiple objectives, including characterizing pollution patterns, protecting the public health, and determining compliance with air quality standards. In 2006, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a directive that air pollution agencies assess the performance of their AQMNs. Although various methods to design and assess AQMNs exist, here we demonstrate a geographic information system (GIS)-based approach that combines environmental, economic, and social indicators through the assessment of the ozone (O3) and particulate matter (PM10) networks in Maricopa County, Arizona. The assessment was conducted in three phases: (1) to evaluate the performance of the existing networks, (2) to identify areas that would benefit from the addition of new monitoring stations, and (3) to recommend changes to the AQMN. A comprehensive set of indicators was created for evaluating differing aspects of the AQMNs' objectives, and weights were applied to emphasize important indicators. Indicators were also classified according to their sustainable development goal. Our results showed that O3 was well represented in the county with some redundancy in terms of the urban monitors. The addition of weights to the indicators only had a minimal effect on the results. For O3, urban monitors had greater social scores, while rural monitors had greater environmental scores. The results did not suggest a need for adding more O3 monitoring sites. For PM10, clustered urban monitors were redundant, and weights also had a minimal effect on the results. The clustered urban monitors had overall low scores; sites near point sources had high environmental scores. Several areas were identified as needing additional PM10 monitors. This study demonstrates the usefulness of a multi-indicator approach to assess AQMNs. Network managers and planners may use this method to assess the performance of air quality monitoring networks in urban regions. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a directive in 2006 that air pollution agencies assess the performance of their AQMNs; as a result, we developed a GIS-based, multi-objective assessment approach that integrates environmental, economic, and social indicators, and demonstrates its use through assessing the O3 and PM10 monitoring networks in the Phoenix metropolitan area. We exhibit a method of assessing network performance and identifying areas that would benefit from new monitoring stations; also, we demonstrate the effect of adding weights to the indicators. Our study shows that using a multi-indicator approach gave detailed assessment results for the Phoenix AQMN.

The potential of urban rainfall monitoring with crowdsourced automatic weather stations in Amsterdam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Vos, Lotte; Leijnse, Hidde; Overeem, Aart; Uijlenhoet, Remko

2017-02-01

The high density of built-up areas and resulting imperviousness of the land surface makes urban areas vulnerable to extreme rainfall, which can lead to considerable damage. In order to design and manage cities to be able to deal with the growing number of extreme rainfall events, rainfall data are required at higher temporal and spatial resolutions than those needed for rural catchments. However, the density of operational rainfall monitoring networks managed by local or national authorities is typically low in urban areas. A growing number of automatic personal weather stations (PWSs) link rainfall measurements to online platforms. Here, we examine the potential of such crowdsourced datasets for obtaining the desired resolution and quality of rainfall measurements for the capital of the Netherlands. Data from 63 stations in Amsterdam (˜ 575 km2) that measure rainfall over at least 4 months in a 17-month period are evaluated. In addition, a detailed assessment is made of three Netatmo stations, the largest contributor to this dataset, in an experimental setup. The sensor performance in the experimental setup and the density of the PWS network are promising. However, features in the online platforms, like rounding and thresholds, cause changes from the original time series, resulting in considerable errors in the datasets obtained. These errors are especially large during low-intensity rainfall, although they can be reduced by accumulating rainfall over longer intervals. Accumulation improves the correlation coefficient with gauge-adjusted radar data from 0.48 at 5 min intervals to 0.60 at hourly intervals. Spatial rainfall correlation functions derived from PWS data show much more small-scale variability than those based on gauge-adjusted radar data and those found in similar research using dedicated rain gauge networks. This can largely be attributed to the noise in the PWS data resulting from both the measurement setup and the processes occurring in the data transfer to the online PWS platform. A double mass comparison with gauge-adjusted radar data shows that the median of the stations resembles the rainfall reference better than the real-time (unadjusted) radar product. Averaging nearby raw PWS measurements further improves the match with gauge-adjusted radar data in that area. These results confirm that the growing number of internet-connected PWSs could successfully be used for urban rainfall monitoring.

Urban rainfall monitoring with crowdsourced automatic weather stations in Amsterdam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Vos, Lotte; Leijnse, Hidde; Overeem, Aart; Uijlenhoet, Remko

2017-04-01

The high density of built-up areas and resulting imperviousness of the land surface makes urban areas vulnerable to extreme rainfall, which can lead to considerable damage. In order to design and manage cities to be able to deal with the growing number of extreme rainfall events, rainfall data is required at higher temporal and spatial resolutions than those needed for rural catchments. However, the density of operational rainfall monitoring networks managed by local or national authorities is typically low in urban areas. A growing number of automatic personal weather stations (PWSs) link rainfall measurements to online platforms. Here, we examine the potential of such crowdsourced datasets for obtaining the desired resolution and quality of rainfall measurements for the capital of the Netherlands. Data from 63 stations in Amsterdam (˜575 km2}) that measure rainfall over at least 4 months in a 17-month period are evaluated. In addition, a detailed assessment is made of three Netatmo stations, the largest contributor to this dataset, in an experimental set-up. The sensor performance in the experimental set-up and the density of the PWS-network are promising. However, features in the online platforms, like rounding and thresholds, cause changes from the original time series, resulting in considerable errors in the datasets obtained. These errors are especially large during low intensity rainfall, although they can be reduced by accumulating rainfall over longer intervals. Accumulation improves the correlation coefficient with gauge-adjusted radar data from 0.48 at 5 min intervals to 0.60 at hourly intervals. Spatial rainfall correlation functions derived from PWS data show much more small-scale variability than those based on gauge-adjusted radar data and those found in similar research using dedicated rain gauge networks. This can largely be attributed to the noise in the PWS data resulting from both the measurement setup and the processes occurring in the data transfer to the online PWS-platform. A double mass comparison with gauge-adjusted radar data shows that the median of the stations resembles the rainfall reference better than the real-time (unadjusted) radar product. Averaging nearby raw PWS measurements further improves the match with gauge-adjusted radar data in that area. These results confirm that the growing number of internet-connected PWSs could successfully be used for urban rainfall monitoring.

Analyzing 20 years of Black Carbon measurements in Germany

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kutzner, R. D.; Quedenau, J.; Kuik, F.; von Schneidemesser, E.; Schmale, J.

2016-12-01

Black Carbon (BC) is an important short-lived climate-forcing pollutant contributing to global warming through absorption of sunlight. In addition, BC, as a component of particulate matter (PM) exerts adverse health effects. Anthropogenic emission sources of BC include residential heating, transport, and agricultural fires, and the dominant natural emission source is wildfires. Despite the adverse effects of BC, legislation that requires mandatory monitoring of BC concentrations does not currently exist in the European Union (EU). Instead, BC is only indirectly monitored as component of PM10 and PM2.5 (PM with a diameter smaller 10 µm and 2.5 µm, respectively). Before the introduction of mandatory PM10 and PM2.5 monitoring in the EU in 2005 and 2015, respectively, `black smoke' (BS), a surrogate for BC, was a required measurement in Germany from the early 1990s. The annual mean limit value was 14 µg/m3 from 1995 and 8 µg/m³ from 1998. In 2004, many measurements were stopped, with the repeal of the regulations. In most German federal states a limited number BC monitoring stations continued to operate. We present a synthesis of BC data from 213 stations across Germany covering the period between 1994 and 2014. Due to the lack of a standardized method and respective legislation, the data set is very heterogeneous relying on twelve different measurement methods including chemical, optical, and thermal-optical methods. Stations include, among others, urban background, traffic and rural. We highlight results from the year 2009, as it is the year with the largest measurement coverage based on the same measurement method, with 28 stations. Further, we calculated trends in BC concentrations for 13 stations with at least 10 years of data, for median concentrations, as well as 5th percentile (background) and 95th percentile (peak episodes). Preliminary results suggest that concentrations have generally declined, with a larger trend at traffic stations compared to urban background stations between 2005 and 2014. However, preliminary results also show that concentrations are highest during the colder months, likely linked to residential heating.

Spatio-temporal patterns of high summer ozone events in the Madrid Basin, Central Spain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reche, C.; Moreno, T.; Amato, F.; Pandolfi, M.; Pérez, J.; de la Paz, D.; Diaz, E.; Gómez-Moreno, F. J.; Pujadas, M.; Artíñano, B.; Reina, F.; Orio, A.; Pallarés, M.; Escudero, M.; Tapia, O.; Crespo, E.; Vargas, R.; Alastuey, A.; Querol, X.

2018-07-01

Complex spatial and temporal patterns of ground-level O3 and NO2 concentrations have been revealed across an important southern European O3 exceedance area (Madrid Basin, central Spain). Data were obtained from 102 diffusion tube sites and 49 monitoring stations (25 urban/suburban, 12 urban/suburban-traffic, 7 remote, 3 rural, 2 urban-industrial) located through a wide area inside and beyond the city. This new, high-density database confirms that current locations of monitoring stations in the Madrid networks are well positioned to record representative levels of O3 across the area. Two air quality monitoring stations were identified as reference measurement points, based on their lower O3 and NO2 concentrations, and used as a proxy for regional and hemispheric background levels. Although a main regional contribution was evidenced, emissions of local precursors within the Madrid urban plume play a key role in the generation of O3 exceedances, which are higher and occur earlier near the city than at rural sites, where the effect of NO titration is lower. Despite the fact that weekend emissions of O3 precursors in Madrid are typically lower than on weekdays, mainly due to fewer road traffic emissions, there is little difference in average values of weekday and weekend O3. However, more subtle "weekend effect" differences are revealed by probability density analysis, with high O3 and low NO2 at the highest temperature range (30-35° C) at weekends reflecting lower NO titration. This analysis highlights the importance of NO timing with respect to the photochemical activity timing. The complexity of these O3 pollution patterns in and around the city is dependent on an ever-changing interplay between weather conditions, emission sources, and the timescale required for pollutant transport, chemical processing and recirculation in an evolving contaminated airmass.

Amperometric Gas Sensors as a Low Cost Emerging Technology Platform for Air Quality Monitoring Applications: A Review.

PubMed

Baron, Ronan; Saffell, John

2017-11-22

This review examines the use of amperometric electrochemical gas sensors for monitoring inorganic gases that affect urban air quality. First, we consider amperometric gas sensor technology including its development toward specifically designed air quality sensors. We then review recent academic and research organizations' studies where this technology has been trialed for air quality monitoring applications: early studies showed the potential of electrochemical gas sensors when colocated with reference Air Quality Monitoring (AQM) stations. Spatially dense networks with fast temporal resolution provide information not available from sparse AQMs with longer recording intervals. We review how this technology is being offered as commercial urban air quality networks and consider the remaining challenges. Sensors must be sensitive, selective, and stable; air quality monitors/nodes must be electronically and mechanically well designed. Data correction is required and models with differing levels of sophistication are being designed. Data analysis and validation is possibly the biggest remaining hurdle needed to deliver reliable concentration readings. Finally, this review also considers the roles of companies, urban infrastructure requirements, and public research in the development of this technology.

Influence of land use on the quantity and quality of runoff along Israel's coastal strip

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goldshleger, Naftaly; Asaf, Lior; Maor, Alon; Garzuzi, Jamil Jamil

2013-04-01

This study presents an analysis of the quantity and quality of urban runoff from various land uses by remote-sensing and GIS technology coupled with hydrological and chemical monitoring. The study areas were located in the cities of Herzliya and Ra'anana, in Israel's coastal plain, where extensive urbanization has taken place over the last 30 years. Land uses in urban basins were analyzed; rain and runoff were measured and sampled at measurement stations representing different land uses (residential, industrial, commercial, roads, gas station). The aim was to analyze land uses by different remote-sensing and GIS techniques, to evaluate the quality and quantity of urban storm water from various land uses, and to verify a method for predicting the impact of urban land uses on quantity and quality of urban storm water. The quality of urban storm water from residential areas was generally very high, and the water is suitable for reuse or direct recharge into the local aquifer. In light of the serious state of the Israeli water sector and the large amounts of unused runoff produced by Israel's cities, together with the high quality of urban storm water drained from the residential areas, it is important to exploit this water source

Assessing the air quality impact of nitrogen oxides and benzene from road traffic and domestic heating and the associated cancer risk in an urban area of Verona (Italy)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schiavon, Marco; Redivo, Martina; Antonacci, Gianluca; Rada, Elena Cristina; Ragazzi, Marco; Zardi, Dino; Giovannini, Lorenzo

2015-11-01

Simulations of emission and dispersion of nitrogen oxides (NOx) are performed in an urban area of Verona (Italy), characterized by street canyons and typical sources of urban pollutants. Two dominant source categories are considered: road traffic and, as an element of novelty, domestic heaters. Also, to assess the impact of urban air pollution on human health and, in particular, the cancer risk, simulations of emission and dispersion of benzene are carried out. Emissions from road traffic are estimated by the COPERT 4 algorithm, whilst NOx emission factors from domestic heaters are retrieved by means of criteria provided in the technical literature. Then maps of the annual mean concentrations of NOx and benzene are calculated using the AUSTAL2000 dispersion model, considering both scenarios representing the current situation, and scenarios simulating the introduction of environmental strategies for air pollution mitigation. The simulations highlight potentially critical situations of human exposure that may not be detected by the conventional network of air quality monitoring stations. The proposed methodology provides a support for air quality policies, such as planning targeted measurement campaigns, re-locating monitoring stations and adopting measures in favour of better air quality in urban planning. In particular, the estimation of the induced cancer risk is an important starting point to conduct zoning analyses and to detect the areas where population is more directly exposed to potential risks for health.

Temporal water quality response in an urban river: a case study in peninsular Malaysia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

VishnuRadhan, Renjith; Zainudin, Zaki; Sreekanth, G. B.; Dhiman, Ravinder; Salleh, Mohd. Noor; Vethamony, P.

2017-05-01

Ambient water quality is a prerequisite for the health and self-purification capacity of riverine ecosystems. To understand the general water quality situation, the time series data of selected water quality parameters were analyzed in an urban river in Peninsular Malaysia. In this regard, the stations were selected from the main stem of the river as well as from the side channel. The stations located at the main stem of the river are less polluted than that in the side channel. Water Quality Index scores indicated that the side channel station is the most polluted, breaching the Class IV water quality criteria threshold during the monitoring period, followed by stations at the river mouth and the main channel. The effect of immediate anthropogenic waste input is also evident at the side channel station. The Organic Pollution Index of side channel station is (14.99) 3 times higher than at stations at river mouth (4.11) and 6 times higher than at the main channel (2.57). The two-way ANOVA showed significant difference among different stations. Further, the factor analysis on water quality parameters yielded two significant factors. They discriminated the stations into two groups. The land-use land cover classification of the study area shows that the region near the sampling sites is dominated by urban settlements (33.23 %) and this can contribute significantly to the deterioration of ambient river water quality. The present study estimated the water quality condition and response in the river and the study can be an immediate yardstick for base lining river water quality, and a basis for future water quality modeling studies in the region.

DEVELOPMENT OF A MODEL FOR REAL TIME CO CONCENTRATIONS NEAR ROADWAYS

EPA Science Inventory

Although emission standards for mobile sources continue to be tightened, tailpipe emissions in urban areas continue to be a major source of human exposure to air toxics. Current human exposure models using simplified assumptions based on fixed air monitoring stations and region...

PM2.5, Population Exposure and Economic Effects in Urban Agglomerations of China Using Ground-Based Monitoring Data

PubMed Central

Shen, Yonglin

2017-01-01

This paper adopts the PM2.5 concentration data obtained from 1497 station-based monitoring sites, population and gross domestic product (GDP) census data, revealing population exposure and economic effects of PM2.5 in four typical urban agglomerations of China, i.e., Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH), the Yangtze River delta (YRD), the Pearl River delta (PRD), and Chengdu-Chongqing (CC). The Cokriging interpolation method was used to estimate the PM2.5 concentration from station-level to grid-level. Next, an evaluation was conducted mainly at the grid-level with a cell size of 1 × 1 km, assisted by the urban agglomeration scale. Criteria including the population-weighted mean, the cumulative percent distribution and the correlation coefficient were applied in our evaluation. The results showed that the spatial pattern of population exposure in BTH was consistent with that of PM2.5 concentration, as well as changes in elevation. The topography was also an important factor in the accumulation of PM2.5 in CC. Moreover, the most polluted urban agglomeration based on the population-weighted mean was BTH, while the least was PRD. In terms of the cumulative percent distribution, only 0.51% of the population who lived in the four urban agglomerations, and 2.33% of the GDP that was produced in the four urban agglomerations, were associated with an annual PM2.5 concentration smaller than the Chinese National Ambient Air Quality Standard of 35 µg/m3. This indicates that the majority of people live in the high air polluted areas, and economic development contributes to air pollution. Our results are supported by the high correlation between population exposure and the corresponding GDP in each urban agglomeration. PMID:28671643

Heavy - metal biomonitoring by using moss bags in Florence urban area, Italy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pellizzaro, Grazia; Canu, Annalisa; Arca, Angelo; Duce, Pierpaolo

2013-04-01

In the last century, pollution has become one of the most important risks for environment. In particular, heavy metal presence in air, water and soil induces toxic effects on ecosystems and human health. Monitoring airborne trace element over large areas is a task not easy to reach since the concentrations of pollutants are variable in space and time. Data from automatic devices are site-specific and very limited in number to describe spatial-temporal trends of pollutants. In addition, especially in Italy, trace elements concentrations are not often recorded by most of the automated monitoring stations. In the last decades, development of alternative and complementary methods as bio-monitoring techniques, allowed to map deposition patterns not only near single pollution sources, but also over relatively large areas at municipal or even regional scale. Bio-monitoring includes a wide array of methodologies finalised to study relationships between pollution and living organisms. Mosses and lichens have been widely used as bio-accumulators for assessing the atmospheric deposition of heavy metals in natural ecosystems and urban areas. In this study bio-monitoring of airborne trace metals was made using moss bags technique. The moss Hypnum cupressiforme was used as bio-indicator for estimating atmospheric traces metal deposition in the urban area of Florence. Moss carpets were collected in a forested area of central Sardinia (municipality of Bolotana - Nuoro), which is characterised by absence of air pollution. Moss bags were located in the urban area of Florence close to three monitoring air quality stations managed by ARPAT (Agenzia Regionale Protezione Ambiente Toscana). Two stations were located in high-traffic roads whereas the other one was located in a road with less traffic density. In each site moss bags were exposed during three campaigns of measurement conducted during the periods March-April, May-July, and August-October 2010. Two moss bags, used as control, were not exposed. After exposure periods, moss bags were removed and moss samples were analyzed for As, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb, V, and Zn by Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrometry. Results show differences between mean concentration of trace metals in moss bags after-exposure and the respective blanks in the three sample sites of Florence during the three campaigns of measurement. The highest concentrations for almost all elements were recorded at high-traffic road sites. Whereas lower values were detected in site located in a road with less traffic density In conclusion, Hypnum cupressiforme, for his high ability to accumulate trace metals, can be efficiently used as bio-indicator to estimate the trend of air pollution in a urban area during a period time.

Exposure to hazardous volatile organic compounds, PM 10 and CO while walking along streets in urban Guangzhou, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Lirong; Wang, Xinming; He, Qiusheng; Wang, Hao; Sheng, Guoying; Chan, L. Y.; Fu, Jiamo; Blake, D. R.

Toxic air pollutants in street canyons are important issues concerning public health especially in some large Asian cities like Guangzhou. In 1998 <18% of Guangzhou citizens used public transportation modes, with a majority commuting on foot (42%) or by bicycle (22%). Of the pedestrians, 57% were either senior citizens or students. In the present study, we measured toxic air pollutants while walking along urban streets in Guangzhou to evaluate pedestrian exposure. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were collected with sorbent tubes, and PM 10 and CO were measured simultaneously with portable analyzers. Our results showed that pedestrian exposure to PM 10 (with an average of 303 μg m -3 for all samples) and some toxic VOCs (for example, benzene) was relatively high. Monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were found to be the most abundant VOCs, and 71% of the samples had benzene levels higher than 30 μg m -3. Benzene, PM 10 and CO in walk-only streets were significantly lower ( p<0.05) than in traffic streets, and the differences in exposure levels between new urban streets and old urban streets were highly significant ( p<0.01). Pedestrian exposure to toxic VOCs and PM 10 was higher than those reported in other public transportation modes (bus and subway). The good correlations between BTEX, PM 10 and CO in the streets indicated that automotive emission might be their major source. Our study also showed that the risk to pedestrians due to air pollution was misinterpreted by the reported air quality index based on measurement of SO 2, NO x and PM 10 in the government monitoring stations. An urban roadside monitoring station might be needed by air quality monitoring networks in large Asian cities like Guangzhou, in order to survey exposure to air toxics in urban roadside microenvironments.

PAIRED WATERSHED STUDY OF LAND-USE AND CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACT ON SMALL STREAMS

EPA Science Inventory

EPA installed flow monitoring stations on three tributaries to the Shepherd's Creek just outside of Cincinnati, Ohio. The western and central tributaries are on the urban fringe with headwaters derived from suburban storm water systems. The eastern tributary is entirely contain...

Streamflow and water-quality conditions, Wilsons Creek and James River, Springfield area, Missouri

USGS Publications Warehouse

Berkas, Wayne R.

1982-01-01

A network of water-quality-monitoring stations was established upstream and downstream from the Southwest Wastewater-Treatment Plant on Wilsons Creek to monitor the effects of sewage effluent on water quality. Data indicate that 82 percent of the time the flow in Wilsons Creek upstream from the wastewater-treatment plant is less than the effluent discharged from the plant. On October 15, 1977, an advanced wastewater-treatment facility was put into operation. Of the four water-quality indicators measured at the monitoring stations (specific conductance, dissolved oxygen, pH, and water temperature), only dissolved oxygen showed improvement downstream from the plant. During urban runoff, the specific conductance momentarily increased and dissolved-oxygen concentration momentarily decreased in Wilsons Creek upstream from the plant. Urban runoff was found to have no long-term effects on specific conductance and dissolved oxygen downstream from the plant before or after the addition of the advanced wastewater-treatment facility. Data collected monthly from the James River showed that the dissolved-oxygen concentrations and the total nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen concentrations increased, whereas the dissolved-manganese concentrations decreased after the advanced wastewater-treatment facility became operational.

Comparison of Water Years 2004-05 and Historical Water-Quality Data, Upper Gunnison River Basin, Colorado

USGS Publications Warehouse

Spahr, Norman E.; Hartle, David M.; Diaz, Paul

2008-01-01

Population growth and changes in land use have the potential to affect water quality and quantity in the upper Gunnison River Basin. In 1995, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management, City of Gunnison, Colorado River Water Conservation District, Crested Butte South Metropolitan District, Gunnison County, Hinsdale County, Mount Crested Butte Water and Sanitation District, National Park Service, Town of Crested Butte, Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District, and Western State College, established a water-quality monitoring program in the upper Gunnison River Basin to characterize current water-quality conditions and to assess the effects of increased urban development and other land-use changes on water quality. The monitoring network has evolved into two groups of stations - stations that are considered long term and stations that are considered rotational. The long-term stations are monitored to assist in defining temporal changes in water quality (how conditions may change over time). The rotational stations are monitored to assist in the spatial definition of water-quality conditions (how conditions differ throughout the basin) and to address local and short-term concerns. Some stations in the rotational group were changed beginning in water year 2007. Annual summaries of the water-quality data from the monitoring network provide a point of reference for discussions regarding water-quality monitoring in the upper Gunnison River Basin. This summary includes data collected during water years 2004 and 2005. The introduction provides a map of the sampling sites, definitions of terms, and a one-page summary of selected water-quality conditions at the network stations. The remainder of the summary is organized around the data collected at individual stations. Data collected during water years 2004 and 2005 are compared to historical data, State water-quality standards, and Federal water-quality guidelines. Data were collected following USGS protocols.

Comparison of 2006-2007 Water Years and Historical Water-Quality Data, Upper Gunnison River Basin, Colorado

USGS Publications Warehouse

Solberg, P.A.; Moore, Bryan; Smits, Dennis

2009-01-01

Population growth and changes in land use have the potential to affect water quality and quantity in the upper Gunnison River basin. In 1995, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management, City of Gunnison, Colorado River Water Conservation District, Crested Butte South Metropolitan District, Gunnison County, Hinsdale County, Mount Crested Butte Water and Sanitation District, National Park Service, Town of Crested Butte, Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District, and Western State College established a water-quality monitoring program in the upper Gunnison River basin to characterize current water-quality conditions and to assess the effects of increased urban development and other land-use changes on water quality. The monitoring network has evolved into two groups of stations - stations that are considered long term and stations that are considered rotational. The long-term stations are monitored to assist in defining temporal changes in water quality (how conditions may change over time). The rotational stations are monitored to assist in the spatial definition of water-quality conditions (how conditions differ throughout the basin) and to address local and short-term concerns. Some stations in the rotational group were changed beginning in water year 2007. Annual summaries of the water-quality data from the monitoring network provide a point of reference for discussions regarding water-quality monitoring in the upper Gunnison River basin. This summary includes data collected during water years 2006 and 2007. The introduction provides a map of the sampling sites, definitions of terms, and a one-page summary of selected water-quality conditions at the network stations. The remainder of the summary is organized around the data collected at individual stations. Data collected during water years 2006 and 2007 are compared to historical data, State water-quality standards, and Federal water-quality guidelines. Data were collected following USGS protocols (U.S. Geological Survey, variously dated).

Journal Article: the National Dioxin Air Monitoring Network ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

In June, 1998, the U.S. EPA established the National Dioxin Air Monitoring Network (NDAMN). The primary goal of NDAMN is determine the temporal and geographical variability of atmospheric CDDs, CDFs, and coplanar PCBs at rural and nonimpacted locations throughout the United States. Currently operating at 32 sampling stations, NDAMN has three primary purposes: (1) to determine the atmospheric levels and occurrences of dioxin-like compounds in rural and agricultural areas where livestock, poultry and animal feed crops are grown; (2) to provide measurements of atmospheric levels of dioxin-like compounds in different geographic regions of the U.S.; and (3) to provide information regarding the long-range transport of dioxin-like compounds in air over the U.S. At Dioxin 2000, we reported on the preliminary results of monitoring at 9 rural locations from June 1998 through June 1999. By the end of 1999, NDAMN had expanded to 21 sampling stations. Then, at Dioxin 2001, we reported the results of the first 18 months of operation of NDAMN at 15 rural and 6 National Park stations in the United States. The following is intended to be an update to this national monitoring effort. We are reporting the air monitoring results of 17 rural and 8 National Park NDAMN stations operational over 4 sampling moments during calendar year 2000. Two stations located in suburban Washington DC and San Francisco, CA are more urban in character and serve as an indicator of CDD/F and cop

USE OF AUXILIARY DATA FOR SPATIAL INTERPOLATION OF OZONE EXPOSURE IN SOUTHEASTERN FORESTS

EPA Science Inventory

In order to assess the impact of tropospheric ozone on forests, it is necessary to quantify ozone exposure on regional scales. Since ozone monitoring stations are widely scattered and mostly concentrate in urban and suburban areas, some form of spatial interpolation is necessary ...

Effect of Flooding on the Survival of Formosan Subterranean Termites (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae) in Laboratory Tests

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Underground monitoring stations were active with Formosan subterranean termites, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki, less than a month after the flood waters receded from an urban park, City Park, New Orleans, Louisiana. This study examines whether the presence of galleries in soil or wood increases su...

Effects of Urbanization on Stream Water Quality in the City of Atlanta, Georgia, USA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peters, N. E.

2009-05-01

A long-term stream water-quality monitoring network was established in the City of Atlanta (COA) during 2003 to assess baseline water-quality conditions and the effects of urbanization on stream water quality. Routine hydrologically-based manual stream sampling, including several concurrent manual point and equal width increment sampling, was conducted approximately 12 times per year at 21 stations, with drainage areas ranging from 3.7 to 232 km2. Eleven of the stations are real-time (RT) water-quality stations having continuous measures of stream stage/discharge, pH, dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, water temperature, and turbidity, and automatic samplers for stormwater collection. Samples were analyzed for field parameters, and a broad suite of water-quality and sediment-related constituents. This paper summarizes an evaluation of field parameters and concentrations of major ions, minor and trace metals, nutrient species (nitrogen and phosphorus), and coliform bacteria among stations and with respect to watershed characteristics and plausible sources from 2003 through September 2007. The concentrations of most constituents in the COA streams are statistically higher than those of two nearby reference streams. Concentrations are statistically different among stations for several constituents, despite high variability both within and among stations. The combination of routine manual sampling, automatic sampling during stormflows, and real-time water-quality monitoring provided sufficient information about the variability of urban stream water quality to develop hypotheses for causes of water-quality differences among COA streams. Fecal coliform bacteria concentrations of most individual samples at each station exceeded Georgia's water-quality standard for any water-usage class. High chloride concentrations occur at three stations and are hypothesized to be associated with discharges of chlorinated combined sewer overflows, drainage of swimming pool(s), and dissolution and transport during rainstorms of CaCl2, a deicing salt applied to roads during winter storms. Water quality of one stream was highly affected by the dissolution and transport of ammonium alum [NH4Al(SO4)2] from an alum manufacturing plant in the watershed; streamwater has low pH (<5), low alkalinity and high concentrations of minor and trace metals. Several trace metals (Cu, Pb and Zn) exceed acute and chronic water-quality standards and the high concentrations are attributed to washoff from impervious surfaces.

Trends in surface-water quality in Connecticut, 1969-88

USGS Publications Warehouse

Trench, E.C.

1996-01-01

Surface-water-quality data from selected monitoring stations in Connecticut were analyzed for trend, using the Seasonal Kendall test, for water years 1969-88, 1975-88, and 1981-88. The number of constituents and stations evaluated varied with the different time periods. The 39 monitoring stations included 26 freshwater streams with associated discharge data, 7 tidally affected streams, 4 harbor stations, and 2 surface impoundments. Flow-adjustment procedures were used where possible to minimize the effects of stream- flow variability on trend results. The drainage area of the monitoring stations includes approximately 5,000 mi2 covering the State of Connecticut and about 11,000 mi2 in upstream drainage areas outside of the State. Drainage basin size for the freshwater streams ranges from 4.1 mi2 to 9,660 mi2. Land uses in the drainage basins range from undeveloped forested areas to highly urbanized metropolitan areas. During the period covered by the trend study, the State's population has grown, suburban development has increased, agricultural land use has decreased, and wastewater-treatment practices have improved. Increases in specific conductance and in the concentrations of calcium, magnesium, chloride, sulfate, dissolved solids, and total solids were geographically widespread and numerous during water years 1975-88 and indicate a general increase statewide in dissolved constituents in streamflow, both in urbanized and less developed areas. The effects of increasing urbanization, including municipal and industrial wastewater, septic system leachate, nonpoint runoff, and atmospheric deposition of contaminants, are possible causes for these increases. Decreases in turbidity and in the concentrations of total phosphorus, total organic carbon, and fecal coliform bacteria were geographically widespread and numerous during 1975-88. This general decrease in suspended material and bacteria may be attributable to basic improvements in the treatment of municipal and industrial wastewater during the period of record. Decreasing concentrations of total phosphorus may also be related to decreases in agricultural land use and to a decline in the use of detergents containing phosphorus. Detected decreases in total organic carbon and turbidity may have been caused, in part, by changes in sampling or analytical methods. Increases in total nitrogen, total organic nitrogen, and total nitrite-plus- nitrate were geographically widespread and numerous during 1975-88 and appear to indicate effects from both point sources in urbanized basins and nonpoint sources in less developed basins. The number of stations with increasing concentrations of nitrogen constituents was much smaller during 1981-88 than during 1975-88. Decreases in total ammonia nitrogen were detected at 11 stations during 1981-88. Decreases in total ammonia, sometimes paired with increases in total nitrite-plus-nitrate, may result from improvements in wastewater treatment. Increases in the concentration of dissolved oxygen, or dissolved oxygen as a percent of saturation, were geographically widespread and numer ous during 1969-88 and 1975-88. Increases were less common during 1981-88. Increases in dissolved oxygen in urbanized basins may be related to major improvements in wastewater treatment during the 1970's and 1980's. The magnitude of the trends detected during 1969-88 may have been affected in part by a change, around 1974, in the model of the instrument used to measure dissolved oxygen in the field. Statewide increases in pH were detected during 1969-88, 1975-88, and 1981-88, in both urbanized and less developed basins. The widespread increases in pH were unexpected, given the relatively acidic quality of precipitation in the region during the study period. Only two decreases in pH were detected, both in relatively undeveloped basins. Increases in pH in urbanized areas may be related to decreasing concentrations of ammonia and to requirements for neutralization of municipa

Modelling NO2 concentrations at the street level in the GAINS integrated assessment model: projections under current legislation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kiesewetter, G.; Borken-Kleefeld, J.; Schöpp, W.; Heyes, C.; Thunis, P.; Bessagnet, B.; Gsella, A.; Amann, M.

2013-08-01

NO2 concentrations at the street level are a major concern for urban air quality in Europe and have been regulated under the EU Thematic Strategy on Air Pollution. Despite the legal requirements, limit values are exceeded at many monitoring stations with little or no improvement during recent years. In order to assess the effects of future emission control regulations on roadside NO2 concentrations, a downscaling module has been implemented in the GAINS integrated assessment model. The module follows a hybrid approach based on atmospheric dispersion calculations and observations from the AirBase European air quality data base that are used to estimate site-specific parameters. Pollutant concentrations at every monitoring site with sufficient data coverage are disaggregated into contributions from regional background, urban increment, and local roadside increment. The future evolution of each contribution is assessed with a model of the appropriate scale - 28 × 28 km grid based on the EMEP Model for the regional background, 7 × 7 km urban increment based on the CHIMERE Chemistry Transport Model, and a chemical box model for the roadside increment. Thus, different emission scenarios and control options for long-range transport, regional and local emissions can be analysed. Observed concentrations and historical trends are well captured, in particular the differing NO2 and total NOx = NO + NO2 trends. Altogether, more than 1950 air quality monitoring stations in the EU are covered by the model, including more than 400 traffic stations and 70% of the critical stations. Together with its well-established bottom-up emission and dispersion calculation scheme, GAINS is thus able to bridge the scales from European-wide policies to impacts in street canyons. As an application of the model, we assess the evolution of attainment of NO2 limit values under current legislation until 2030. Strong improvements are expected with the introduction of the Euro 6 emission standard for light duty vehicles; however, for some major European cities, further measures may be required, in particular if aiming to achieve compliance at an earlier time.

Modelling NO2 concentrations at the street level in the GAINS integrated assessment model: projections under current legislation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kiesewetter, G.; Borken-Kleefeld, J.; Schöpp, W.; Heyes, C.; Thunis, P.; Bessagnet, B.; Terrenoire, E.; Gsella, A.; Amann, M.

2014-01-01

NO2 concentrations at the street level are a major concern for urban air quality in Europe and have been regulated under the EU Thematic Strategy on Air Pollution. Despite the legal requirements, limit values are exceeded at many monitoring stations with little or no improvement in recent years. In order to assess the effects of future emission control regulations on roadside NO2 concentrations, a downscaling module has been implemented in the GAINS integrated assessment model. The module follows a hybrid approach based on atmospheric dispersion calculations and observations from the AirBase European air quality database that are used to estimate site-specific parameters. Pollutant concentrations at every monitoring site with sufficient data coverage are disaggregated into contributions from regional background, urban increment, and local roadside increment. The future evolution of each contribution is assessed with a model of the appropriate scale: 28 × 28 km grid based on the EMEP Model for the regional background, 7 × 7 km urban increment based on the CHIMERE Chemistry Transport Model, and a chemical box model for the roadside increment. Thus, different emission scenarios and control options for long-range transport as well as regional and local emissions can be analysed. Observed concentrations and historical trends are well captured, in particular the differing NO2 and total NOx = NO + NO2 trends. Altogether, more than 1950 air quality monitoring stations in the EU are covered by the model, including more than 400 traffic stations and 70% of the critical stations. Together with its well-established bottom-up emission and dispersion calculation scheme, GAINS is thus able to bridge the scales from European-wide policies to impacts in street canyons. As an application of the model, we assess the evolution of attainment of NO2 limit values under current legislation until 2030. Strong improvements are expected with the introduction of the Euro 6 emission standard for light duty vehicles; however, for some major European cities, further measures may be required, in particular if aiming to achieve compliance at an earlier time.

RECEPTOR MODEL COMPARISONS AND WIND DIRECTION ANALYSES OF VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS AND SUBMICROMETER PARTICLES IN AN ARID, BINATIONAL, URBAN AIRSHED

EPA Science Inventory

The relationship between continuous measurements of volatile organic compounds sources and particle number was evaluated at a Photochemical Assessment Monitoring Station Network (PAMS) site located near the U.S.-Mexico Border in central El Paso, TX. Sources of volatile organic...

Comparison of 2002 Water Year and Historical Water-Quality Data, Upper Gunnison River Basin, Colorado

USGS Publications Warehouse

Spahr, N.E.

2003-01-01

Introduction: Population growth and changes in land-use practices have the potential to affect water quality and quantity in the upper Gunnison River basin. In 1995, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with local sponsors, City of Gunnison, Colorado River Water Conservation District, Crested Butte South Metropolitan District, Gunnison County, Mount Crested Butte Water and Sanitation District, National Park Service, Town of Crested Butte, and Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District, established a water-quality monitoring program in the upper Gunnison River basin to characterize current water-quality conditions and to assess the effects of increased urban development and other land-use changes on water quality. The monitoring network has evolved into two groups of stations, stations that are considered as long term and stations that are rotational. The long-term stations are monitored to assist in defining temporal changes in water quality (how conditions have changed over time). The rotational stations are monitored to assist in the spatial definition of water-quality conditions (how conditions differ throughout the basin) and to address local and short term concerns. Another group of stations (rotational group 2) will be chosen and sampled beginning in water year 2004. Annual summaries of the water-quality data from the monitoring network provide a point of reference for discussions regarding water-quality sampling in the upper Gunnison River basin. This summary includes data collected during water year 2002. The introduction provides a map of the sampling locations, definitions of terms, and a one-page summary of selected water-quality conditions at the network stations. The remainder of the summary is organized around the data collected at individual stations. Data collected during water year 2002 are compared to historical data (data collected for this network since 1995), state water-quality standards, and federal water-quality guidelines. Data were collected during water year 2002 following USGS protocols (U.S. Geological Survey, variously dated).

The 1979 Southeastern Virginia Urban Plume Study (SEV-UPS): Surface and airborne studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

White, J. H.; Eaton, W. C.; Saeger, M. L.; Strong, R. B.; Tommerdahl, J. B.

1980-01-01

The operation of two surface monitoring stations (one in downtown Norfolk, Virginia, one south of the city near the Great Dismal Swamp) and the collection of 40 hours of airborne measurements is described. Surface site measurements of ozone, oxides of nitrogen, sulfur dioxide, temperature, dew point, b sub seat, and condensation nuclei were made. Instrument calibrations, quality assurance audits, and preliminary data analysis in support of the Urban Plume Study were also made. The air pollution problems that were addressed are discussed. Data handling procedures followed for the surface stations are presented. The operation of the aircraft sampling platform is described. Aircraft sampling procedures are discussed. A preliminary descriptive analysis of the aircraft data is given along with data or plots for surface sites, airborne studies, hydrocarbon species, and instrument performance audits. Several of the aircraft flights clearly show the presence of an urban ozone plume downwind of Norfolk in the direction of the mean wind flow.

Geostatistical uncertainty of assessing air quality using high-spatial-resolution lichen data: A health study in the urban area of Sines, Portugal.

PubMed

Ribeiro, Manuel C; Pinho, P; Branquinho, C; Llop, Esteve; Pereira, Maria J

2016-08-15

In most studies correlating health outcomes with air pollution, personal exposure assignments are based on measurements collected at air-quality monitoring stations not coinciding with health data locations. In such cases, interpolators are needed to predict air quality in unsampled locations and to assign personal exposures. Moreover, a measure of the spatial uncertainty of exposures should be incorporated, especially in urban areas where concentrations vary at short distances due to changes in land use and pollution intensity. These studies are limited by the lack of literature comparing exposure uncertainty derived from distinct spatial interpolators. Here, we addressed these issues with two interpolation methods: regression Kriging (RK) and ordinary Kriging (OK). These methods were used to generate air-quality simulations with a geostatistical algorithm. For each method, the geostatistical uncertainty was drawn from generalized linear model (GLM) analysis. We analyzed the association between air quality and birth weight. Personal health data (n=227) and exposure data were collected in Sines (Portugal) during 2007-2010. Because air-quality monitoring stations in the city do not offer high-spatial-resolution measurements (n=1), we used lichen data as an ecological indicator of air quality (n=83). We found no significant difference in the fit of GLMs with any of the geostatistical methods. With RK, however, the models tended to fit better more often and worse less often. Moreover, the geostatistical uncertainty results showed a marginally higher mean and precision with RK. Combined with lichen data and land-use data of high spatial resolution, RK is a more effective geostatistical method for relating health outcomes with air quality in urban areas. This is particularly important in small cities, which generally do not have expensive air-quality monitoring stations with high spatial resolution. Further, alternative ways of linking human activities with their environment are needed to improve human well-being. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Long-term trends in airborne SO2 in an air quality monitoring station in Seoul, Korea, from 1987 to 2013.

PubMed

Khan, Azmatullah; Kim, Ki-Hyun; Szulejko, Jan E; Brown, Richard J C; Jeon, Eui-Chan; Oh, Jong-Min; Shin, Yong Soon; Adelodun, Adedeji A

2017-08-01

Atmospheric concentration of sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ) was intermittently measured at an air quality monitoring (AQM) station in the Yong-san district of Seoul, Korea, between 1987 and 2013. The SO 2 level was compared with other important pollutants concurrently measured, including methane (CH 4 ), carbon monoxide (CO), nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), ozone (O 3 ), and particulate matter (PM 10 ). If split into three different periods (period 1, 1987-1988, period 2, 1999-2000, and period 3, 2004-2013), the respective mean [SO 2 ] values (6.57 ± 4.29, 6.30 ± 2.44, and 5.29 ± 0.63 ppb) showed a slight reduction across the entire study period. The concentrations of SO 2 are found to be strongly correlated with other pollutants such as CO (r = 0.614, p = 0.02), which tracked reductions in reported emissions due to tighter emissions standards enacted by the South Korean government. There was also a clear seasonal trend in the SO 2 level, especially in periods 2 and 3, reflecting the combined effects of domestic heating by coal briquettes and meteorological conditions. Although only a 16% concentration reduction was achieved during the 27-year study duration, this is significant if one considers rapid urbanization, an 83.2% increase in population, and rapid industrialization that took place during that period. Since 1970, a network of air quality monitoring (AQM) stations has been operated by the Korean Ministry of Environment (KMOE) for routine nationwide monitoring of air pollutant concentrations in urban/suburban areas. To date, the information obtained from these stations has provided a platform for analyzing long-term trends of major pollutant species. In this study, we examined the long-term trends of SO 2 levels and relevant environmental parameters monitored continuously in the Yong-san district of Seoul between 1987 and 2013. The data were analyzed over various time scales (i.e., monthly, seasonal, and annual intervals). The results obtained from this study will allow us to assess the effectiveness of abatement strategy and to predict future concentrations trends in association with future abatement strategies and technologies.

Solar observations with a low frequency radio telescope

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Myserlis, I.; Seiradakis, J.; Dogramatzidis, M.

2012-01-01

We have set up a low frequency radio monitoring station for solar bursts at the Observatory of the Aristotle University in Thessaloniki. The station consists of a dual dipole phased array, a radio receiver and a dedicated computer with the necessary software installed. The constructed radio receiver is based on NASA's Radio Jove project. It operates continuously, since July 2010, at 20.1 MHz (close to the long-wavelength ionospheric cut-off of the radio window) with a narrow bandwidth (~5 kHz). The system is properly calibrated, so that the recorded data are expressed in antenna temperature. Despite the high interference level of an urban region like Thessaloniki (strong broadcasting shortwave radio stations, periodic experimental signals, CBs, etc), we have detected several low frequency solar radio bursts and correlated them with solar flares, X-ray events and other low frequency solar observations. The received signal is monitored in ordinary ASCII format and as audio signal, in order to investigate and exclude man-made radio interference. In order to exclude narrow band interference and calculate the spectral indices of the observed events, a second monitoring station, working at 36 MHz, is under construction at the village of Nikiforos near the town of Drama, about 130 km away of Thessaloniki. Finally, we plan to construct a third monitoring station at 58 MHz, in Thessaloniki. This frequency was revealed to be relatively free of interference, after a thorough investigation of the region.

Levelling VS. InSAR in Urban Underground Construction Monitoring. Case of la Sagrera Railway Station (barcelona, Spain).

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vázquez-Suñé, E.; Serrano-Juan, A.; Pujades, E.; Crosetto, M.

2016-12-01

Construction processes require monitoring to ensure safety and to control the new and existing structures. The most accurate and spread monitoring method to measure displacements is levelling, a point-like surveying technique that tipically allows for tens of discrete in-situ sub-millimetric measures per squared kilometer. Another emerging technique for mapping soil deformation is the Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR), which is based on SAR images acquired from orbiting satellites. This remote sensing technique can provide better spatial point density than levelling, more extensive spatial coverage and cheaper acquisitions. This paper analyses, compares and discusses levelling and InSAR measurements when they are used to measure the soil deformation induced by the dewatering associated to underground constructions in urban areas. To do so, an experiment was performed in the future railway station of La Sagrera, Barcelona (Spain), in which levelling and InSAR were used to accurately quantify ground deformation by dewatering. Results showed that soil displacements measured by levelling and InSAR were not always consisting. InSAR measurements were more accurate with respect the soil deformation produced by the dewatering while levelling was really useful to determine the real impact of the construction on the nearby buildings.

Demonstrating Change with Astronaut Photography Using Object Based Image Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hollier, Andi; Jagge, Amy

2017-01-01

Every day, hundreds of images of Earth flood the Crew Earth Observations database as astronauts use hand held digital cameras to capture spectacular frames from the International Space Station. The variety of resolutions and perspectives provide a template for assessing land cover change over decades. We will focus on urban growth in the second fastest growing city in the nation, Houston, TX, using Object-Based Image Analysis. This research will contribute to the land change science community, integrated resource planning, and monitoring of the rapid rate of urban sprawl.

Real-time vehicle emissions monitoring using a compact LiDAR system and conventional instruments: first results of an experimental campaign in a suburban area in southern Italy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parracino, Stefano; Richetta, Maria; Gelfusa, Michela; Malizia, Andrea; Bellecci, Carlo; De Leo, Leonardo; Perrimezzi, Carlo; Fin, Alessandro; Forin, Marco; Giappicucci, Francesca; Grion, Massimo; Marchese, Giuseppe; Gaudio, Pasquale

2016-10-01

Urban air pollution causes deleterious effects on human health and the environment. To meet stringent standards imposed by the European Commission, advanced measurement methods are required. Remote sensing techniques, such as light detection and ranging (LiDAR), can be a valuable option for evaluating particulate matter (PM), emitted by vehicles in urban traffic, with high sensitivity and in shorter time intervals. Since air quality problems persist not only in large urban areas, a measuring campaign was specifically performed in a suburban area of Crotone, Italy, using both a compact LiDAR system and conventional instruments for real-time vehicle emissions monitoring along a congested road. First results reported in this paper show a strong dependence between variations of LiDAR backscattering signals and traffic-related air pollution levels. Moreover, time-resolved LiDAR data averaged in limited regions, directly above conventional monitoring stations at the border of an intersection, were found to be linearly correlated to the PM concentration levels with a correlation coefficient between 0.75 and 0.84.

Trend analysis of a tropical urban river water quality in Malaysia.

PubMed

Othman, Faridah; M E, Alaa Eldin; Mohamed, Ibrahim

2012-12-01

Rivers play a significant role in providing water resources for human and ecosystem survival and health. Hence, river water quality is an important parameter that must be preserved and monitored. As the state of Selangor and the city of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, are undergoing tremendous development, the river is subjected to pollution from point and non-point sources. The water quality of the Klang River basin, one of the most densely populated areas within the region, is significantly degraded due to human activities as well as urbanization. Evaluation of the overall river water quality status is normally represented by a water quality index (WQI), which consists of six parameters, namely dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, suspended solids, ammoniacal nitrogen and pH. The objectives of this study are to assess the water quality status for this tropical, urban river and to establish the WQI trend. Using monthly WQI data from 1997 to 2007, time series were plotted and trend analysis was performed by employing the first-order autocorrelated trend model on the moving average values for every station. The initial and final values of either the moving average or the trend model were used as the estimates of the initial and final WQI at the stations. It was found that Klang River water quality has shown some improvement between 1997 and 2007. Water quality remains good in the upper stream area, which provides vital water sources for water treatment plants in the Klang valley. Meanwhile, the water quality has also improved in other stations. Results of the current study suggest that the present policy on managing river quality in the Klang River has produced encouraging results; the policy should, however, be further improved alongside more vigorous monitoring of pollution discharge from various point sources such as industrial wastewater, municipal sewers, wet markets, sand mining and landfills, as well as non-point sources such as agricultural or urban runoff and commercial activity.

Diurnal, synoptic and seasonal variability of atmospheric CO2 in the Paris megacity area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xueref-Remy, Irène; Dieudonné, Elsa; Vuillemin, Cyrille; Lopez, Morgan; Lac, Christine; Schmidt, Martina; Delmotte, Marc; Chevallier, Frédéric; Ravetta, François; Perrussel, Olivier; Ciais, Philippe; Bréon, François-Marie; Broquet, Grégoire; Ramonet, Michel; Spain, T. Gerard; Ampe, Christophe

2018-03-01

Most of the global fossil fuel CO2 emissions arise from urbanized and industrialized areas. Bottom-up inventories quantify them but with large uncertainties. In 2010-2011, the first atmospheric in situ CO2 measurement network for Paris, the capital of France, began operating with the aim of monitoring the regional atmospheric impact of the emissions coming from this megacity. Five stations sampled air along a northeast-southwest axis that corresponds to the direction of the dominant winds. Two stations are classified as rural (Traînou - TRN; Montgé-en-Goële - MON), two are peri-urban (Gonesse - GON; Gif-sur-Yvette - GIF) and one is urban (EIF, located on top of the Eiffel Tower). In this study, we analyze the diurnal, synoptic and seasonal variability of the in situ CO2 measurements over nearly 1 year (8 August 2010-13 July 2011). We compare these datasets with remote CO2 measurements made at Mace Head (MHD) on the Atlantic coast of Ireland and support our analysis with atmospheric boundary layer height (ABLH) observations made in the center of Paris and with both modeled and observed meteorological fields. The average hourly CO2 diurnal cycles observed at the regional stations are mostly driven by the CO2 biospheric cycle, the ABLH cycle and the proximity to urban CO2 emissions. Differences of several µmol mol-1 (ppm) can be observed from one regional site to the other. The more the site is surrounded by urban sources (mostly residential and commercial heating, and traffic), the more the CO2 concentration is elevated, as is the associated variability which reflects the variability of the urban sources. Furthermore, two sites with inlets high above ground level (EIF and TRN) show a phase shift of the CO2 diurnal cycle of a few hours compared to lower sites due to a strong coupling with the boundary layer diurnal cycle. As a consequence, the existence of a CO2 vertical gradient above Paris can be inferred, whose amplitude depends on the time of the day and on the season, ranging from a few tenths of ppm during daytime to several ppm during nighttime. The CO2 seasonal cycle inferred from monthly means at our regional sites is driven by the biospheric and anthropogenic CO2 flux seasonal cycles, the ABLH seasonal cycle and also synoptic variations. Enhancements of several ppm are observed at peri-urban stations compared to rural ones, mostly from the influence of urban emissions that are in the footprint of the peri-urban station. The seasonal cycle observed at the urban station (EIF) is specific and very sensitive to the ABLH cycle. At both the diurnal and the seasonal scales, noticeable differences of several ppm are observed between the measurements made at regional rural stations and the remote measurements made at MHD, that are shown not to define background concentrations appropriately for quantifying the regional ( ˜ 100 km) atmospheric impact of urban CO2 emissions. For wind speeds less than 3 m s-1, the accumulation of local CO2 emissions in the urban atmosphere forms a dome of several tens of ppm at the peri-urban stations, mostly under the influence of relatively local emissions including those from the Charles de Gaulle (CDG) Airport facility and from aircraft in flight. When wind speed increases, ventilation transforms the CO2 dome into a plume. Higher CO2 background concentrations of several ppm are advected from the remote Benelux-Ruhr and London regions, impacting concentrations at the five stations of the network even at wind speeds higher than 9 m s-1. For wind speeds ranging between 3 and 8 m s-1, the impact of Paris emissions can be detected in the peri-urban stations when they are downwind of the city, while the rural stations often seem disconnected from the city emission plume. As a conclusion, our study highlights a high sensitivity of the stations to wind speed and direction, to their distance from the city, but also to the ABLH cycle depending on their elevation. We learn some lessons regarding the design of an urban CO2 network: (1) careful attention should be paid to properly setting regional (˜ 100 km) background sites that will be representative of the different wind sectors; (2) the downwind stations should be positioned as symmetrically as possible in relation to the city center, at the peri-urban/rural border; (3) the stations should be installed at ventilated sites (away from strong local sources) and the air inlet set up above the building or biospheric canopy layer, whichever is the highest; and (4) high-resolution wind information should be available with the CO2 measurements.

Detecting urban warming signals in climate records

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Yuting; Jia, Gensuo; Hu, Yonghong; Zhou, Zijiang

2013-07-01

Determining whether air temperatures recorded at meteorological stations have been contaminated by the urbanization process is still a controversial issue at the global scale. With support of historical remote sensing data, this study examined the impacts of urban expansion on the trends of air temperature at 69 meteorological stations in Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei Province over the last three decades. There were significant positive relations between the two factors at all stations. Stronger warming was detected at the meteorological stations that experienced greater urbanization, i.e., those with a higher urbanization rate. While the total urban area affects the absolute temperature values, the change of the urban area (urbanization rate) likely affects the temperature trend. Increases of approximately 10% in urban area around the meteorological stations likely contributed to the 0.13°C rise in air temperature records in addition to regional climate warming. This study also provides a new approach to selecting reference stations based on remotely sensed urban fractions. Generally, the urbanization-induced warming contributed to approximately 44.1% of the overall warming trends in the plain region of study area during the past 30 years, and the regional climate warming was 0.30°C (10 yr)-1 in the last three decades.

Monitoring and assessment of the outdoor thermal comfort in Bucharest (Romania)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheval, Sorin; Ciobotaru, Ana-Maria; Andronache, Ion; Dumitrescu, Alexandru

2017-04-01

Bucharest is one of the European cities most at risk of being affected by meteorological hazards. Heat or cold waves, extreme temperature events, heavy rains or prolonged precipitation deficits are all-season phenomena, triggering damages, discomfort or even casualties. Temperature hazards may occur annually and challenge equally the public, local business and administration to find adequate solutions for securing the thermal comfort in the outdoor environment of the city. The accurate and fine resolution monitoring of the air temperature pledges for the comprehensive assessment of the thermal comfort in order to capture as much as possible the urban influence. This study uses sub-hourly temperature data (10-min temporal resolution) retrieved over the period November 2014 - November 2016 collected from nine sensors placed either in plain urban conditions or within the three meteorological stations of the national network which are currently monitoring the climate of Bucharest (Băneasa, Filaret, Afumați). The relative humidity was estimated based on the data available at the three stations placed in WMO standard conditions, and the 10-min values of 8 Thermal Comfort Indices were computed, namely: Heat Index, Humidex, Relative Strain Index, Scharlau, Summer Simmer Index, Physiological Equivalent Index, Temperature-Humidity Index, Thom Discomfort Index. The indices were analysed statistically, both individually and combined. Despite the short range of the available data, this study emphasizes clear spatial differentiations of the thermal comfort, in a very good agreement with the land cover and built zones of the city, while important variations were found in the temporal regime, due to large variations of the temperature values (e.g. >4 centigrade between consecutive hours or >15 centigrade between consecutive days). Ultimately, this study has revealed that the continuous monitoring of the urban climate, at fine temporal and spatial resolution, may deliver fundamental information for supporting the immediate measures and the long-term urban planning and the sustainable thermal comfort of the urban inhabitants. Acknowledgements: The urban meteorological network of Bucharest was developed within the project UCLIMESA (Urban Heat Island Monitoring under Present and Future Climate), in the framework of the Programme for Research-Development-Innovation for Space Technology and Advanced Research (STAR), administrated by the Romanian Space Agency. (STAR CDI Programme, contract no 92/2013, Contractor Romanian Spatial Agency). This work was supported by a grant of the University of Bucharest- "Spatial projection of the human pressure on forest ecosystems in Romania" (UB/1365)-and was supported by a grant of the Romanian National Authority for Scientific Research and Innovation, CNCS - UEFISCDI, project number PN-II-RU-TE-2014-4-0835-Development of the theory of the dynamic context by analyzing the role of the aridization in generating and amplifying the regressive phenomena from the territorial systems.

A low cost Mobile Network System for monitoring climate and air quality of urban areas at high resolution: a preliminary application in Florence (IT) metropolitan area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dibari, Camilla; Moriondo, Marco; Matese, Alessandro; Sabatini, Francesco; Trombi, Giacomo; Zaldei, Alessandro; Bindi, Marco

2013-04-01

The combination of the "Heat island effect" coupled with higher frequencies of extreme events (e.g. heat waves) due to climate change is of great concern for human health in urban areas. Anomalies of summer 2003, mentioned as possible typical climate for the near future summers (Schär et al., 2004), caused about 7,000 deaths in Italy and over 35,000 in the whole Europe. Furthermore, more than 50% of world's population is living in urban areas and, given the unprecedented urbanization rate that is expected in the next future, cities will likely be exposed to a growing environmental pressure in the following decades. Accordingly, climate monitoring of urban areas is gradually becoming a key element of planning that cannot be disregarded for an efficient public health management and for the development of a city scale Heat Waves Warning System tool, which is based on meteorological forecast of both air temperatures and humidity at a synoptic scale (Pascal et al., 2006). Building on these premises, a low cost Mobile Weather Station (MWS), to be placed on urban public transport, has been assembled. This mobile station logs every minute both meteorological variables (i.e. temperature and air humidity) and air quality parameters (i.e. atmospheric CO2 concentration and noise detection); the geographical position of each MWS's measurement is also recorded thanks to the built-in GPS antenna. The system, equipped with a data logger for data storage based on the open-source hardware platform Arduino, can also transmit data in real time via GPRS. The quality of meteorological and environmental data acquired by MWS was evaluated both on pre-existing steady meteorological stations of the metropolitan area of Florence (Petralli et al., 2010), and on professional research-grade data logger (Campbell CR800), logging air temperature in a non-aspirated shield by means of sensors at fast (thermocouple) and slower (digital) time response. Two prototypes of stations were thus designed specifically for buses or tramways and four MWSs were then installed on Florence public transport means (tramways and buses); the system is designed either to log further pollution parameters (i.e. fine particles) and to be extended to other Florence mobile vectors in order to get high resolution maps (in space and time) of meteo/environmental variables in the urban area. Coupling spatial distribution of the extreme events with information regarding those areas frequented by individuals more sensitive to climate extremes (e.g. elder people and children), prompt countermeasures (e.g. pre-warning of the nearest sanitary structures) could be timely taken. References: Pascal M, Laaidi K, Ledrans M, Baffert E, Caserio-Schönemann C, Le Tertre A, Manach J, Medina S, Rudant J, Empereur-Bissonnet P (2006) France's heat health watch warning system. Int.J.Biometeorol 50:144-153. Petralli M, Massetti L, Orlandini S (2010) Five years of thermal intra-urban monitoring in Florence (Italy) and application of climatological indices. Theor.Appl.Climatol 104:349-356. Schär C, Vidale PL, Lüthi, D, Frei C, Häberli C, Liniger MA, Appenzeller C (2004) The role of increasing temperature variability in European summer heatwaves. Nature 427:332-336.

Open hardware, low cost, air quality stations for monitoring ozone in coastal area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lima, Marco; Donzella, Davide; Pintus, Fabio; Fedi, Adriano; Ferrari, Daniele; Massabò, Marco

2014-05-01

Ozone concentrations in urban and coastal area are a great concern for citizens and, consequently regulator. In the last 20 years the Ozone concentration is almost doubled and it has attracted the public attention because of the well know harmful impacts on human health and biosphere in general. Official monitoring networks usually comprise high precision, high accuracy observation stations, usually managed by public administrations and environmental agency; unfortunately due to their high costs of installation and maintenance, the monitoring stations are relatively sparse. This kind of monitoring networks have been recognized to be unsuitable to effectively characterize the high variability of air quality, especially in areas where pollution sources are various and often not static. We present a prototype of a low cost station for air quality monitoring, specifically developed for complementing the official monitoring stations improving the representation of air quality spatial distribution. We focused on a semi-professional product that could guarantee the highest reliability at the lowest possible cost, supported by a consistent infrastructure for data management. We test two type of Ozone sensor electrochemical and metal oxide. This work is integrated in the ACRONET Paradigm ® project: an open-hardware platform strongly oriented on environmental monitoring. All software and hardware sources will be available on the web. Thus, a computer and a small amount of work tools will be sufficient to create new monitoring networks, with the only constraint to share all the data obtained. It will so possible to create a real "sensing community". The prototype is currently able to measure ozone level, temperature and relative humidity, but soon, with the upcoming changes, it will be able also to monitor dust, carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide, always through the use of commercial sensors. The sensors are grouped in a compact board that interfaces with a data-logger able to transmit data to a dedicated server through a GPRS module (no ad hoc radio infrastructure needed). Due to the GPRS low latency transmission the data are transmitted in near-real time. The prototype has an independent power supply. The sensors outputs are directly compared with the measurement of the official fixed monitoring stations. We present preliminary tests of a ozone level assessment obtained without laboratory calibration during a first field campaign in Savona (Italy); the preliminary verification and test show reasonable agreement between low cost sensors and fixed monitoring station ozone level trends (low cost sensors detect gas concentration at ppb level). The preliminary results are promising for complementing the fixed official monitoring networks with low-cost sensors.

Rainfall, Streamflow, and Water-Quality Data During Stormwater Monitoring, Halawa Stream Drainage Basin, Oahu, Hawaii, July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2007

USGS Publications Warehouse

Young, Stacie T.M.; Jamison, Marcael T.J.

2007-01-01

Storm runoff water-quality samples were collected as part of the State of Hawaii Department of Transportation Stormwater Monitoring Program. This program is designed to assess the effects of highway runoff and urban runoff on Halawa Stream. For this program, rainfall data were collected at two stations, continuous streamflow data at three stations, and water-quality data at five stations, which include the two continuous streamflow stations. This report summarizes rainfall, streamflow, and water-quality data collected between July 1, 2006 and June 30, 2007. A total of 13 samples was collected over two storms during July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2007. The goal was to collect grab samples nearly simultaneously at all five stations and flow-weighted time-composite samples at the three stations equipped with automatic samplers. Samples were analyzed for total suspended solids, total dissolved solids, nutrients, chemical oxygen demand, and selected trace metals (cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, nickel, and zinc). Additionally, grab samples were analyzed for oil and grease, total petroleum hydrocarbons, fecal coliform, and biological oxygen demand. Quality-assurance/quality-control samples were also collected during storms and during routine maintenance to verify analytical procedures and check the effectiveness of equipment-cleaning procedures.

Using ISERV and Commercial Satellite Imagery to Assess and Monitor Recovery Efforts in Urban Damaged Areas

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bell, Jordan R.; Molthan, Andrew L.; Burks, Jason E.; McGrath, Kevin M.

2014-01-01

NASA's Short-term Prediction, Research, and Transition (SPoRT) Center uses a wide array of satellites to monitor and assess the impacts of natural disasters, with support from NASA's Applied Sciences Program. One of the newest sensors SPoRT is utilizing in these activities is the International Space Station (ISS) SERVIR Environmental Research and Visualization System (ISERV) instrument. ISERV provides a unique view of the areas impacted and will play a big role in monitoring the recovery these areas. High-resolution commercial satellite data is also used to monitor urban areas that have been impacted by natural disasters. SPoRT is developing techniques to measure the extent of these disasters and to monitor recovery. Several of these techniques include semi-automatic feature detection and change as well as developing an experimental damage assessment based upon the visible damage observed by the satellites. Furthermore, throughout these activities SPoRT hopes to provide additional data to the NOAA National Weather Service Damage Assessment Toolkit, which will help to supplement those activities being performed in the field.

Changes in Benthic Biota between Mountain and Urban Streams

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sato, H.; Iijima, A.

2016-12-01

It is well known that the benthic biota in the river ecosystem changes drastically between the mountain and urban streams. However, there are few studies demonstrating the changes in biota by using quantitative techniques. In this study, field research on benthic species (mainly aquatic insects) was carried out at 6 different sites in the Kanna River in Japan. After that, we compared the biota quantitatively by using an EPT (Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera) index and a pollution index (Pantle-Buck Method). Moreover, we applied a cluster analysis to determine the statistical difference in the benthic biota among the sites. The monitoring stations (St.1-St.6 in order from the upper stream) were placed in the reaches of the Kanna River that is one of the headstreams flowing into the Tone River (fig.1-a). In those monitoring stations, St.1-3 are located in the mountain area, and St.4-6 are in the urban area. Field research was carried out every other month during February 2012 to January 2013 by a Beck-Tsuda β method. In total, we identified 7879 benthos of 153 species (fig.1-b). The EPT index tended to decrease toward the lower reaches (fig.1-c). Moreover, there were significant changes in the composition of EPT species between the mountain (St.1-3) and urban (St.4-6) area. In particular, Plecoptera species which has no pollution tolerance decreased drastically in the urban stream. The values of pollution index tended to increase toward the lower reaches (fig.1-d). In fact, the lower reaches of the Kanna River has a large population who has insufficient sewage treatment system. This is consistent with the changes in the EPT species. Cluster analysis demonstrated that the benthic biota in the Kanna River has been divided between St.3 and 4. Consequently, the water contamination in the urban stream is supposed to be the main cause of significant changes in benthic biota in the Kanna River's ecosystem.

The Advanced National Seismic System; management and implementation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Benz, H.M.; Shedlock, K.M.; Buland, R.P.

2001-01-01

What is the Advanced National Seismic System? The Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS) is designed to organize, modernize, and standardize operations of seismic networks in the United States to improve the Nation’s ability to respond effectively to damaging earthquakes, volcanoes, and tsunamis. To achieve this, the ANSS will link more than 7,000 national, regional and urban monitoring stations in real time

Electromagnetic fields from mobile phone base station - variability analysis.

PubMed

Bienkowski, Pawel; Zubrzak, Bartlomiej

2015-09-01

The article describes the character of electromagnetic field (EMF) in mobile phone base station (BS) surroundings and its variability in time with an emphasis on the measurement difficulties related to its pulse and multi-frequency nature. Work also presents long-term monitoring measurements performed recently in different locations in Poland - small city with dispersed building development and in major polish city - dense urban area. Authors tried to determine the trends in changing of EMF spectrum analyzing daily changes of measured EMF levels in those locations. Research was performed using selective electromagnetic meters and also EMF meter with spectrum analysis.

Using crowdsourced data from citizen weather stations to analyse air temperature in 'local climate zones' in Berlin, Germany

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fenner, Daniel; Meier, Fred; Bechtel, Benjamin; Otto, Marco; Scherer, Dieter

2017-04-01

Provision of observational data with high spatial coverage over extended time periods still remains as one of the biggest challenges in urban climate research. Classical meteorological networks are seldomly designed to monitor atmospheric conditions in a broad variety of urban environments, though the heterogeneity of urban structures leads to distinct thermal characteristics on local scales, i.e., hundreds of metres to several kilometres. One approach to overcome the aforementioned challenges of observation networks is to use data from weather stations that are maintained by citizens. The private company 'netatmo' (www.netatmo.com) produces and distributes such citizen weather stations (CWS) around the world. The stations automatically send their data to the netatmo server, and the user decides if data are publicly shared. Shared data can freely be retrieved via an application programming interface. We collected air temperature (T) data for the year 2015 for the city of Berlin, Germany, and surroundings with more than 1500 'netatmo' CWS in the study area. The entire data set was thoroughly quality checked, and filter techniques, involving data from a reference network, were developed to address different types of errors associated with CWS data. Additionally, the accuracy of 'netatmo' CWS was checked in a climate chamber and in a long-term field experiment. Since the terms 'urban' and 'rural' are ambiguous in urban climate studies, Stewart and Oke (2012) developed the 'local climate zone' (LCZ) concept to enhance understanding and interpretation of air temperature differences in urban regions. LCZ classification for the study region was conducted using the 'WUDAPT' approach by Bechtel et al. (2015). The quality-checked CWS data were used to analyse T characteristics of LCZ classes in Berlin and surroundings. Specifically, we analysed how LCZ classes are represented by CWS in 2015, how T varies within each LCZ class ('intra-LCZ variability'), and if significant differences can be detected between LCZ classes ('inter-LCZ differences'). Results show that most 'built-up' LCZ classes in the study region are represented by CWS, while only few CWS are located in 'natural' LCZ classes (i.e. in inner-city parks or in rural areas). T as measured by CWS showed overall good agreement with data from a network of professional weather stations throughout the year, though for some LCZ classes mean monthly deviations were up to 1 K. Intra-LCZ variability of T was especially pronounced during night-time hours and during summer months. We found significant inter-LCZ differences in T mainly for dissimilar LCZ classes and during night-time. Our results indicate the suitability of CWS data for T monitoring of specific LCZ classes and the applicability of this data set for further scientific research. Bechtel, B., P. J. Alexander, J. Böhner, J. Ching, O. Conrad, J. Feddema, G. Mills, L. See, and I. D. Stewart (2015): Mapping Local Climate Zones for a Worldwide Database of the Form and Function of Cities. ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 4: 199-219 Stewart, I. D. and T. R. Oke (2012): Local climate zones for urban temperature studies. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc. 93 (12): 1879-1900

Characterization of selected volatile organic compounds, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and carbonyl compounds at a roadside monitoring station

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ho, K. F.; Lee, S. C.; Chiu, Gloria M. Y.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs), PAHs and carbonyl compounds are the major toxic components in Hong Kong. Emissions from motor vehicles have been one of the primary pollution sources in the metropolitan areas throughout Hong Kong for a long time. A 1-yr monitoring program for VOCs, PAHs and carbonyl compounds had been performed at a roadside urban station at Hong Kong Polytechnic University in order to determine the variations and correlations of each selected species (VOCs, PAHs and carbonyl compounds). This study is aimed to analyze toxic volatile organic compounds (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene), two carbonyl compounds (formaldehyde, acetaldehyde), and selective polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The monitoring program started from 16 April 1999 to 30 March 2000. Ambient VOC concentrations, many of which originate from the same sources as particulate PAHs and carbonyls compounds, show significant quantities of benzene, toluene and xylenes. Correlations and multivariate analysis of selected gaseous and particulate phase organic pollutants were performed. Source identification by principle component analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis allowed the identification of four sources (factors) for the roadside monitoring station. Factor 1 represents the effect of diesel vehicle exhaust. Factor 2 shows the contribution of aromatic compounds. Factor 3 explains photochemical products—formaldehyde and acetaldehyde. Factor 4 explains the effect of gasoline vehicle exhaust.

Measurements of Criteria Pollutants in Suburban Locations in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fentanes, O.; Sanchez, A.; Garcia, A.; Martinez, A.

2004-12-01

In the town of Santa Ana in the southern part of the Mexico City Metropolitan Area (MCMA) at an approximate height of 370 meters above the Valley of Mexico, a series of criteria pollutants (nitrogen dioxide, ozone, sulfur dioxide, and carbon monoxide) and meteorological parameters (wind speed and direction, temperature and relative humidity) were measured during the MCMA-2003 field campaign during April 2003. Santa Ana is considered a border site, agriculture being the predominant activity. The generated data in Santa Ana was compared with those from two representative atmospheric monitoring stations from the southeast zone (CENICA Supersite) and southwest (Revolucion Station) of Mexico City. The carbon monoxide and ozone concentrations measured in Santa Ana are atypical for a rural area. The sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide concentrations are characteristic of the local activity. The average obtained during the measurement time for carbon monoxide was 0.86 ppm, the presence of the contaminant was within a 0.3 to 1.5 ppm range, 5 to 95 percentile, and does not follow the observed behavior of the monitoring stations that are located inside the urban area, although during the night (10 pm to 6 am) the carbon monoxide in Santa Ana was preset in levels from 0.4 to 1.5 ppm, 5 to 95 percentiles, average 0.92 ppm, above the reported concentrations at Revolucion Station, levels from 0.1 to 1.7 ppm, 5 to 95 percentiles; average 0.72 ppm. The presence of this contaminant can be attributed to transportation and accumulation phenomena. The ozone daytime behavior is similar to the one observed in the CENICA and Revolucion stations, but with a lower magnitude, the daily maximum generally occuring 2 or 3 hours after the urban stations. The one-hour average maximum values were 133 ppb in Santa Ana area and 188 ppb in the city. During the night the average concentrations were 37 ppb in Santa Ana and 17 ppb in the urban area. Nevertheless, the ozone average value in Santa Ana during the study was 49 ppb, slightly higher than the one obtained in the urban area, which was 44 ppb. The presence of this contaminant can be possibly attributed to the transportation and accumulation factors as well as to the low reactivity due to the absence of NOx, as explained in Dommen Josef and Prévôt, S.H. André, 2002, Characterization of the photooxidant formation in the metropolitan area of Milan from aircraft measurements, Journal of Geophysical Research, 107 (D22): 8197, doi: 10.1029/2000JD000283.

Lidar Remote Sensing for Industry and Environment Monitoring

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Singh, Upendra N. (Editor); Itabe, Toshikazu (Editor); Sugimoto, Nobuo (Editor)

2000-01-01

Contents include the following: 1. Keynote paper: Overview of lidar technology for industrial and environmental monitoring in Japan. 2. lidar technology I: NASA's future active remote sensing mission for earth science. Geometrical detector consideration s in laser sensing application (invited paper). 3. Lidar technology II: High-power femtosecond light strings as novel atmospheric probes (invited paper). Design of a compact high-sensitivity aerosol profiling lidar. 4. Lasers for lidars: High-energy 2 microns laser for multiple lidar applications. New submount requirement of conductively cooled laser diodes for lidar applications. 5. Tropospheric aerosols and clouds I: Lidar monitoring of clouds and aerosols at the facility for atmospheric remote sensing (invited paper). Measurement of asian dust by using multiwavelength lidar. Global monitoring of clouds and aerosols using a network of micropulse lidar systems. 6. Troposphere aerosols and clouds II: Scanning lidar measurements of marine aerosol fields at a coastal site in Hawaii. 7. Tropospheric aerosols and clouds III: Formation of ice cloud from asian dust particles in the upper troposphere. Atmospheric boundary layer observation by ground-based lidar at KMITL, Thailand (13 deg N, 100 deg. E). 8. Boundary layer, urban pollution: Studies of the spatial correlation between urban aerosols and local traffic congestion using a slant angle scanning on the research vessel Mirai. 9. Middle atmosphere: Lidar-observed arctic PSC's over Svalbard (invited paper). Sodium temperature lidar measurements of the mesopause region over Syowa Station. 10. Differential absorption lidar (dIAL) and DOAS: Airborne UV DIAL measurements of ozone and aerosols (invited paper). Measurement of water vapor, surface ozone, and ethylene using differential absorption lidar. 12. Space lidar I: Lightweight lidar telescopes for space applications (invited paper). Coherent lidar development for Doppler wind measurement from the International Space Station. 13. Space lidar II: Using coherent Doppler lidar to estimate river discharge. 14. Poster session: Lidar technology, optics for lidar. Laser for lidar. Middle atmosphere observations. Tropospheric observations (aerosols, clouds). Boundary layer, urban pollution. Differential absorption lidar. Doppler lidar. and Space lidar.

Impacts of urbanization and agricultural development on observed changes in surface air temperature over mainland China from 1961 to 2006

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Songjun; Tang, Qiuhong; Xu, Di; Yang, Zhiyong

2018-03-01

A large proportion of meteorological stations in mainland China are located in or near either urban or agricultural lands that were established throughout the period of rapid urbanization and agricultural development (1961-2006). The extent of the impacts of urbanization and agricultural development on observed air temperature changes across different climate regions remains elusive. This study evaluates the surface air temperature trends observed by 598 meteorological stations in relation to the urbanization and agricultural development over the arid northwest, semi-arid intermediate, and humid southeast regions of mainland China based on linear regressions of temperature trends on the fractions of urban and cultivated land within a 3-km radius of the stations. In all three regions, the stations surrounded by large urban land tend to experience rapid warming, especially at minimum temperature. This dependence is particularly significant in the southeast region, which experiences the most intense urbanization. In the northwest and intermediate regions, stations surrounded by large cultivated land encounter less warming during the main growing season, especially at the maximum temperature changes. These findings suggest that the observed surface warming has been affected by urbanization and agricultural development represented by urban and cultivated land fractions around stations in with land cover changes in their proximity and should thus be considered when analyzing regional temperature changes in mainland China.

Perceived annoyance from environmental odors and association with atmospheric ammonia levels in non-urban residential communities: a cross-sectional study

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Objective Odor exposure is an environmental stressor that is responsible of many citizens complains about air pollution in non-urban areas. However, information about the exposure-response relation is scarce. One of the main challenges is to identify a measurable compound that can be related with odor annoyance responses. We investigated the association between regional and temporal variation of ammonia (NH3) concentrations in five Danish non-urban regions and environmental odor annoyance as perceived by the local residents. Methods A cross-sectional study where NH3 concentration was obtained from the national air quality monitoring program and from emission-dispersion modelling, and odor pollution perception from questionnaires. The exposure-response model was a sigmoid model. Linear regression analyses were used to estimate the model constants after equation transformations. The model was validated using leave-one-out cross validation (LOOCV) statistical method. Results About 45% of the respondents were annoyed by odor pollution at their residential areas. The perceived odor was characterized by all respondents as animal waste odor. The exposure-annoyance sigmoid model showed that the prevalence of odor annoyance was significantly associated with NH3 concentrations (measured and estimated) at the local air quality monitoring stations (p < 0.01,R2 = 0.99; and p < 0.05,R2 = 0.93; respectively). Prediction errors were below 5.1% and 20% respectively. The seasonal pattern of odor perception was associated with the seasonal variation in NH3 concentrations (p < 0.001, adjusted R2 = 0.68). Conclusion The results suggest that atmospheric NH3 levels at local air quality stations could be used as indicators of prevalence of odor annoyance in non-urban residential communities. PMID:22513250

Personal Air Pollution Exposure Monitoring using Low Cost Sensors in Chennai City

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reddy Yasa, Pavan; Shiva, Nagendra S. N.

2016-04-01

Air quality in many cities is deteriorating due to rapid urbanization and motorization. In the past, most of the health impacts studies in the urban areas have considered stationary air quality monitoring station data for health impact assessment. Since, there exist a spatial and temporal variation of air quality because of rapid change in land use pattern and complex interaction between emission sources and meteorological conditions, the human exposure assessment using stationary data may not provide realistic information. In such cases low cost sensors monitoring is viable in providing both spatial and temporal variations of air pollutant concentrations. In the present study an attempt has been made to use low cost sensor for monitoring the personal exposure to the two criteria pollutants CO and PM2.5 at 3 different locations of Chennai city. Maximum and minimum concentrations of CO and PM2.5 were found to be 5.4ppm, 0.8ppm and 534.8μg/m3, 1.9μg/m3 respectively. Results showed high concentrations near the intersection and low concentrations in the straight road.

Particulate matter over a seven year period in urban and rural areas within, proximal and far from mining and power station operations in Greece.

PubMed

Triantafyllou, A G; Zoras, S; Evagelopoulos, V

2006-11-01

Lignite mining operations and lignite-fired power stations result in major particulate pollution (fly ash and fugitive dust) problems in the areas surrounding these activities. The problem is more complicated, especially, for urban areas located not far from these activities, due to additional contribution from the urban pollution sources. Knowledge of the distribution of airborne particulate matter into size fraction has become an increasing area of focus when examining the effects of particulate pollution. On the other hand, airborne particle concentration measurements are useful in order to assess the air pollution levels based on national and international air quality standards. These measurements are also necessary for developing air pollutants control strategies or for evaluating the effectiveness of these strategies, especially, for long periods. In this study an attempt is made in order to investigate the particle size distribution of fly ash and fugitive dust in a heavy industrialized (mining and power stations operations) area with complex terrain in the northwestern part of Greece. Parallel total suspended particulates (TSP) and particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than 10 microm (PM10) concentrations are analyzed. These measurements gathered from thirteen monitoring stations located in the greater area of interest. Spatial, temporal variation and trend are analyzed over the last seven years. Furthermore, the geographical variation of PM10 - TSP correlation and PM10/TSP ratio are investigated and compared to those in the literature. The analysis has indicated that a complex system of sources and meteorological conditions modulate the particulate pollution of the examined area.

Monitoring Street-Level Spatial-Temporal Variations of Carbon Monoxide in Urban Settings Using a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) Framework

PubMed Central

Wen, Tzai-Hung; Jiang, Joe-Air; Sun, Chih-Hong; Juang, Jehn-Yih; Lin, Tzu-Shiang

2013-01-01

Air pollution has become a severe environmental problem due to urbanization and heavy traffic. Monitoring street-level air quality is an important issue, but most official monitoring stations are installed to monitor large-scale air quality conditions, and their limited spatial resolution cannot reflect the detailed variations in air quality that may be induced by traffic jams. By deploying wireless sensors on crossroads and main roads, this study established a pilot framework for a wireless sensor network (WSN)-based real-time monitoring system to understand street-level spatial-temporal changes of carbon monoxide (CO) in urban settings. The system consists of two major components. The first component is the deployment of wireless sensors. We deployed 44 sensor nodes, 40 transmitter nodes and four gateway nodes in this study. Each sensor node includes a signal processing module, a CO sensor and a wireless communication module. In order to capture realistic human exposure to traffic pollutants, all sensors were deployed at a height of 1.5 m on lampposts and traffic signs. The study area covers a total length of 1.5 km of Keelung Road in Taipei City. The other component is a map-based monitoring platform for sensor data visualization and manipulation in time and space. Using intensive real-time street-level monitoring framework, we compared the spatial-temporal patterns of air pollution in different time periods. Our results capture four CO concentration peaks throughout the day at the location, which was located along an arterial and nearby traffic sign. The hourly average could reach 5.3 ppm from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm due to the traffic congestion. The proposed WSN-based framework captures detailed ground information and potential risk of human exposure to traffic-related air pollution. It also provides street-level insights into real-time monitoring for further early warning of air pollution and urban environmental management. PMID:24287859

Monitoring street-level spatial-temporal variations of carbon monoxide in urban settings using a wireless sensor network (WSN) framework.

PubMed

Wen, Tzai-Hung; Jiang, Joe-Air; Sun, Chih-Hong; Juang, Jehn-Yih; Lin, Tzu-Shiang

2013-11-27

Air pollution has become a severe environmental problem due to urbanization and heavy traffic. Monitoring street-level air quality is an important issue, but most official monitoring stations are installed to monitor large-scale air quality conditions, and their limited spatial resolution cannot reflect the detailed variations in air quality that may be induced by traffic jams. By deploying wireless sensors on crossroads and main roads, this study established a pilot framework for a wireless sensor network (WSN)-based real-time monitoring system to understand street-level spatial-temporal changes of carbon monoxide (CO) in urban settings. The system consists of two major components. The first component is the deployment of wireless sensors. We deployed 44 sensor nodes, 40 transmitter nodes and four gateway nodes in this study. Each sensor node includes a signal processing module, a CO sensor and a wireless communication module. In order to capture realistic human exposure to traffic pollutants, all sensors were deployed at a height of 1.5 m on lampposts and traffic signs. The study area covers a total length of 1.5 km of Keelung Road in Taipei City. The other component is a map-based monitoring platform for sensor data visualization and manipulation in time and space. Using intensive real-time street-level monitoring framework, we compared the spatial-temporal patterns of air pollution in different time periods. Our results capture four CO concentration peaks throughout the day at the location, which was located along an arterial and nearby traffic sign. The hourly average could reach 5.3 ppm from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm due to the traffic congestion. The proposed WSN-based framework captures detailed ground information and potential risk of human exposure to traffic-related air pollution. It also provides street-level insights into real-time monitoring for further early warning of air pollution and urban environmental management.

Evaluation of urban surface parameterizations in the WRF model using measurements during the Texas Air Quality Study 2006 field campaign

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, S.-H.; Kim, S.-W.; Angevine, W. M.; Bianco, L.; McKeen, S. A.; Senff, C. J.; Trainer, M.; Tucker, S. C.; Zamora, R. J.

2010-10-01

The impact of urban surface parameterizations in the WRF (Weather Research and Forecasting) model on the simulation of local meteorological fields is investigated. The Noah land surface model (LSM), a modified LSM, and a single-layer urban canopy model (UCM) have been compared, focusing on urban patches. The model simulations were performed for 6 days from 12 August to 17 August during the Texas Air Quality Study 2006 field campaign. Analysis was focused on the Houston-Galveston metropolitan area. The model simulated temperature, wind, and atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) height were compared with observations from surface meteorological stations (Continuous Ambient Monitoring Stations, CAMS), wind profilers, the NOAA Twin Otter aircraft, and the NOAA Research Vessel Ronald H. Brown. The UCM simulation showed better results in the comparison of ABL height and surface temperature than the LSM simulations, whereas the original LSM overestimated both the surface temperature and ABL height significantly in urban areas. The modified LSM, which activates hydrological processes associated with urban vegetation mainly through transpiration, slightly reduced warm and high biases in surface temperature and ABL height. A comparison of surface energy balance fluxes in an urban area indicated the UCM reproduces a realistic partitioning of sensible heat and latent heat fluxes, consequently improving the simulation of urban boundary layer. However, the LSMs have a higher Bowen ratio than the observation due to significant suppression of latent heat flux. The comparison results suggest that the subgrid heterogeneity by urban vegetation and urban morphological characteristics should be taken into account along with the associated physical parameterizations for accurate simulation of urban boundary layer if the region of interest has a large fraction of vegetation within the urban patch. Model showed significant discrepancies in the specific meteorological conditions when nocturnal low-level jets exist and a thermal internal boundary layer over water forms.

Rainfall, Streamflow, and Water-Quality Data During Stormwater Monitoring, Halawa Stream Drainage Basin, Oahu, Hawaii, July 1, 2004 to June 30, 2005

USGS Publications Warehouse

Young, Stacie T.M.; Ball, Marcael T.J.

2005-01-01

Storm runoff water-quality samples were collected as part of the State of Hawaii Department of Transportation Stormwater Monitoring Program. This program is designed to assess the effects of highway runoff and urban runoff on Halawa Stream. For this program, rainfall data were collected at two stations, continuous streamflow data at two stations, and water-quality data at five stations, which include the two continuous streamflow stations. This report summarizes rainfall, streamflow, and water-quality data collected between July 1, 2004 and June 30, 2005. A total of 15 samples was collected over three storms during July 1, 2004 to June 30, 2005. In general, an attempt was made to collect grab samples nearly simultaneously at all five stations and flow-weighted time-composite samples at the three stations equipped with automatic samplers. However, all three storms were partially sampled because either not all stations were sampled or not all composite samples were collected. Samples were analyzed for total suspended solids, total dissolved solids, nutrients, chemical oxygen demand, and selected trace metals (cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, nickel, and zinc). Chromium and nickel were added to the analysis starting October 1, 2004. Grab samples were additionally analyzed for oil and grease, total petroleum hydrocarbons, fecal coliform, and biological oxygen demand. Quality-assurance/quality-control samples were also collected during storms and during routine maintenance to verify analytical procedures and check the effectiveness of equipment-cleaning procedures.

Water quality in the Anacostia River, Maryland and Rock Creek, Washington, D.C.: Continuous and discrete monitoring with simulations to estimate concentrations and yields of nutrients, suspended sediment, and bacteria

USGS Publications Warehouse

Miller, Cherie V.; Chanat, Jeffrey G.; Bell, Joseph M.

2013-01-01

Concentrations and loading estimates for nutrients, suspended sediment, and E. coli bacteria were summarized for three water-quality monitoring stations on the Anacostia River in Maryland and one station on Rock Creek in Washington, D.C. Both streams are tributaries to the Potomac River in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area and contribute to the Chesapeake Bay estuary. Two stations on the Anacostia River, Northeast Branch at Riverdale, Maryland and Northwest Branch near Hyattsville, Maryland, have been monitored for water quality during the study period from 2003 to 2011 and are located near the shift from nontidal to tidal conditions near Bladensburg, Maryland. A station on Paint Branch is nested above the station on the Northeast Branch Anacostia River, and has slightly less developed land cover than the Northeast and Northwest Branch stations. The Rock Creek station is located in Rock Creek Park, but the land cover in the watershed surrounding the park is urbanized. Stepwise log-linear regression models were developed to estimate the concentrations of suspended sediment, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and E. coli bacteria from continuous field monitors. Turbidity was the strongest predictor variable for all water-quality parameters. For bacteria, water temperature improved the models enough to be included as a second predictor variable due to the strong dependence of stream metabolism on temperature. Coefficients of determination (R2) for the models were highest for log concentrations of suspended sediment (0.9) and total phosphorus (0.8 to 0.9), followed by E. coli bacteria (0.75 to 0.8), and total nitrogen (0.6). Water-quality data provided baselines for conditions prior to accelerated implementation of multiple stormwater controls in the watersheds. Counties are currently in the process of enhancing stormwater controls in both watersheds. Annual yields were estimated for suspended sediment, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and E. coli bacteria using the U.S. Geological Survey model LOADEST with hourly time steps of turbidity, flow, and time. Yields of all four parameters were within ranges found in other urbanized watersheds in Chesapeake Bay. Annual yields for all four watersheds over the period of study were estimated for suspended sediment (65,500 – 166,000 kilograms per year per square kilometer; kg/yr/km2), total nitrogen (465 - 911 kg/yr/km2), total phosphorus (36 - 113 kg/yr/km2), and E. coli bacteria (6.0 – 38 x 1012 colony forming units/yr/km2). The length of record was not sufficient to determine trends for any of the water-quality parameters; within confidence intervals of the models, results were similar to loads determined by previous studies for the Northeast and Northwest Branch stations of the Anacostia River.

Streamflow, water quality, and aquatic macroinvertebrates of selected streams in Fairfax County, Virginia, 2007-12

USGS Publications Warehouse

Jastram, John D.

2014-01-01

Efforts to mitigate the effects of urbanization on streams rely on best management practices (BMPs) that are implemented with the intent of reducing and retaining stormwater runoff. A cooperative monitoring effort between the U.S. Geological Survey and Fairfax County, Virginia, was initiated in 2007 to assess the condition of county streams and document watershed-scale responses to the implementation of BMPs. Assessment of the data collected during the first 5 years of this monitoring program focused on characterizing the hydrologic and ecological condition of 14 monitored streams. Hydrologic, chemical, and macroinvertebrate community conditions in the streams monitored were found to be consistent, overall, with conditions commonly observed in urban streams. Hydrologically, the monitored streams were found to be flashy, with flashiness positively related to road cover in the watershed. Typical pH values of streams throughout the network centered around neutrality (pH = 7) with strong daily fluctuations apparent in the continuous data. Patterns in specific conductance were largely representative of anthropogenic disturbances—watersheds having the greatest percentage of open space and estate residential land-use had the lowest typical specific conductance values, and specific conductance variability was less than what is observed in watersheds that are more intensively developed. In watersheds having greater road coverage, and more development in general, increases in specific conductance over several orders of magnitude were observed during winter months as a result of the application of de-icing salts on impervious surfaces. Dissolved oxygen conditions were typically within the range required to support healthy biological communities, although occasional departures during summer months at some sites fell below the impairment threshold for streams in Virginia. Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), concentration patterns were largely consistent across the network, with few exceptions. Nitrogen concentrations in monthly samples were generally low and dominated by nitrate. Exceptions to the generally low N concentrations occurred at Captain Hickory Run, which had a median total N concentration of approximately 4.9 milligrams per liter (mg/L), compared to the network-wide median of approximately 1.7 mg/L, and at Popes Head Creek Tributary, where total N concentrations spiked to 6–8 mg/L during low-flow periods in August or September of each year. Phosphorus concentrations in monthly samples were generally low and dominated by the dissolved fraction. Two monitoring stations in the network, Flatlick Branch and Frog Branch, are notable for having median total P concentrations that were, on average, approximately three times greater than the median total P concentration of 0.02 mg/L observed at the other 12 stations in the network. Suspended-sediment and nutrient loads and yields were similar to those of urbanized watersheds in other studies, although the yields from these urbanized basins were greater than, or within, the upper quartile of yields observed throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Annual suspended-sediment loads ranged from 289–10,275 tons, with a median of 1,311 tons, and corresponding yields ranged from 107–2,827 tons per square mile (ton/mi2), with a median of 277 ton/mi2. Annual total N loads ranged from 8,014–36,413 pounds, with a median of 21,314 pounds, and corresponding yields ranged from 3,361–8,360 pounds per square mile (lb/mi2), with a median of 6,200 lb/mi2. Annual total P loads ranged from 380–6,558 pounds, with a median of 1,874 pounds, and corresponding yields ranged from 140–1,562 lb/mi2, with a median of 543 lb/mi2. Benthic macroinvertebrate community metrics indicated that streams throughout Fairfax County are generally of poor health. One station, Castle Creek, was an exception with results indicating relatively high quality aquatic health. Six additional monitoring stations were added to the network in 2012 to improve spatial coverage throughout Fairfax County. Monitoring activities are expected to continue at all 20 stations for the foreseeable future as BMP implementation is conducted.

Towards a network of Urban Forest Eddy Covariance stations: a unique case study in Naples

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guidolotti, Gabriele; Pallozzi, Emanuele; Esposito, Raffaela; Mattioni, Michele; Calfapietra, Carlo

2015-04-01

Urban forests are by definition integrated in highly human-made areas, and interact with different components of our cities. Thanks to those interactions, urban forests provide to people and to the urban environment a number of ecosystem services, including the absorption of CO2 and air pollutants thus influencing the local air quality. Moreover, in urban areas a relevant role is played by the photochemical pollution which is strongly influenced by the interactions between volatile organic compounds (VOC) and nitrogen oxides (NOx). In several cities, a high percentage of VOC is of biogenic origin mainly emitted from the urban trees. Despite their importance, experimental sites monitoring fluxes of trace gases fluxes in urban forest ecosystems are still scarce. Here we show the preliminary results of an innovative experimental site located in the Royal Park of Capodimonte within the city of Naples (40°51'N-14°15'E, 130 m above sea level). The site is mainly characterised by Quercus ilex with some patches of Pinus pinea and equipped with an eddy-covariance tower measuring the exchange of CO2, H2O, N2O, CH4, O3, PM, VOCs and NOx using state-of-the art instrumentations; it is running since the end of 2014 and it is part of the large infrastructural I-AMICA project. We suggest that the experience gained with research networks such as Fluxnet and ICOS should be duplicated for urban forests. This is crucial for carbon as there is now the ambition to include urban forests in the carbon stocks accounting system. This is even more important to understand the difficult interactions between anthropogenic and biogenic sources that often have negative implications for urban air quality. Urban environment can thus become an extraordinary case study and a network of such kind of stations might represent an important strategy both from the scientific and the applicative point of view.

Real-time dissemination of air quality information using data streams and Web technologies: linking air quality to health risks in urban areas.

PubMed

Davila, Silvije; Ilić, Jadranka Pečar; Bešlić, Ivan

2015-06-01

This article presents a new, original application of modern information and communication technology to provide effective real-time dissemination of air quality information and related health risks to the general public. Our on-line subsystem for urban real-time air quality monitoring is a crucial component of a more comprehensive integrated information system, which has been developed by the Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health. It relies on a StreamInsight data stream management system and service-oriented architecture to process data streamed from seven monitoring stations across Zagreb. Parameters that are monitored include gases (NO, NO2, CO, O3, H2S, SO2, benzene, NH3), particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), and meteorological data (wind speed and direction, temperature and pressure). Streamed data are processed in real-time using complex continuous queries. They first go through automated validation, then hourly air quality index is calculated for every station, and a report sent to the Croatian Environment Agency. If the parameter values exceed the corresponding regulation limits for three consecutive hours, the web service generates an alert for population groups at risk. Coupled with the Common Air Quality Index model, our web application brings air pollution information closer to the general population and raises awareness about environmental and health issues. Soon we intend to expand the service to a mobile application that is being developed.

An occupational respiratory allergy caused by Sinapis alba pollen in olive farmers.

PubMed

Anguita, J L; Palacios, L; Ruiz-Valenzuela, L; Bartolomé, B; López-Urbano, M J; Sáenz de San Pedro, B; Cano, E; Quiralte, J

2007-04-01

Sinapis alba (white mustard) is a entomophilic species included in the Brassicaceae family. To date it has not been related to allergic sensitization or clinical respiratory disease. Twelve olive orchard workers had a history of rhinitis and/or bronchial asthma that occurred during control weed management and/or harvest, from January to March. They underwent skin prick tests (SPT) with S. alba pollen extract and a standard battery of aeroallergens. Sinapis alba pollen extract was prepared for performing quantitative skin tests, enzyme allergosorbent test and nasal challenge test (NCT). A portable monitoring station and an urban volumetric Hirst-type spore trap were used for the aerobiological study. Eleven patients suffered from rhinitis and bronchial asthma and one had only from rhinitis. All patients were sensitized to S. alba pollen extract, and they showed a positive NCT response. In the urban aerobiologic monitoring station the amount of S. alba pollen only exceptionally reached peaks of 21 grains/m(3), whereas in the work environment peaks of 1801 grains/m(3) were detected between 15 February and 7 April. We demonstrate the existence of a new occupational allergen for olive farmers: S. alba pollen. We point out the importance of perform aerobiological sampling within the occupational environment for the detection and quantification of the allergenic source.

Simulating air temperature in an urban street canyon in all weather conditions using measured data at a reference meteorological station

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erell, E.; Williamson, T.

2006-10-01

A model is proposed that adapts data from a standard meteorological station to provide realistic site-specific air temperature in a city street exposed to the same meso-scale environment. In addition to a rudimentary description of the two sites, the canyon air temperature (CAT) model requires only inputs measured at standard weather stations; yet it is capable of accurately predicting the evolution of air temperature in all weather conditions for extended periods. It simulates the effect of urban geometry on radiant exchange; the effect of moisture availability on latent heat flux; energy stored in the ground and in building surfaces; air flow in the street based on wind above roof height; and the sensible heat flux from individual surfaces and from the street canyon as a whole. The CAT model has been tested on field data measured in a monitoring program carried out in Adelaide, Australia, in 2000-2001. After calibrating the model, predicted air temperature correlated well with measured data in all weather conditions over extended periods. The experimental validation provides additional evidence in support of a number of parameterisation schemes incorporated in the model to account for sensible heat and storage flux.

Impact assessment of PM10 cement plants emissions on urban air quality using the SCIPUFF dispersion model.

PubMed

Leone, Vincenzo; Cervone, Guido; Iovino, Pasquale

2016-09-01

The Second-order Closure Integrated Puff (SCIPUFF) model was used to study the impact on urban air quality caused by two cement plants emissions located near the city of Caserta, Italy, during the entire year of 2015. The simulated and observed PM10 concentrations were compared using three monitoring stations located in urban and sub-urban area of Caserta city. Both simulated and observed concentrations are shown to be highest in winter, lower in autumn and spring and lowest in summer. Model results generally follow the pattern of the observed concentrations but have a systematic under-prediction of the concentration values. Measures of the bias, NMSE and RMSE indicate a good correlation between observed and estimated values. The SCIPUFF model data analysis suggest that the cement plants are major sources for the measured PM10 values and are responsible for the deterioration of the urban air quality in the city of Caserta.

Indicators to assess the environmental performances of an innovative subway station : example of Noisy-Champs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schertzer, D. J. M.; Charbonnier, L.; Versini, P. A.; Tchiguirinskaia, I.

2017-12-01

Noisy-Champs is a train station located in Noisy-le-Grand and Champs-sur-Marne, in the Paris urban area (France). Integrated into the Grand Paris Express project (huge development project to modernise the transport network around Paris), this station is going to be radically transformed and become a major hub. Designed by the architectural office Duthilleul, the new Noisy-Champs station aspires to be an example of an innovative and sustainable infrastructure. Its architectural precepts are indeed meant to improve its environmental performances, especially those related to storm water management, water consumption and users' thermal and hygrometric comfort. In order to assess and monitor these performances, objectives and associated indicators have been developed. They aim to be adapted for a specific infrastructure such as a public transport station. Analyses of pre-existing comfort simulations, blueprints and regulatory documents have led to identify the main issues for the Noisy-Champs station, focusing on its resilience to extreme events like droughts, heatwaves and heaxvy rainfalls. Both objectives and indicators have been proposed by studying the space-time variabilities of physical fluxes (heat, pollutants, radiation, wind and water) and passenger flows, and their interactions. Each indicator is linked to an environmental performance and has been determined after consultation of the different stakeholders involved in the rebuilding of the station. It results a monitoring program to assess the environmental performances of the station composed by both the indicators grid and their related objectives, and a measurement program detailing the nature and location of sensors, and the frequency of measurements.

Modeling Urban Air Quality in the Berlin-Brandenburg Region: Evaluation of a WRF-Chem Setup

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuik, F.; Churkina, G.; Butler, T. M.; Lauer, A.; Mar, K. A.

2015-12-01

Air pollution is the number one environmental cause of premature deaths in Europe. Despite extensive regulations, air pollution remains a challenging issue, especially in urban areas. For studying air quality in the Berlin-Brandenburg region of Germany the Weather Research and Forecasting Model with Chemistry (WRF-Chem) is set up and evaluated against meteorological and air quality observations from monitoring stations as well as from a field campaign conducted in 2014 (incl. black carbon, VOCs as well as mobile measurements of particle size distribution and particle mass). The model setup includes 3 nested domains with horizontal resolutions of 15km, 3km, and 1km, online biogenic emissions using MEGAN 2.0, and anthropogenic emissions from the TNO-MACC-II inventory. This work serves as a basis for future studies on different aspects of air pollution in the Berlin-Brandenburg region, including how heat waves affect emissions of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOC) from urban vegetation (summer 2006) and the impact of selected traffic measures on air quality in the Berlin-Brandenburg area (summer 2014). The model represents the meteorology as observed in the region well for both periods. An exception is the heat wave period in 2006, where the temperature simulated with 3km and 1km resolutions is biased low by around 2°C for urban built-up stations. First results of simulations with chemistry show that, on average, WRF-Chem simulates concentrations of O3 well. However, the 8 hr maxima are underestimated, and the minima are overestimated. While NOx daily means are modeled reasonably well for urban stations, they are overestimated for suburban stations. PM10 concentrations are underestimated by the model. The biases and correlation coefficients of simulated O3, NOx, and PM10 in comparison to surface observations do not show improvements for the 1km domain in comparison to the 3km domain. To improve the model performance of the 1km domain we will include an updated emission inventory (TNO-MACC-III) as well as the interpolation of the emission data from 7km to a 1km resolution.

Evaluation of the magnitude and frequency of floods in urban watersheds in Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kennedy, Jeffrey R.; Paretti, Nicholas V.

2014-01-01

Flooding in urban areas routinely causes severe damage to property and often results in loss of life. To investigate the effect of urbanization on the magnitude and frequency of flood peaks, a flood frequency analysis was carried out using data from urbanized streamgaging stations in Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona. Flood peaks at each station were predicted using the log-Pearson Type III distribution, fitted using the expected moments algorithm and the multiple Grubbs-Beck low outlier test. The station estimates were then compared to flood peaks estimated by rural-regression equations for Arizona, and to flood peaks adjusted for urbanization using a previously developed procedure for adjusting U.S. Geological Survey rural regression peak discharges in an urban setting. Only smaller, more common flood peaks at the 50-, 20-, 10-, and 4-percent annual exceedance probabilities (AEPs) demonstrate any increase in magnitude as a result of urbanization; the 1-, 0.5-, and 0.2-percent AEP flood estimates are predicted without bias by the rural-regression equations. Percent imperviousness was determined not to account for the difference in estimated flood peaks between stations, either when adjusting the rural-regression equations or when deriving urban-regression equations to predict flood peaks directly from basin characteristics. Comparison with urban adjustment equations indicates that flood peaks are systematically overestimated if the rural-regression-estimated flood peaks are adjusted upward to account for urbanization. At nearly every streamgaging station in the analysis, adjusted rural-regression estimates were greater than the estimates derived using station data. One likely reason for the lack of increase in flood peaks with urbanization is the presence of significant stormwater retention and detention structures within the watershed used in the study.

Climatology of Ultra Violet (UV) irradiance as measured through the Belgian ground-based monitoring network during the time period of 1995-2014

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pandey, Praveen; Gillotay, Didier; Depiesse, Cedric

2016-04-01

In this study we describe the network of ground-based ultraviolet (UV) radiation monitoring stations in Belgium. The evolution of the entire network, together with the details of measuring instruments is given. The observed cumulative irradiances -UVB, UVA and total solar irradiance (TSI)- over the course of measurement for three stations -a northern (Ostende), central (Uccle) and a southern (Redu)- are shown. The longest series of measurement shown in this study is at Uccle, Brussels, from 1995 till 2014. Thus, the variation of the UV index (UVI), together with the variation of irradiances during summer and winter months at Uccle are shown as a part of this climatological study. The trend of UVB irradiance over the above mentioned three stations is shown. This UVB trend is studied in conjunction with the long-term satellite-based total column ozone value over Belgium, which shows two distinct trends marked by a change point. The total column ozone trend following the change point is positive. It is also seen that the UVB trend is positive for the urban/sub-urban sites: Uccle and Redu. Whereas the UVB trend at Ostende, which is a coastal site, is not positive. A possible explanation of this relation between total column ozone and UVB trend could be associated with aerosols, which is shown in this paper by means of a radiative transfer model based study -as a part of a preliminary investigation. It is seen that the UVI is influenced by the type of aerosols.

Climatology of Ultra Violet(UV) Irradiance at the Surface of the Earth as Measured by the Belgian UV Radiation Monitoring Network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pandey, Praveen; Gillotay, Didier; Depiesse, Cedric

2016-08-01

In this paper we describe the network of ground-based ultraviolet (UV) radiation monitoring stations in Belgium. The evolution of the entire network, together with the details of measuring instruments is given. The observed cumulative irradiations -UVB, UVA and total solar irradiation (TSI)- over the course of measurement for three stations -a northern (Ostende), central (Uccle) and a southern (Redu)- are shown. The longest series of measurement shown in this study is at Uccle, Brussels, from 1995 till 2014. Thus, the variation of the UV index, together with the variation of irradiations during summer and winter months at Uccle are shown as a part of this climatological study. The trend of UVB irradiance over the above mentioned three stations is shown. This UVB trend is studied in conjunction with the long-term satellite-based total column ozone value over Belgium, which shows two distinct trends marked by a change point. The total column ozone trend following the change point is positive. It is also seen that the UVB trend is positive for the urban/sub-urban sites: Uccle and Redu. Whereas the UVB trend at Ostende, which is a coastal site, is not positive. A possible explanation of this relation between total column ozone and UVB trend could be associated with aerosols, which is shown in this paper by means of a radiative transfer model based study -as a part of a preliminary investigation. It is seen that the UVI is influenced by the type of aerosols.

Monitoring Urbanization-Related Land Cover Change on the U.S. Great Plains and Impacts on Remotely Sensed Vegetation Dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krehbiel, C. P.; Jackson, T.; Henebry, G. M.

2014-12-01

Earth is currently in an era of rapid urban growth with >50% of global population living in urban areas. Urbanization occurs alongside urban population growth, as cities expand to meet the demands of increasing population. Consequently, there is a need for remote sensing research to detect, monitor, and measure urbanization and its impacts on the biosphere. Here we used MODIS and Landsat data products to (1) detect urbanization-related land cover changes, (2) investigate urbanization-related impacts on land surface phenology (LSP) across rural to urban gradients and (3) explore fractional vegetation and impervious surface area regionally across the US Great Plains and within 14 cities in this region. We used the NLCD Percent Impervious Surface Area (%ISA) and Land Cover Type (LCT) products from 2001, 2006, and 2011 for 30m classification of the peri-urban environment. We investigated the impacts of urbanization-related land cover change on urban LSP at 30m resolution using the NDVI product from Web Enabled Landsat Data (http://weld.cr.usgs.gov) with accumulated growing degree-days calculated from first-order weather stations. We fitted convex quadratic LSP models to a decade (2003-2012) of observations to yield these phenometrics: modeled peak NDVI, time (thermal and calendar) to modeled peak, duration of season (DOS), and model fit. We compared our results to NDVI from MODIS NBAR (500m) and we explored the utility of 4 μm radiance (MODIS band 23) at 1 km resolution to characterize fractional vegetation dynamics in and around urbanized areas. Across all 14 cities we found increases in urbanized area (>25 %ISA) exceeding 10% from 2001-2011. Using LSP phenometrics, we were able to detect changes from cropland to suburban LCTs. In general we found negative relationships between DOS and distance from city center. We found a distinct seasonal cycle of MIR radiance over cropland LCTs due to the spectral contrast between bare soils and green vegetation.

Evaluation and trends of land cover, streamflow, and water quality in the North Canadian River Basin near Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, 1968–2009

USGS Publications Warehouse

Esralew, Rachel A.; Andrews, William J.; Smith, S. Jerrod

2011-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the city of Oklahoma City, collected water-quality samples from the North Canadian River at the streamflow-gaging station near Harrah, Oklahoma (Harrah station), since 1968, and at an upstream streamflow-gaging station at Britton Road at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (Britton Road station), since 1988. Statistical summaries and frequencies of detection of water-quality constituent data from water samples, and summaries of water-quality constituent data from continuous water-quality monitors are described from the start of monitoring at those stations through 2009. Differences in concentrations between stations and time trends for selected constituents were evaluated to determine the effects of: (1) wastewater effluent discharges, (2) changes in land-cover, (3) changes in streamflow, (4) increases in urban development, and (5) other anthropogenic sources of contamination on water quality in the North Canadian River downstream from Oklahoma City. Land-cover changes between 1992 and 2001 in the basin between the Harrah station and Lake Overholser upstream included an increase in developed/barren land-cover and a decrease in pasture/hay land cover. There were no significant trends in median and greater streamflows at either streamflow-gaging station, but there were significant downward trends in lesser streamflows, especially after 1999, which may have been associated with decreases in precipitation between 1999 and 2009 or construction of low-water dams on the river upstream from Oklahoma City in 1999. Concentrations of dissolved chloride, lead, cadmium, and chlordane most frequently exceeded the Criterion Continuous Concentration (a water-quality standard for protection of aquatic life) in water-quality samples collected at both streamflow-gaging stations. Visual trends in annual frequencies of detection were investigated for selected pesticides with frequencies of detection greater than 10 percent in all water samples collected at both streamflow-gaging stations. Annual frequencies of detection of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and bromacil increased with time. Annual frequencies of detection of atrazine, chlorpyrifos, diazinon, dichlorprop, and lindane decreased with time. Dissolved nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations were significantly greater in water samples collected at the Harrah station than at the Britton Road station, whereas specific conductance was greater at the Britton Road station. Concentrations of dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, and fecal coliform bacteria were not significantly different between stations. Daily minimum, mean, and maximum specific conductance collected from continuous water-quality monitors were significantly greater at the Britton Road station than in water samples collected at the Harrah station. Daily minimum, maximum, and diurnal fluctuations of water temperature collected from continuous water-quality monitors were significantly greater at the Harrah station than at the Britton Road station. The daily maximums and diurnal range of dissolved oxygen concentrations were significantly greater in water samples collected at the Britton Road station than at the Harrah station, but daily mean dissolved oxygen concentrations in water at those streamflow-gaging stations were not significantly different. Daily mean and diurnal water temperature ranges increased with time at the Britton Road and Harrah streamflow-gaging stations, whereas daily mean and diurnal specific conductance ranges decreased with time at both streamflow-gaging stations from 1988–2009. Daily minimum dissolved oxygen concentrations collected from continuous water-quality monitors more frequently indicated hypoxic conditions at the Harrah station than at the Britton Road station after 1999. Fecal coliform bacteria counts in water decreased slightly from 1988–2009 at the Britton Road station. The Seasonal Kendall's tau test indicated significant downward trends in

Spatial and temporal air quality pattern recognition using environmetric techniques: a case study in Malaysia.

PubMed

Syed Abdul Mutalib, Sharifah Norsukhairin; Juahir, Hafizan; Azid, Azman; Mohd Sharif, Sharifah; Latif, Mohd Talib; Aris, Ahmad Zaharin; Zain, Sharifuddin M; Dominick, Doreena

2013-09-01

The objective of this study is to identify spatial and temporal patterns in the air quality at three selected Malaysian air monitoring stations based on an eleven-year database (January 2000-December 2010). Four statistical methods, Discriminant Analysis (DA), Hierarchical Agglomerative Cluster Analysis (HACA), Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs), were selected to analyze the datasets of five air quality parameters, namely: SO2, NO2, O3, CO and particulate matter with a diameter size of below 10 μm (PM10). The three selected air monitoring stations share the characteristic of being located in highly urbanized areas and are surrounded by a number of industries. The DA results show that spatial characterizations allow successful discrimination between the three stations, while HACA shows the temporal pattern from the monthly and yearly factor analysis which correlates with severe haze episodes that have happened in this country at certain periods of time. The PCA results show that the major source of air pollution is mostly due to the combustion of fossil fuel in motor vehicles and industrial activities. The spatial pattern recognition (S-ANN) results show a better prediction performance in discriminating between the regions, with an excellent percentage of correct classification compared to DA. This study presents the necessity and usefulness of environmetric techniques for the interpretation of large datasets aiming to obtain better information about air quality patterns based on spatial and temporal characterizations at the selected air monitoring stations.

RAQ–A Random Forest Approach for Predicting Air Quality in Urban Sensing Systems

PubMed Central

Yu, Ruiyun; Yang, Yu; Yang, Leyou; Han, Guangjie; Move, Oguti Ann

2016-01-01

Air quality information such as the concentration of PM2.5 is of great significance for human health and city management. It affects the way of traveling, urban planning, government policies and so on. However, in major cities there is typically only a limited number of air quality monitoring stations. In the meantime, air quality varies in the urban areas and there can be large differences, even between closely neighboring regions. In this paper, a random forest approach for predicting air quality (RAQ) is proposed for urban sensing systems. The data generated by urban sensing includes meteorology data, road information, real-time traffic status and point of interest (POI) distribution. The random forest algorithm is exploited for data training and prediction. The performance of RAQ is evaluated with real city data. Compared with three other algorithms, this approach achieves better prediction precision. Exciting results are observed from the experiments that the air quality can be inferred with amazingly high accuracy from the data which are obtained from urban sensing. PMID:26761008

Comparison of MTBE concentrations in groundwater of urban and nonurban areas in Germany.

PubMed

Kolb, Axel; Püttmann, Wilhelm

2006-11-01

The occurrence of the gasoline oxygenate methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) in groundwater samples from known fuel-contaminated sites (n=29 samples), nonurban (n=74) and urban sites (n=67) in Germany was investigated. The analyses revealed detection frequencies of 58% (contaminated sites), 24% (nonurban sites) and 63% (urban sites) at a detection limit of 0.01 microgL(-1). Median (maximum) MTBE concentrations were calculated for nonurban and urban samples as 0.18 microgL(-1) (2.2 microgL(-1)) and 0.06 microgL(-1) (48 microg L(-1)). The data from nonurban samples revealed MTBE detections mainly at public supply wells with higher pumping rates than monitoring wells. MTBE was more frequently detected in urban samples, most probably due to the higher atmospheric input and direct liquid emissions from motorways or gas stations. Higher concentrations above 1.0 microgL(-1) in urban areas were found in wells located at industrial sites, where also a MTBE plume was accidentally detected during the study. The prevalence of MTBE in shallow aquifers was comparable to those in the USA.

Continuous Near-Road Monitoring of Ultrafine Particles from 2010-2015 in Toronto, Canada

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Su, Y.; Sofowote, U.; Debosz, J.; Munoz, T.

2015-12-01

Ultrafine particles (UFPs) have an aerodynamic diameter less than 100 nanometre (nm). Their large surface areas per unit mass favor absorption of toxic chemicals in air. UFPs could penetrate deep into the respiratory or cardiovascular systems and pose adverse health effects. Recent studies showed the association between children exposure to UFPs and their systolic blood pressure. In urban environments, primary sources of UFPs are from road traffic emissions and account for most of the total particle numbers. Controls on UPFs rely on better understanding of their emission sources and environmental behaviour. Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change have monitored UFPs since 2010 at two near-road stations in Toronto by using TSI 3031 UFP monitors. One station is located in mixed residential and industrial area and 16 meters from a major road with over 20,000 vehicles per day. The other station is surrounded by mixed residential and commercial buildings and 20 meters from a major road with over 20,000 vehicles per day. UFPs concentrations were monitored using six size channels: 20-30nm, 30-50nm, 50-70nm, 70-100nm, 100-200nm, and 200-450nm. The TSI 3031 monitors generally performed well for long-term UFP monitoring. Multi-year measurements of UFPs at the two stations show no apparent inter-annual variation or seasonality. Smaller particles (i.e., 20-50 nm) were found to be composed of over 50% of the measured particles. The observations are generally consistent with the theoretical understanding of particle nuclei mode and accumulation mode. When air mass originated from road traffic, UFPs were elevated in morning traffic hours and to a less extent in the late afternoon. The elevated UFPs number concentrations coincided with other traffic-related air pollutants like nitrogen oxides and black carbon. Moreover, higher number concentrations were found on weekdays than weekends. The observations suggest that UFPs are mostly from vehicle emissions.

Rainfall, Streamflow, and Water-Quality Data During Stormwater Monitoring, Halawa Stream Drainage Basin, Oahu, Hawaii, July 1, 2005 to June 30, 2006

USGS Publications Warehouse

Presley, Todd K.; Jamison, Marcael T.J.; Young-Smith, Stacie T. M.

2006-01-01

Storm runoff water-quality samples were collected as part of the State of Hawaii Department of Transportation Stormwater Monitoring Program. This program is designed to assess the effects of highway runoff and urban runoff on Halawa Stream. For this program, rainfall data were collected at two stations, continuous discharge data at one station, continuous streamflow data at two stations, and water-quality data at five stations, which include the continuous discharge and streamflow stations. This report summarizes rainfall, discharge, streamflow, and water-quality data collected between July 1, 2005 and June 30, 2006. A total of 23 samples was collected over five storms during July 1, 2005 to June 30, 2006. The goal was to collect grab samples nearly simultaneously at all five stations, and flow-weighted time-composite samples at the three stations equipped with automatic samplers; however, all five storms were partially sampled owing to lack of flow at the time of sampling at some sites, or because some samples collected by the automatic sampler did not represent water from the storm. Samples were analyzed for total suspended solids, total dissolved solids, nutrients, chemical oxygen demand, and selected trace metals (cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, nickel, and zinc). Additionally, grab samples were analyzed for oil and grease, total petroleum hydrocarbons, fecal coliform, and biological oxygen demand. Quality-assurance/quality-control samples were also collected during storms and during routine maintenance to verify analytical procedures and check the effectiveness of equipment-cleaning procedures.

Estimating the urban bias of surface shelter temperatures using upper-air and satellite data. Part 2: Estimation of the urban bias

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Epperson, David L.; Davis, Jerry M.; Bloomfield, Peter; Karl, Thomas R.; Mcnab, Alan L.; Gallo, Kevin P.

1995-01-01

A methodology is presented for estimating the urban bias of surface shelter temperatures due to the effect of the urban heat island. Multiple regression techniques were used to predict surface shelter temperatures based on the time period 1986-89 using upper-air data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) to represent the background climate, site-specific data to represent the local landscape, and satellite-derived data -- the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) nighttime brightness data -- to represent the urban and rural landscape. Local NDVI and DMSP values were calculated for each station using the mean NDVI and DMSP values from a 3 km x 3 km area centered over the given station. Regional NDVI and DMSP values were calculated to represent a typical rural value for each station using the mean NDVI and DMSP values from a 1 deg x 1 deg latitude-longitude area in which the given station was located. Models for the United States were then developed for monthly maximum, mean, and minimum temperatures using data from over 1000 stations in the U.S. Cooperative (COOP) Network and for monthly mean temperatures with data from over 1150 stations in the Global Historical Climate Network (GHCN). Local biases, or the differences between the model predictions using the observed NDVI and DMSP values, and the predictions using the background regional values were calculated and compared with the results of other research. The local or urban bias of U.S. temperatures, as derived from all U.S. stations (urban and rural) used in the models, averaged near 0.40 C for monthly minimum temperatures, near 0.25 C for monthly mean temperatures, and near 0.10 C for monthly maximum temperatures. The biases of monthly minimum temperatures for individual stations ranged from near -1.1 C for rural stations to 2.4 C for stations from the largest urban areas. The results of this study indicate minimal problems for global application once global NDVI and DMSP data become available.

Nitrogen speciation and phosphorus fractionation dynamics in a lowland Chalk catchment.

PubMed

Yates, C A; Johnes, P J

2013-02-01

A detailed analysis of temporal and spatial trends in nitrogen (N) speciation and phosphorus (P) fractionation in the Wylye, a lowland Chalk sub-catchment of the Hampshire Avon, UK is presented, identifying the sources contributing to nutrient enrichment, and temporal variability in the fractionation of nutrients in transit from headwaters to lower reaches of the river. Samples were collected weekly from ten monitoring stations with daily sampling at three further sites over one year, and monthly inorganic N and total reactive P (TRP) concentrations at three of the ten weekly monitoring stations over a ten year period are also presented. The data indicate significant daily and seasonal variation in nutrient fractionation in the water column, resulting from plant uptake of dissolved organic and inorganic nutrient fractions in the summer months, increased delivery of both N and P from diffuse sources in the autumn to winter period and during high flow events, and lack of dilution of point source discharges to the Wylye from septic tank, small package Sewage Treatment Works (STW) and urban Waste Water Treatment Works (WwTW) during the summer low flow period. Weekly data show that contributing source areas vary along the river with headwater N and P strongly influenced by diffuse inorganic N and particulate P fluxes, and SRP and organic-rich point source contributions from STW and WwTW having a greater influence in the lower reaches. Long-term data show a decrease in TRP concentrations at all three monitoring stations, with the most pronounced decrease occurring downstream from Warminster WwTW, following the introduction of P stripping at the works in 2001. Inorganic N demonstrates no statistically significant change over the ten year period of record in the rural headwaters, but an increase in the lower reaches downstream from the WwTW which may be due to urban expansion in the lower catchment. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Engineering Strong Ground Motion Network of the National Autonomous University of Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Velasco Miranda, J. M.; Ramirez-Guzman, L.; Aguilar Calderon, L. A.; Almora Mata, D.; Ayala Hernandez, M.; Castro Parra, G.; Molina Avila, I.; Mora, A.; Torres Noguez, M.; Vazquez Larquet, R.

2014-12-01

The coverage, design, operation and monitoring capabilities of the strong ground motion program at the Institute of Engineering (IE) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) is presented. Started in 1952, the seismic instrumentation intended initially to bolster earthquake engineering projects in Mexico City has evolved into the largest strong ground motion monitoring system in the region. Today, it provides information not only to engineering projects, but also to the near real-time risk mitigation systems of the country, and enhances the general understanding of the effects and causes of earthquakes in Mexico. The IE network includes more than 100 free-field stations and several buildings, covering the largest urban centers and zones of significant seismicity in Central Mexico. Of those stations, approximately one-fourth send the observed acceleration to a processing center in Mexico City continuously, and the rest require either periodic visits for the manual recovery of the data or remote interrogation, for later processing and cataloging. In this research, we document the procedures and telecommunications systems used systematically to recover information. Additionally, we analyze the spatial distribution of the free-field accelerographs, the quality of the instrumentation, and the recorded ground motions. The evaluation criteria are based on the: 1) uncertainty in the generation of ground motion parameter maps due to the spatial distribution of the stations, 2) potential of the array to provide localization and magnitude estimates for earthquakes with magnitudes greater than Mw 5, and 3) adequacy of the network for the development of Ground Motion Prediction Equations due to intra-plate and intra-slab earthquakes. We conclude that the monitoring system requires a new redistribution, additional stations, and a substantial improvement in the instrumentation and telecommunications. Finally, we present an integral plan to improve the current network's monitoring capabilities.

Influence of land use on the hydrobiogeochemistry of the Camanducaia and Jaguari watersheds, Brazil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Camargo, P. B. D.; Costa, C. F. G. D.; Figueiredo, R. D. O.; Piccolo, M. C.; Mazzi, E. A.; Reis, L. D. C.; Zuccari, M. L.; Green, T. R.; Ferracini, V. L.

2015-12-01

Two medium-sized watersheds of the Piracicaba river basin, the Camanducaia and Jaguari sub-basins, are being studied to evaluate the effects of land use change on the basin's hydrobiogeochemistry. The Jaguari basin is an important provider the Cantareira reservoir system that supplies around six million inhabitants of the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo, Brazil. A one-year hydrological study began on January 2015 to monitor some water quality parameters such as pH, electric conductivity (EC), dissolved oxygen (DO), dissolved organic and inorganic carbon (DOC and DIC), nitrate (NO3-), ammonium (NH4+) and total nitrogen (TN). For that purpose we established 19 sampling stations along the Camanducaia (8 stations) and Jaguari (11 stations) river channels; two stations at their main tributaries Mosquito and Camanducaia Mineiro, respectively; and another two stations at small streams in headwater areas of the Jaguari and Camanducaia watersheds. Preliminary results show that DOC concentrations are correlated DIC (r=0.81 at Jaguari; r=0.70 at Camanducaia; p <0.05). We observe that DOC tends to increase by multiples of 2.5 and 3.5 times from forested headwater areas to the most downstream stations of Jaguari and Camanducaia, respectively. Regarding DIC these multiples are 4.4 and 1.9 times greater. The four most downstream stations at Jaguari show urban area effects with higher DIC monthly values ranging from 28.7 to 33 mg L-1. Also DIC correlated with EC values (means around 160 μS) at two of these stations. We expect that at the end of this monitoring year results will show stronger relations between hydrobiogeochemical parameters and land use change.

Sidestream Elevated Pool Aeration, a Technology for Improving Water Quality in Urban Rivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Motta, D.; Garcia, T.; Abad, J. D.; Bombardelli, F. A.; Waratuke, A.; Garcia, M. H.

2010-12-01

Dissolved Oxygen (DO) levels are frequently depleted in rivers located in urban areas, as in the case of the Matanza-Riachuelo River in Buenos Aires, Argentina. This stream receives both domestic and industrial loads which have received minor or no treatment before being discharged into the water body. Major sources of pollution include, but are not limited, to leather and meat packing industries. Additionally, deep slow moving water in the river is associated with limited reaeration and facilitates deposition of organic-rich sediment, therefore exacerbating the DO consumption through sediment oxygen demand. In this study we assessed the efficiency of Sidestream Elevated Pool Aeration (SEPA) stations as a technology for alleviating conditions characterized by severely low DO levels. A SEPA station takes water from the stream at low DO concentrations, through a screw pump; then, water is transported to an elevated pool from where it flows over a series of weirs for water reaeration; finally, the aerated water is discharged back into the river sufficiently downstream from the intake point. This system mimics a phenomenon that occurs in mountain streams, where water is purified by bubbling over rocks. The impact of the use of SEPA stations on the DO concentrations in the Matanza-Riachuelo River was evaluated at both local and reach scales: this was done by deploying and monitoring an in situ pilot SEPA station, and by performing numerical modeling for the evaluation of the hydrodynamics in the SEPA station and the water quality in the reach where SEPA stations are planned to be implemented. An efficiency of aeration of 99% was estimated from DO measurements in the pilot SEPA, showing the potential of this technology for DO recovery in urban streams. Three-dimensional hydrodynamic modeling, besides assisting in the design of the pilot SEPA, has allowed for designing a prototype SEPA to be built soon. Finally, one-dimensional water quality modeling has provided the optimum number of SEPA stations required to meet a minimum DO concentration standard of 2 mg/l along the whole reach of interest, for future implementation of other SEPA stations, which would have an additional value in terms of landscape aesthetics as they can be used as recreational waterfall parks.

Increased Spatial Variability and Intensification of Extreme Monsoon Rainfall due to Urbanization.

PubMed

Paul, Supantha; Ghosh, Subimal; Mathew, Micky; Devanand, Anjana; Karmakar, Subhankar; Niyogi, Dev

2018-03-02

While satellite data provides a strong robust signature of urban feedback on extreme precipitation; urbanization signal is often not so prominent with station level data. To investigate this, we select the case study of Mumbai, India and perform a high resolution (1 km) numerical study with Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model for eight extreme rainfall days during 2014-2015. The WRF model is coupled with two different urban schemes, the Single Layer Urban Canopy Model (WRF-SUCM), Multi-Layer Urban Canopy Model (WRF-MUCM). The differences between the WRF-MUCM and WRF-SUCM indicate the importance of the structure and characteristics of urban canopy on modifications in precipitation. The WRF-MUCM simulations resemble the observed distributed rainfall. WRF-MUCM also produces intensified rainfall as compared to the WRF-SUCM and WRF-NoUCM (without UCM). The intensification in rainfall is however prominent at few pockets of urban regions, that is seen in increased spatial variability. We find that the correlation of precipitation across stations within the city falls below statistical significance at a distance greater than 10 km. Urban signature on extreme precipitation will be reflected on station rainfall only when the stations are located inside the urban pockets having intensified precipitation, which needs to be considered in future analysis.

Contribution of urbanization to the increase of extreme heat events in an urban agglomeration in east China: Urbanization and the Increase of EHEs

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yang, Xuchao; Ruby Leung, L.; Zhao, Naizhuo

The urban agglomeration of Yangtze River Delta (YRD) is emblematic of China’s rapid urbanization during the past decades. Based on homogenized daily maximum and minimum temperature data, the contributions of urbanization to trends of extreme temperature indices (ETIs) during summer in YRD are evaluated. Dynamically classifying the observational stations into urban and rural areas, this study presents unexplored changes in temperature extremes during the past four decades in the YRD region and quantifies the amplification of the positive trends in ETIs by the urban heat island effect. Overall, urbanization contributes to more than one third in the increase of intensitymore » of extreme heat events in the region, which is comparable to the contribution of greenhouse gases. Compared to rural stations, more notable shifts to the right in the probability distribution of temperature and ETIs were observed in urban stations.« less

Effects of atmospheric stability and urban morphology on daytime intra-urban temperature variability for Glasgow, UK.

PubMed

Drach, Patricia; Krüger, Eduardo L; Emmanuel, Rohinton

2018-06-15

This study investigates the joint effect of atmospheric conditions and urban morphology, expressed as the Sky View Factor (SVF), on intra-urban variability. The study has been carried out in Glasgow, UK, a shrinking city with a maritime temperate climate type, and findings could guide future climate adaptation plans in terms of morphology and services provided by the municipality to overcome thermal discomfort in outdoor settings. In this case, SVF has been used as an indicator of urban morphology. The modified Pasquill-Gifford-Turner (PGT) classification system was adopted for classifying the temperature monitoring periods according to atmospheric stability conditions. Thirty two locations were selected on the basis of SVF with a wide variety of urban shapes (narrow streets, neighbourhood green spaces, urban parks, street canyons and public squares) and compared to a reference weather station during a total of twenty three transects during late spring and summer in 2013. Maximum daytime intra-urban temperature differences were found to be strongly correlated with atmospheric stability classes. Furthermore, differences in air temperature are noticeable in urban canyons, with a direct correlation to the site's SVF (or sky openness) and with an inverse trend under open-air conditions. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Developing a methodology to predict PM10 concentrations in urban areas using generalized linear models.

PubMed

Garcia, J M; Teodoro, F; Cerdeira, R; Coelho, L M R; Kumar, Prashant; Carvalho, M G

2016-09-01

A methodology to predict PM10 concentrations in urban outdoor environments is developed based on the generalized linear models (GLMs). The methodology is based on the relationship developed between atmospheric concentrations of air pollutants (i.e. CO, NO2, NOx, VOCs, SO2) and meteorological variables (i.e. ambient temperature, relative humidity (RH) and wind speed) for a city (Barreiro) of Portugal. The model uses air pollution and meteorological data from the Portuguese monitoring air quality station networks. The developed GLM considers PM10 concentrations as a dependent variable, and both the gaseous pollutants and meteorological variables as explanatory independent variables. A logarithmic link function was considered with a Poisson probability distribution. Particular attention was given to cases with air temperatures both below and above 25°C. The best performance for modelled results against the measured data was achieved for the model with values of air temperature above 25°C compared with the model considering all ranges of air temperatures and with the model considering only temperature below 25°C. The model was also tested with similar data from another Portuguese city, Oporto, and results found to behave similarly. It is concluded that this model and the methodology could be adopted for other cities to predict PM10 concentrations when these data are not available by measurements from air quality monitoring stations or other acquisition means.

Urban-rural fog differences in Belgrade area, Serbia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vujović, Dragana; Todorović, Nedeljko

2018-02-01

Urban/rural fog appearance during the last 27 years in the Belgrade region is analysed using hourly meteorological records from two meteorological stations: an urban station at Belgrade-Vračar (BV) and a rural station at Belgrade-Airport (BA). The effects of urban development on fog formation are discussed through analysis of fog frequency trends and comparison with a number of meteorological parameters. The mean annual and the mean annual minimum temperatures were greater at the urban BV station than at the rural BA station. The mean monthly relative humidity and the mean monthly water vapour pressure were greater at the rural than urban station. During the period of research (1988-2014), BA experiences 425 more days with fog than BV, which means that BV experiences fog for 62.68% of foggy days at BA. Trends in the number of days with fog were statistically non-significant. We analysed the fog occurrence during different types of weather. Fog in urban BV occurred more frequently during cyclonal circulation (in 52.75% of cases). In rural BA, the trend was the opposite and fog appeared more frequently during anticyclonic circulation (in 53.58% of cases). Fog at BV occurred most frequently in stable anticyclonic weather with light wind, when a temperature inversion existed (21.86% of cases). Most frequently, fog at BA occurred in the morning and only lasted a short time, followed by clearer skies during the anticyclonic warm and dry weather (22.55% of cases).

Development and application of artificial neural network models to estimate values of a complex human thermal comfort index associated with urban heat and cool island patterns using air temperature data from a standard meteorological station

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moustris, Konstantinos; Tsiros, Ioannis X.; Tseliou, Areti; Nastos, Panagiotis

2018-04-01

The present study deals with the development and application of artificial neural network models (ANNs) to estimate the values of a complex human thermal comfort-discomfort index associated with urban heat and cool island conditions inside various urban clusters using as only inputs air temperature data from a standard meteorological station. The index used in the study is the Physiologically Equivalent Temperature (PET) index which requires as inputs, among others, air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and radiation (short- and long-wave components). For the estimation of PET hourly values, ANN models were developed, appropriately trained, and tested. Model results are compared to values calculated by the PET index based on field monitoring data for various urban clusters (street, square, park, courtyard, and gallery) in the city of Athens (Greece) during an extreme hot weather summer period. For the evaluation of the predictive ability of the developed ANN models, several statistical evaluation indices were applied: the mean bias error, the root mean square error, the index of agreement, the coefficient of determination, the true predictive rate, the false alarm rate, and the Success Index. According to the results, it seems that ANNs present a remarkable ability to estimate hourly PET values within various urban clusters using only hourly values of air temperature. This is very important in cases where the human thermal comfort-discomfort conditions have to be analyzed and the only available parameter is air temperature.

Development and application of artificial neural network models to estimate values of a complex human thermal comfort index associated with urban heat and cool island patterns using air temperature data from a standard meteorological station.

PubMed

Moustris, Konstantinos; Tsiros, Ioannis X; Tseliou, Areti; Nastos, Panagiotis

2018-04-11

The present study deals with the development and application of artificial neural network models (ANNs) to estimate the values of a complex human thermal comfort-discomfort index associated with urban heat and cool island conditions inside various urban clusters using as only inputs air temperature data from a standard meteorological station. The index used in the study is the Physiologically Equivalent Temperature (PET) index which requires as inputs, among others, air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and radiation (short- and long-wave components). For the estimation of PET hourly values, ANN models were developed, appropriately trained, and tested. Model results are compared to values calculated by the PET index based on field monitoring data for various urban clusters (street, square, park, courtyard, and gallery) in the city of Athens (Greece) during an extreme hot weather summer period. For the evaluation of the predictive ability of the developed ANN models, several statistical evaluation indices were applied: the mean bias error, the root mean square error, the index of agreement, the coefficient of determination, the true predictive rate, the false alarm rate, and the Success Index. According to the results, it seems that ANNs present a remarkable ability to estimate hourly PET values within various urban clusters using only hourly values of air temperature. This is very important in cases where the human thermal comfort-discomfort conditions have to be analyzed and the only available parameter is air temperature.

Instrumentation Guidelines for the Advanced National Seismic System

USGS Publications Warehouse

Working Group on Instrumentation, Siting

2008-01-01

This document provides guidelines for the seismic-monitoring instrumentation used by long-term earthquake-monitoring stations that will sense ground motion, digitize and store the resulting signals in a local data acquisition unit, and optionally transmit these digital data. These guidelines are derived from specifications and requirements for data needed to address the nation's emergency response, engineering, and scientific needs as identified in U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1188 (1999). Data needs are discussed in terms of national, regional, and urban scales of monitoring in section 3. Functional performance specifications for instrumentation are introduced in section 4.3 and discussed in detail in section 6 in terms of instrument classes and definitions described in section 5. System aspects and testing recommendations are discussed in sections 7 and 8, respectively. Although U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1188 (1999) recommends that the Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS) include portable instrumentation, performance specifications for this element are not specifically addressed in this document. Nevertheless, these guidelines are largely applicable to portable instrumentation. Volcano monitoring instrumentation is also beyond the scope of this document. Guidance for ANSS structural-response monitoring is discussed briefly herein but details are deferred to the ANSS document by the ANSS Structural Response Monitoring Committee (U.S. Geological Survey, 2005). Aspects of station planning, siting, and installation other than instrumentation are beyond the scope of this document.

A large-scale measurement, analysis and modelling of electromagnetic radiation levels in the vicinity of GSM/UMTS base stations in an urban area.

PubMed

Karadağ, Teoman; Yüceer, Mehmet; Abbasov, Teymuraz

2016-01-01

The present study analyses the electric field radiating from the GSM/UMTS base stations located in central Malatya, a densely populated urban area in Turkey. The authors have conducted both instant and continuous measurements of high-frequency electromagnetic fields throughout their research by using non-ionising radiation-monitoring networks. Over 15,000 instant and 13,000,000 continuous measurements were taken throughout the process. The authors have found that the normal electric field radiation can increase ∼25% during daytime, depending on mobile communication traffic. The authors' research work has also demonstrated the fact that the electric field intensity values can be modelled for each hour, day or week with the results obtained from continuous measurements. The authors have developed an estimation model based on these values, including mobile communication traffic (Erlang) values obtained from mobile phone base stations and the temperature and humidity values in the environment. The authors believe that their proposed artificial neural network model and multivariable least-squares regression analysis will help predict the electric field intensity in an environment in advance. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

CAQI Common Air Quality Index--update with PM(2.5) and sensitivity analysis.

PubMed

van den Elshout, Sef; Léger, Karine; Heich, Hermann

2014-08-01

The CAQI or Common Air Quality Index was proposed to facilitate the comparison of air quality in European cities in real-time. There are many air quality indices in use in the world. All are somewhat different in concept and presentation and comparing air quality presentations of cities on the internet was virtually impossible. The CAQI and the accompanying website www.airqualitynow.eu and app were proposed to overcome this problem in Europe. This paper describes the logic of making an index, in particular the CAQI and its update with a grid for PM2.5. To assure a smooth transition to the new calculation scheme we studied the behaviour of the index before and after the changes. We used 2006 Airbase data from 31 urban background and 27 street stations all across Europe (that were monitoring PM2.5 in 2006). The CAQI characterises a city by a roadside and urban background situation. It also insists on a minimum number of pollutants to be included in the calculation. Both were deemed necessary to improve the basis for comparing one city to another. A sensitivity analysis demonstrates the comparative behaviour of the street and urban background stations and presents the sensitivity of the CAQI outcome to the pollutants included in its calculation. © 2013.

Detection and localization capability of an urban seismic sinkhole monitoring network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Becker, Dirk; Dahm, Torsten; Schneider, Fabian

2017-04-01

Microseismic events linked to underground processes in sinkhole areas might serve as precursors to larger mass dislocation or rupture events which can cause felt ground shaking or even structural damage. To identify these weak and shallow events, a sensitive local seismic monitoring network is needed. In case of an urban environment the performance of local monitoring networks is severely compromised by the high anthropogenic noise level. We study the detection and localization capability of such a network, which is already partly installed in the urban area of the city of Hamburg, Germany, within the joint project SIMULTAN (http://www.gfz-potsdam.de/en/section/near-surface-geophysics/projects/simultan/). SIMULTAN aims to monitor a known sinkhole structure and gain a better understanding of the underlying processes. The current network consists of six surface stations installed in the basement of private houses and underground structures of a research facility (DESY - Deutsches Elektronen Synchrotron). During the started monitoring campaign since 2015, no microseismic events could be unambiguously attributed to the sinkholes. To estimate the detection and location capability of the network, we calculate synthetic waveforms based on the location and mechanism of former events in the area. These waveforms are combined with the recorded urban seismic noise at the station sites. As detection algorithms a simple STA/LTA trigger and a more sophisticated phase detector are used. While the STA/LTA detector delivers stable results and is able to detect events with a moment magnitude as low as 0.35 at a distance of 1.3km from the source even under the present high noise conditions the phase detector is more sensitive but also less stable. It should be stressed that due to the local near surface conditions of the wave propagation the detections are generally performed on S- or surface waves and not on P-waves, which have a significantly lower amplitude. Due to the often emergent onsets of the seismic phases of sinkhole events and the high noise conditions the localization capability of the network is assessed by a stacking approach of characteristic waveforms (STA/LTA traces) in addition to traditional estimates based on travel time uncertainties and network geometry. Also the effect of a vertical array of borehole sensors as well as a small scale surface array on the location accuracy is investigated. Due to the expected, rather low frequency character of the seismic signals arrays with a small aperture due to the required close proximity to the source exhibit considerable uncertainty in the determination of the azimuth of the incoming wavefront, but can contribute to better constrain the event location. Future borehole stations, apart from significantly reducing the detection threshold, would also significantly reduce the location uncertainty. In addition, the synthetic data sets created for this study can also be used to better constrain the magnitudes of the microseismic events by deriving attenuation relations for the surface waves of shallow events encountered in the sinkhole environment. This work has been funded by the German 'Geotechnologien' project SIMULTAN (BMBF03G0737A).

Factors affecting nutrient trends in major rivers of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sprague, Lori A.; Langland, M.J.; Yochum, S.E.; Edwards, R.E.; Blomquist, J.D.; Phillips, S.W.; Shenk, G.W.; Preston, S.D.

2000-01-01

Trends in nutrient loads and flow-adjusted concentrations in the major rivers entering Chesapeake Bay were computed on the basis of water-quality data collected between 1985 and 1998 at 29 monitoring stations in the Susquehanna, Potomac, James, Rappahannock, York, Patuxent, and Choptank River Basins. Two computer models?the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Model (WSM) and the U.S. Geological Survey?s 'Spatially Referenced Regressions on Watershed attributes' (SPARROW) Model?were used to help explain the major factors affecting the trends. Results from WSM simulations provided information on temporal changes in contributions from major nutrient sources, and results from SPARROW model simulations provided spatial detail on the distribution of nutrient yields in these basins. Additional data on nutrient sources, basin characteristics, implementation of management practices, and ground-water inputs to surface water were analyzed to help explain the trends. The major factors affecting the trends were changes in nutrient sources and natural variations in streamflow. The dominant source of nitrogen and phosphorus from 1985 to 1998 in six of the seven tributary basins to Chesapeake Bay was determined to be agriculture. Because of the predominance of agricultural inputs, changes in agricultural nutrient sources such as manure and fertilizer, combined with decreases in agricultural acreage and implementation of best management practices (BMPs), had the greatest impact on the trends in flow-adjusted nutrient concentrations. Urban acreage and population, however, were noted to be increasing throughout the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, and as a result, delivered loads of nutrients from urban areas increased during the study period. Overall, agricultural nutrient management, in combination with load decreases from point sources due to facility upgrades and the phosphate detergent ban, led to downward trends in flow-adjusted nutrient concentrations atmany of the monitoring stations in the watershed. The loads of nutrients, however, were not reduced significantly at most of the monitoring stations. This is due primarily to higher streamflow in the latter years of the monitoring period, which led to higher loading in those years.Results of this study indicate a need for more detailed information on BMP effectiveness under a full range of hydrologic conditions and in different areas of the watershed; an internally consistent fertilizer data set; greater consideration of the effects of watershed processes on nutrient transport; a refinement of current modeling efforts; and an expansion of the non-tidal monitoring network in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.

Spatial variability of E. coli in an urban salt-wedge estuary.

PubMed

Jovanovic, Dusan; Coleman, Rhys; Deletic, Ana; McCarthy, David

2017-01-15

This study investigated the spatial variability of a common faecal indicator organism, Escherichia coli, in an urban salt-wedge estuary in Melbourne, Australia. Data were collected through comprehensive depth profiling in the water column at four sites and included measurements of temperature, salinity, pH, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, and E. coli concentrations. Vertical variability of E. coli was closely related to the salt-wedge dynamics; in the presence of a salt-wedge, there was a significant decrease in E. coli concentrations with depth. Transverse variability was low and was most likely dwarfed by the analytical uncertainties of E. coli measurements. Longitudinal variability was also low, potentially reflecting minimal die-off, settling, and additional inputs entering along the estuary. These results were supported by a simple mixing model that predicted E. coli concentrations based on salinity measurements. Additionally, an assessment of a sentinel monitoring station suggested routine monitoring locations may produce conservative estimates of E. coli concentrations in stratified estuaries. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Urban effects on convective precipitation in Mexico city

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jauregui, Ernesto; Romales, Ernesto

This paper reports on urban-related convective precipitation anomalies in a tropical city. Wet season (May-October) rainfall for an urban site (Tacubaya) shows a significant trend for the period 1941-1985 suggesting an urban effect that has been increasing as the city grew. On the other hand, rainfall at a suburban (upwind) station apparently unaffected by urbanization, has remained unchanged. Analysis of historical records of hourly precipitation for an urban station shows that the frequency of intense (> 20 mm h -1) rain showers has increased in recent decades. Using a network of automatic rainfall stations, areal distribution of 24 h isoyets show a series of maxima within the urban perimeter which may be associated to the heat island phenomenon. Isochrones of the beginning of rain are used to estimate direction and speed of movement of the rain cloud cells. The daytime heat island seems to be associated with the intensification of rain showers.

Views by health professionals on the responsiveness of commune health stations regarding non-communicable diseases in urban Hanoi, Vietnam: a qualitative study.

PubMed

Kien, Vu Duy; Van Minh, Hoang; Giang, Kim Bao; Ng, Nawi; Nguyen, Viet; Tuan, Le Thanh; Eriksson, Malin

2018-05-31

Primary health care plays an important role in addressing the burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in low- and middle-income countries. In light of the rapid urbanization of Vietnam, this study aims to explore health professionals' views about the responsiveness of primary health care services at commune health stations, particularly regarding the increase of NCDs in urban settings. This qualitative study was conducted in Hanoi from July to August 2015. We implemented 19 in-depth interviews with health staff at four purposely selected commune health stations and conducted a brief inventory of existing NCD activities at these commune health stations. We also interviewed NCD managers at national, provincial, and district levels. The interview guides reflected six components of the WHO health system framework, including service delivery, health workforce, health information systems, access to essential medicines, financing, and leadership/governance. A thematic analysis approach was applied to analyze the interview data in this study. Six themes, related to the six building blocks of the WHO health systems framework, were identified. These themes explored the responsiveness of commune health stations to NCDs in urban Hanoi. Health staff at commune health stations were not aware of the national strategy for NCDs. Health workers noted the lack of NCD informational materials for management and planning. The limited workforce at health commune stations would benefit from more health workers in general and those with NCD-specific training and skills. In addition, the budget for NCDs at commune health stations remains very limited, with large differences in the implementation of national targeted NCD programs. Some commune health stations had no NCD services available, while others had some programming. A lack of NCD treatment drugs was also noted, with a negative impact on the provision of NCD-related services at commune health stations. These themes were also reflected in the inventory of existing NCD related activities. Health professionals view the responsiveness of commune health stations to NCDs in urban Hanoi, Vietnam as weak. Appropriate policies should be implemented to improve the primary health care services on NCDs at commune health stations in urban Hanoi, Vietnam.

Different Patterns of the Urban Heat Island Intensity from Cluster Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silva, F. B.; Longo, K.

2014-12-01

This study analyzes the different variability patterns of the Urban Heat Island intensity (UHII) in the Metropolitan Area of Rio de Janeiro (MARJ), one of the largest urban agglomerations in Brazil. The UHII is defined as the difference in the surface air temperature between the urban/suburban and rural/vegetated areas. To choose one or more stations that represent those areas we used the technique of cluster analysis on the air temperature observations from 14 surface weather stations in the MARJ. The cluster analysis aims to classify objects based on their characteristics, gathering similar groups. The results show homogeneity patterns between air temperature observations, with 6 homogeneous groups being defined. Among those groups, one might be a natural choice for the representative urban area (Central station); one corresponds to suburban area (Afonsos station); and another group referred as rural area is compound of three stations (Ecologia, Santa Cruz and Xerém) that are located in vegetated regions. The arithmetic mean of temperature from the three rural stations is taken to represent the rural station temperature. The UHII is determined from these homogeneous groups. The first UHII is estimated from urban and rural temperature areas (Case 1), whilst the second UHII is obtained from suburban and rural temperature areas (Case 2). In Case 1, the maximum UHII occurs in two periods, one in the early morning and the other at night, while the minimum UHII occurs in the afternoon. In Case 2, the maximum UHII is observed during afternoon/night and the minimum during dawn/early morning. This study demonstrates that the stations choice reflects different UHII patterns, evidencing that distinct behaviors of this phenomenon can be identified.

Modelling street level PM10 concentrations across Europe: source apportionment and possible futures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kiesewetter, G.; Borken-Kleefeld, J.; Schöpp, W.; Heyes, C.; Thunis, P.; Bessagnet, B.; Terrenoire, E.; Fagerli, H.; Nyiri, A.; Amann, M.

2015-02-01

Despite increasing emission controls, particulate matter (PM) has remained a critical issue for European air quality in recent years. The various sources of PM, both from primary particulate emissions as well as secondary formation from precursor gases, make this a complex problem to tackle. In order to allow for credible predictions of future concentrations under policy assumptions, a modelling approach is needed that considers all chemical processes and spatial dimensions involved, from long-range transport of pollution to local emissions in street canyons. Here we describe a modelling scheme which has been implemented in the GAINS integrated assessment model to assess compliance with PM10 (PM with aerodynamic diameter <10 μm) limit values at individual air quality monitoring stations reporting to the AirBase database. The modelling approach relies on a combination of bottom up modelling of emissions, simplified atmospheric chemistry and dispersion calculations, and a traffic increment calculation wherever applicable. At each monitoring station fulfilling a few data coverage criteria, measured concentrations in the base year 2009 are explained to the extent possible and then modelled for the past and future. More than 1850 monitoring stations are covered, including more than 300 traffic stations and 80% of the stations which exceeded the EU air quality limit values in 2009. As a validation, we compare modelled trends in the period 2000-2008 to observations, which are well reproduced. The modelling scheme is applied here to quantify explicitly source contributions to ambient concentrations at several critical monitoring stations, displaying the differences in spatial origin and chemical composition of urban roadside PM10 across Europe. Furthermore, we analyse the predicted evolution of PM10 concentrations in the European Union until 2030 under different policy scenarios. Significant improvements in ambient PM10 concentrations are expected assuming successful implementation of already agreed legislation; however, these will not be large enough to ensure attainment of PM10 limit values in hot spot locations such as Southern Poland and major European cities. Remaining issues are largely eliminated in a scenario applying the best available emission control technologies to the maximal technically feasible extent.

Modelling street level PM10 concentrations across Europe: source apportionment and possible futures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kiesewetter, G.; Borken-Kleefeld, J.; Schöpp, W.; Heyes, C.; Thunis, P.; Bessagnet, B.; Terrenoire, E.; Amann, M.

2014-07-01

Despite increasing emission controls, particulate matter (PM) has remained a critical issue for European air quality in recent years. The various sources of PM, both from primary particulate emissions as well as secondary formation from precursor gases, make this a complex problem to tackle. In order to allow for credible predictions of future concentrations under policy assumptions, a modelling approach is needed that considers all chemical processes and spatial dimensions involved, from long-range transport of pollution to local emissions in street canyons. Here we describe a modelling scheme which has been implemented in the GAINS integrated assessment model to assess compliance with PM10 (PM with aerodynamic diameter < 10 μm) limit values at individual air quality monitoring stations reporting to the AirBase database. The modelling approach relies on a combination of bottom up modelling of emissions, simplified atmospheric chemistry and dispersion calculations, and a traffic increment calculation wherever applicable. At each monitoring station fulfilling a few data coverage criteria, measured concentrations in the base year 2009 are explained to the extent possible and then modelled for the past and future. More than 1850 monitoring stations are covered, including more than 300 traffic stations and 80% of the stations which exceeded the EU air quality limit values in 2009. As a validation, we compare modelled trends in the period 2000-2008 to observations, which are well reproduced. The modelling scheme is applied here to quantify explicitly source contributions to ambient concentrations at several critical monitoring stations, displaying the differences in spatial origin and chemical composition of urban roadside PM10 across Europe. Furthermore, we analyse the predicted evolution of PM10 concentrations in the European Union until 2030 under different policy scenarios. Significant improvements in ambient PM10 concentrations are expected assuming successful implementation of already agreed legislation; however, these will not be large enough to ensure attainment of PM10 limit values in hot spot locations such as Southern Poland and major European cities. Remaining issues are largely eliminated in a scenario applying the best available emission control technologies to the maximal technically feasible extent.

A novel mobile monitoring approach to characterize spatial and temporal variation in traffic-related air pollutants in an urban community

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Chang Ho; Fan, Zhihua; Lioy, Paul J.; Baptista, Ana; Greenberg, Molly; Laumbach, Robert J.

2016-09-01

Air concentrations of traffic-related air pollutants (TRAPs) vary in space and time within urban communities, presenting challenges for estimating human exposure and potential health effects. Conventional stationary monitoring stations/networks cannot effectively capture spatial characteristics. Alternatively, mobile monitoring approaches became popular to measure TRAPs along roadways or roadsides. However, these linear mobile monitoring approaches cannot thoroughly distinguish spatial variability from temporal variations in monitored TRAP concentrations. In this study, we used a novel mobile monitoring approach to simultaneously characterize spatial/temporal variations in roadside concentrations of TRAPs in urban settings. We evaluated the effectiveness of this mobile monitoring approach by performing concurrent measurements along two parallel paths perpendicular to a major roadway and/or along heavily trafficked roads at very narrow scale (one block away each other) within short time period (<30 min) in an urban community. Based on traffic and particulate matter (PM) source information, we selected 4 neighborhoods to study. The sampling activities utilized real-time monitors, including battery-operated PM2.5 monitor (SidePak), condensation particle counter (CPC 3007), black carbon (BC) monitor (Micro-Aethalometer), carbon monoxide (CO) monitor (Langan T15), and portable temperature/humidity data logger (HOBO U12), and a GPS-based tracker (Trackstick). Sampling was conducted for ∼3 h in the morning (7:30-10:30) in 7 separate days in March/April and 6 days in May/June 2012. Two simultaneous samplings were made at 5 spatially-distributed locations on parallel roads, usually distant one block each other, in each neighborhood. The 5-min averaged BC concentrations (AVG ± SD, [range]) were 2.53 ± 2.47 [0.09-16.3] μg/m3, particle number concentrations (PNC) were 33,330 ± 23,451 [2512-159,130] particles/cm3, PM2.5 mass concentrations were 8.87 ± 7.65 [0.27-46.5] μg/m3, and CO concentrations were 1.22 ± 0.60 [0.22-6.29] ppm in the community. The traffic-related air pollutants, BC and PNC, but not PM2.5 or CO, varied spatially depending on proximity to local stationary/mobile sources. Seasonal differences were observed for all four TRAPs, significantly higher in colder months than in warmer months. The coefficients of variation (CVs) in concurrent measurements from two parallel routes were calculated around 0.21 ± 0.17, and variations were attributed by meteorological variation (25%), temporal variability (19%), concentration level (6%), and spatial variability (2%), respectively. Overall study findings suggest this mobile monitoring approach could effectively capture and distinguish spatial/temporal characteristics in TRAP concentrations for communities impacted by heavy motor vehicle traffic and mixed urban air pollution sources.

An airborne remote sensing system for urban air quality

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Duncan, L. J.; Friedman, E. J.; Keitz, E. L.; Ward, E. A.

1974-01-01

Several NASA sponsored remote sensors and possible airborne platforms were evaluated. Outputs of dispersion models for SO2 and CO pollution in the Washington, D.C. area were used with ground station data to establish the expected performance and limitations of the remote sensors. Aircraft/sensor support requirements are discussed. A method of optimum flight plan determination was made. Cost trade offs were performed. Conclusions about the implementation of various instrument packages as parts of a comprehensive air quality monitoring system in Washington are presented.

Summary of aircraft results for 1978 southeastern Virginia urban plume measurement study of ozone, nitrogen oxides, and methane

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gregory, G. L.; Wornom, D. E.; Mathis, J. J., Jr.; Sebacher, D. I.

1980-01-01

Ozone production was determined from aircraft and surface in situ measurements, as well as from an airborne laser absorption spectrometer. Three aircraft and approximately 10 surface stations provided air-quality data. Extensive meteorological, mixing-layer-height, and ozone-precursor data were also measured. Approximately 50 hrs (9 flight days) of data from the aircraft equipped to monitor ozone, nitrogen oxides, dewpoint temperature, and temperature are presented. In addition, each experiment conducted is discussed.

Characteristics of major volatile organic hazardous air pollutants in the urban air of Kaohsiung city.

PubMed

Huang, Mei-Chuan; Lin, Jim Juimin

2007-10-01

The concentrations and characteristics of volatile organic hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) in the urban city of Kaohsiung from motor vehicles and dense pollutant sources has become a national concern. To continuously monitor volatile organic HAPs, sampling sites were selected near the four air-quality monitoring stations established by Ethe nvironmental Protection Administration of Taiwan ROC, namely Nan-tz, Tso-ying, San-min and Hsiao-kang, from north to south. An on-site automated online monitor of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) was used for continuous monitoring. This study performed two consecutive days of 24-h monitoring of five volatile organic HAPs form August to October 2005 at the four monitoring sites, which cover the northern, central, and southern areas of Kaohsiung city. The average monitored concentration was 2.78-4.84 ppb for benzene, 5.90-9.66 ppb for toluene, 3.62-5.90 ppb for ethylbenzene, 3.73-5.34 ppb for m,p-xylene, 3.38-4.22 ppb for o-xylene, and 4.48-7.00 ppb for styrene. The average monitored concentrations of the major volatile organic HAPs tended to follow the pattern San-min > Nan-tz > Hsiao-kang > Tso-ying. Among all the species monitored in this study, toluene had the highest ambient concentration, followed by styrene, m,p-xylene, ethylbenzene, o-xylene, and benzene. The results showed that the concentration at night was higher than that in the day for toluene at Nan-tz, San-min, Hsiao-kang, and for benzene at Nan-tz and Hsiao-kang.

Characterization of dominant hydrologic events: the role of spatial, temporal and climatic forces in generating the greatest sediment loads

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Squires, A. L.; Boll, J.; Brooks, E. S.

2013-12-01

Soil erosion and the ensuing elevated sediment loads in surface water bodies result in impaired water quality and unsuitable habitat for salmonid species and other cold water biota. Increased sediment loads also relate to high nutrient levels in streams at downstream locations. Identification of the most sensitive factors leading to major sediment loads is useful in selection and placement of agricultural best management practices (BMPs), especially those that are management oriented such as nutrient management plans and the timing of tillage. Many BMPs work well for average storms but do not achieve desired results during the large storms, when hydrologically sensitive areas contribute the greatest amount of runoff and erosion. Research has shown that the majority of sediment loads in streams and rivers occur during a small proportion of the year, specifically during a few large storm events. In this research, we look beyond the conclusion that large events contribute the majority of sediment loads by investigating the driving forces behind each event. Long-term monitoring data were used from two monitoring stations in a small, mixed land use watershed in northern Idaho. The upper monitoring station is below mostly agricultural land use, and the lower monitoring station is below mostly urban land use. The watershed in question, Paradise Creek in Idaho, is the subject of a sediment TMDL which has not yet been consistently achieved and is currently up for review by the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality. We statistically analyzed the influence of multiple interacting variables on the magnitude of sediment loads during hydrologic events from 2002 to 2012. Spatial (i.e., above and below monitoring station data), temporal (i.e., seasonality), and climatic effects (i.e., precipitation, snowfall and snow melt) were examined, as well as the presence of frozen soils and the timing of events relative to each other. We hypothesized that (1) the events with the greatest sediment loads are flow-limited but occur after mass-limited events, (2) an event that is of long duration and is slow to peak, especially during frozen soil conditions, will contribute the greatest sediment load in a given year, and (3) urban land use generates greater sediment loads than rural land use. Multivariate analysis determined which factors lead to major sediment loads. Our presentation will focus on synthesizing the interacting variables and conditions that tend to result in dominant hydrologic events and suggestions for watershed management. This research will contribute to a more accurate assessment of the hydrology and water quality in the watershed to aid in improvement of the TMDL.

Birmingham Urban Climate Laboratory (BUCL): Experiences, Challenges and Applications of an Urban Temperature Network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muller, Catherine; Chapman, Lee; Young, Duick; Grimmond, Sue; Cai, Xiaoming

2013-04-01

The Birmingham Urban Climate Laboratory (BUCL) has recently been established by the University of Birmingham. BUCL is an in-situ, real-time urban network that will incorporate 3 nested networks - a wide-array of 25 weather stations, a dense array of 131 low-cost air temperature sensors and a fine-array of temperature sensor across the city-centre (50/km^2) - with the primary aim of monitoring air temperatures across a morphologically-heterogeneous urban conurbation for a variety of applications. During its installation there have been a number of challenges to overcome, including siting equipment in suitable urban locations, ensuring that the measurements were 'representative' of the local-scale climate, managing a large, near real-time data set and implementing QA/QC procedures. From these experiences, the establishment of a standardised urban meteorological network metadata protocol has been proposed in order to improve data quality, to ensure the end-user has access to all the supplementary information they would require for conducting valid analyses and to encourage the adequate recording and documentation of any changes to in-situ urban networks over time. This paper will provide an introduction to the BUCL in-situ network, give an overview of the challenges and experiences gained from its implementation, and finally discuss the proposed applications of the network, including its use in remote sensing observations of urban temperatures, as well as health and infrastructure applications.

In Utero Exposure to Toxic Air Pollutants and Risk of Childhood Autism

PubMed Central

von Ehrenstein, Ondine S; Aralis, Hilary; Cockburn, Myles; Ritz, Beate

2015-01-01

Background Genetic and environmental factors are believed to contribute to the development of autism, but relatively few studies have considered potential environmental risks. Here we examine risks for autism in children related to in utero exposure to monitored ambient air toxics from urban emissions. Methods Among the cohort of children born in Los Angeles County, California 1995–2006, those whose mothers resided during pregnancy in a 5km buffer around air-toxics monitoring stations were included (n=148,722). To identify autism cases in this cohort, birth records were linked to records of children diagnosed with primary autistic disorder at the California Department of Developmental Services between 1998 and 2009 (n=768). We calculated monthly average exposures during pregnancy for 24 air toxics selected based on suspected or known neurotoxicity or neurodevelopmental toxicity. Factor analysis helped us identify the correlational structure among air toxics, and we estimated odds ratios (ORs) for autism from logistic regression analyses. Results Autism risks were increased per interquartile-range increase in average concentrations during pregnancy of several correlated toxics mostly loading on one factor, including 1,3-butadiene (OR=1.59 [95% confidence interval=1.18–2.15]), meta/para-xylene (1.51 [1.26–182]), other aromatic solvents, lead (1.49 [1.23–1.81]), perchloroethylene (1.40 [1.09–1.80]), and formaldehyde (1.34 [1.17–1.52]), adjusting for maternal age, race/ethnicity, nativity, education, insurance type, maternal birth place, parity, child sex, and birth year. Conclusions Risks for autism in children may increase following in utero exposure to ambient air toxics from urban traffic and industry emissions, as measured by community-based air -monitoring stations. PMID:25051312

Source apportionment of settleable particles in an impacted urban and industrialized region in Brazil.

PubMed

Santos, Jane Meri; Reis, Neyval Costa; Galvão, Elson Silva; Silveira, Alexsander; Goulart, Elisa Valentim; Lima, Ana Teresa

2017-09-01

Settleable particulate matter (SPM), especially coarser particles with diameters greater than 10 μm, has been found culprit of high deposition rates in cities affected by hinterland industrial activities. This is the case of Metropolitan Region of Vitoria (MRV), Espirito Santo, Brazil where industrial facilities are located within the urban sprawl and building constructions are intense. Frequent population complaints to the environmental protection agency (IEMA) throughout the years have triggered monitoring campaigns to determine SPM deposition rates and source apportionment. Eight different locations were monitored throughout the MRV, and SPM was quantified and chemically characterized. Sources profiles were defined either by using US EPA SPECIATE data or by experimental analysis. Atmospheric fallout in the MRV ranged between 2 and 20g/(m 2 30-day), with only one monitoring station ranging from 6-10 g/(m 2 30-day). EC, OC, Fe, Al, and Si were found the main constituents of dry deposition in the region. Source apportionment by the chemical mass balance (CMB) model determined that steel and iron ore pelletizing industries were the main contributor to one of the eight locations whereas resuspension, civil construction, and vehicular sources were also very important contributors to the other stations. Quarries and soil were also considered expressive SPM sources, but at the city periphery. CMB model could differentiate contributions from six industrial source groups: thermoelectric; iron ore, pellet, and pellet furnaces; coal coke and coke oven; sintering, blast furnace, and basic oxygen furnace; and soil, resuspension, and vehicles. However, the CMB model was unable to differentiate between iron ore and pellet stockpiles which are present in both steel and iron ore pelletizing industries. Further characterization of source and SPM might be necessary to aid local authorities in decision-making regarding these two industrial sources.

In utero exposure to toxic air pollutants and risk of childhood autism.

PubMed

von Ehrenstein, Ondine S; Aralis, Hilary; Cockburn, Myles; Ritz, Beate

2014-11-01

Genetic and environmental factors are believed to contribute to the development of autism, but relatively few studies have considered potential environmental risks. Here, we examine risks for autism in children related to in utero exposure to monitored ambient air toxics from urban emissions. Among the cohort of children born in Los Angeles County, California, 1995-2006, those whose mothers resided during pregnancy in a 5-km buffer around air toxics monitoring stations were included (n = 148,722). To identify autism cases in this cohort, birth records were linked to records of children diagnosed with primary autistic disorder at the California Department of Developmental Services between 1998 and 2009 (n = 768). We calculated monthly average exposures during pregnancy for 24 air toxics selected based on suspected or known neurotoxicity or neurodevelopmental toxicity. Factor analysis helped us identify the correlational structure among air toxics, and we estimated odds ratios (ORs) for autism from logistic regression analyses. Autism risks were increased per interquartile range increase in average concentrations during pregnancy of several correlated toxics mostly loading on 1 factor, including 1,3-butadiene (OR = 1.59 [95% confidence interval = 1.18-2.15]), meta/para-xylene (1.51 [1.26-1.82]), other aromatic solvents, lead (1.49 [1.23-1.81]), perchloroethylene (1.40 [1.09-1.80]), and formaldehyde (1.34 [1.17-1.52]), adjusting for maternal age, race/ethnicity, nativity, education, insurance type, parity, child sex, and birth year. Risks for autism in children may increase following in utero exposure to ambient air toxics from urban traffic and industry emissions, as measured by community-based air-monitoring stations.

Analysis of impacts of urban land use and land cover on air quality in the Las Vegas region using remote sensing information and ground observations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Xian, G.

2007-01-01

Urban development in the Las Vegas Valley of Nevada (USA) has expanded rapidly over the past 50 years. The air quality in the valley has suffered owing to increases from anthropogenic emissions of carbon monoxide, ozone and criteria pollutants of particular matter. Air quality observations show that pollutant concentrations have apparent heterogeneous characteristics in the urban area. Quantified urban land use and land cover information derived from satellite remote sensing data indicate an apparent local influence of urban development density on air pollutant distributions. Multi‐year observational data collected by a network of local air monitoring stations specify that ozone maximums develop in the May and June timeframe, whereas minimum concentrations generally occur from November to February. The fine particulate matter maximum occurs in July. Ozone concentrations are highest on the west and northwest sides of the valley. Night‐time ozone reduction contributes to the heterogeneous features of the spatial distribution for average ozone levels in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. Decreased ozone levels associated with increased urban development density suggest that the highest ozone and lowest nitrogen oxides concentrations are associated with medium to low density urban development in Las Vegas.

Outlier Detection in Urban Air Quality Sensor Networks.

PubMed

van Zoest, V M; Stein, A; Hoek, G

2018-01-01

Low-cost urban air quality sensor networks are increasingly used to study the spatio-temporal variability in air pollutant concentrations. Recently installed low-cost urban sensors, however, are more prone to result in erroneous data than conventional monitors, e.g., leading to outliers. Commonly applied outlier detection methods are unsuitable for air pollutant measurements that have large spatial and temporal variations as occur in urban areas. We present a novel outlier detection method based upon a spatio-temporal classification, focusing on hourly NO 2 concentrations. We divide a full year's observations into 16 spatio-temporal classes, reflecting urban background vs. urban traffic stations, weekdays vs. weekends, and four periods per day. For each spatio-temporal class, we detect outliers using the mean and standard deviation of the normal distribution underlying the truncated normal distribution of the NO 2 observations. Applying this method to a low-cost air quality sensor network in the city of Eindhoven, the Netherlands, we found 0.1-0.5% of outliers. Outliers could reflect measurement errors or unusual high air pollution events. Additional evaluation using expert knowledge is needed to decide on treatment of the identified outliers. We conclude that our method is able to detect outliers while maintaining the spatio-temporal variability of air pollutant concentrations in urban areas.

Long-term warming trends in Korea and contribution of urbanization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, B.; Min, S. K.; Kim, Y. H.; Kim, M. K.; Choi, Y.; Boo, K. O.

2016-12-01

This study provides a systematic investigation of the long-term temperature trends over Korean peninsula in comparison with global temperature trends and presents an updated assessment of the contribution of urban effect. Linear trends are analyzed for three different periods over South Korea in order to consider inhomogeneity due to changes in number of stations: recent 103 years (1912-2014, 6 stations), 61 years (1954-2014, 12 stations) and 42 years (1973-2014, 48 stations). HadCRUT4, MLOST and GISS datasets are used to obtain temperature trends in global mean and each country scales for the same periods. The temperature over South Korea has increased by 1.90°C, 1.35°C, and 0.99°C during 103, 61, and 42 years, respectively. This is equivalent to 1.4-2.6 times larger warming than the global mean trends. The countries located in the Northern mid latitudes exhibit slightly weaker warming trends to Korea (about 1.5 times stronger than of global means), suggesting a considerable impact of urbanization on the local warming over Korea. Updated analyses of the urbanization effect on temperature trends over South Korea suggest that 10-45% of the warming trends are due to urbanization effect, with stronger contributions during the recent decades. First, we compared the recent 42-year temperature trends between city and rural stations using the two approaches based on previous studies. Results show that urbanization effect has contributed to 30-45% of the temperature trends. Secondly, the contribution of urbanization to the temperature increase over Korea has been indirectly estimated using 56 ensemble members of 20CRv2 reanalysis data that include no influence of urbanization. Analysis results for the three periods indicate that urbanization effect could have contributed to the local warming over Korea by 10-25%.

NREL Evaluates National Charging Infrastructure Needs for Growing Fleet of

Science.gov Websites

PEV charging requirements within urban and rural communities and along interstate corridors. For each spacing set to enhance station utility and economics. Compared to interstate corridors, urban and rural stations would be needed to provide a minimum level of urban and rural coverage nationwide. In a PEV market

Studying the urban thermal environment under a human-biometeorological point of view: The case of a large coastal metropolitan city, Athens

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Katavoutas, George; Georgiou, Giorgos K.; Asimakopoulos, Dimosthenis N.

2015-01-01

The thermal environment in modern cities has become potentially unfavorable and harmful for its residents, as a result of urbanization and industrialization. Exposure to these extreme thermal conditions increases the heat stress of people in cities considerably. In this context, the present study aims to investigate the urban thermal environment of the large coastal metropolitan city of Athens, in a human-biometeorologically significant way, utilizing the thermo-physiological assessment index PET. The analysis was based on three hour measurements derived from three-year datasets (2006-2009), at 12 monitoring sites located in the urban complex of Athens, on its boundaries and beyond them. The differences of PET values have been investigated in order to attribute urban and exurban thermal characteristics to the considered sites. The frequency and spatial distribution of PET as well as the urban/rural differences of PET have also been analyzed. Finally, a trend analysis has been applied in order to detect possible PET trends by employing long-term recording data (1985-2008). In terms of thermal human-biometeorological conditions, the analysis reveals that among the considered stations, those located inside the urban complex and the industrialized area present urban thermal characteristics, regardless the fact that they are installed either in a park and on a hill or at an open field. The spatial distribution of PET, at 0200 LST, shows a difference of about 3 to 4 °C, on the main axis of the city (SSW-NNE) in the summer period, while the difference exceeds 2.5 °C in the winter period. In general, cooler (less warm) thermal perception is observed at the north/northeast sites of the city as well as at the areas beyond the eastern boundaries of it. The PET differences between urban and rural sites hold a positive sign, except of those at 0500 LST and at 0800 LST. The highest differences are noted at 1400 LST and the most intense of them is noticed in the summer period (exceeds 5 °C). The trend analysis reveals statistically significant increasing heat stress for certain stations and months.

[Determination of the numbers of monitoring medical institutions necessary for estimating incidence rates in the surveillance of infectious diseases in Japan].

PubMed

Hashimoto, S; Murakami, Y; Taniguchi, K; Nagai, M

1999-12-01

Our purpose was to determine the number of monitoring stations (medical institutions) necessary for estimating incidence rates in the surveillance system of infectious diseases in Japan. Infectious diseases were selected by the type of monitoring stations: 15 diseases in pediatrics stations, influenza in influenza stations, 3 diseases in ophthalmology stations and 5 diseases in the stations of sexually transmitted diseases (STD). For each type of monitoring station, 5 cases of the number of monitoring stations in each health center, including the number determined from presently established standards and the actual number in 1997, were given. It was assumed that monitoring stations were randomly selected among medical institutions in health centers. For each infectious disease, each case and each type of monitoring station, standard error rates of estimated numbers of incidence cases in the whole country were calculated in 1993-1997 using the data of the surveillance of infectious diseases. Among 5 cases of monitoring stations, the case satisfied the condition that those standard error rates were lower than the critical values, was selected. The critical values were 5% in pediatrics and influenza stations, and 10% in ophthalmology and STD stations. The numbers of monitoring stations in the selected cases were 3,000 in pediatrics stations, 5,000 in influenza stations (including all pediatrics stations), 605 in ophthalmology stations and 900 in STD stations.

[Urban heat island intensity and its grading in Liaoning Province of Northeast China].

PubMed

Li, Li-Guang; Wang, Hong-Bo; Jia, Qing-Yu; Lü, Guo-Hong; Wang, Xiao-Ying; Zhang, Yu-Shu; Ai, Jing-Feng

2012-05-01

According to the recorded air temperature data and their continuity of each weather station, the location of each weather station, the numbers of and the distances among the weather stations, and the records on the weather stations migration, several weather stations in Liaoning Province were selected as the urban and rural representative stations to study the characteristics of urban heat island (UHI) intensity in the province. Based on the annual and monthly air temperature data of the representative stations, the ranges and amplitudes of the UHI intensity were analyzed, and the grades of the UHI intensity were classified. The Tieling station, Dalian station, Anshan station, Chaoyang station, Dandong station, and Jinzhou station and the 18 stations including Tai' an station were selected as the representative urban and rural weather stations, respectively. In 1980-2009, the changes of the annual UHI intensity in the 6 representative cities differed. The annual UHI intensity in Tieling was in a decreasing trend, while that in the other five cities was in an increasing trend. The UHI intensity was strong in Tieling but weak in Dalian. The changes of the monthly UHI intensity in the 6 representative cities also differed. The distribution of the monthly UHI intensity in Dandong, Jinzhou and Tieling took a "U" shape, with the maximum and minimum appeared in January and in May-August, respectively, indicating that the monthly UHI intensity was strong in winter and weak in summer. The ranges of the annual and monthly UHI intensity in the 6 cities were 0.57-2.15 degrees C and -0.70-4.60 degrees C, and the ranges of 0.5-2.0 degrees C accounted for 97.8% and 72.3%, respectively. The UHI intensity in the province could be classified into 4 grades, i. e., weak, strong, stronger and strongest.

Satellite-based detection of global urban heat-island temperature influence

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gallo, K.P.; Adegoke, Jimmy O.; Owen, T.W.; Elvidge, C.D.

2002-01-01

This study utilizes a satellite-based methodology to assess the urban heat-island influence during warm season months for over 4400 stations included in the Global Historical Climatology Network of climate stations. The methodology includes local and regional satellite retrievals of an indicator of the presence green photosynthetically active vegetation at and around the stations. The difference in local and regional samples of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) is used to estimate differences in mean air temperature. Stations classified as urban averaged 0.90??C (N. Hemisphere) and 0.92??C (S. Hemisphere) warmer than the surrounding environment on the basis of the NDVI-derived temperature estimates. Additionally, stations classified as rural averaged 0.19??C (N. Hemisphere) and 0.16??C (S. Hemisphere) warmer than the surrounding environment. The NDVI-derived temperature estimates were found to be in reasonable agreement with temperature differences observed between climate stations. The results suggest that satellite-derived data sets can be used to estimate the urban heat-island temperature influence on a global basis and that a more detailed analysis of rural stations and their surrounding environment may be necessary to assure that temperature trends derived from assumed rural environments are not influenced by changes in land use/land cover. Copyright 2002 by the American Geophysical Union.

Assessing the Performance of Large Scale Green Roofs and Their Impact on the Urban Microclimate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smalls-Mantey, L.; Foti, R.; Montalto, F. A.

2015-12-01

In ultra-urban environments green roofs offer a feasible solution to add green infrastructure (GI) in neighborhoods where space is limited. Green roofs offer the typical advantages of urban GI such as stormwater reduction and management while providing direct benefits to the buildings on which they are installed through thermal protection and mitigation of temperature fluctuations. At 6.8 acres, the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center (JJCC) in New York City, hosts the second largest green roof in the United States. Since its installation in August 2013, the Sustainable Water Resource (SWRE) Laboratory at Drexel University has monitored the climate on and around the green roof by means of four weather stations situated on various roof and ground locations. Using two years of fine scale climatic data collected at the JJCC, this study explores the energy balance of a large scale green roof system. Temperature, radiation, evapotranspiration and wind profiles pre- and post- installation of the JJCC green roof were analyzed and compared across monitored locations, with the goal of identifying the impact of the green roof on the building and urban micro-climate. Our findings indicate that the presence of the green roof, not only altered the climatic conditions above the JJCC, but also had a measurable impact on the climatic profile of the areas immediately surrounding it. Furthermore, as a result of the mitigation of roof temperature fluctuations and of the cooling provided during warmer months, an improvement of the building thermal efficiency was contextually observed. Such findings support the installation of GI as an effective practice in urban settings and important in the discussion of key issues including energy conservation measures, carbon emission reductions and the mitigation of urban heat islands.

Pollutant deposition via dew in urban and rural environment, Cracow, Poland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muskała, Piotr; Sobik, Mieczysław; Błaś, Marek; Polkowska, Żaneta; Bokwa, Anita

2015-01-01

This study is a comparative analysis of dew in rural and urban environment. Dew samples were collected between May and October, 2009 in two reference stations in southern Poland: Cracow and Gaik-Brzezowa. The investigation included comparison of volume and chemistry of the collected samples. Due to its formation mechanisms, dew is a good indicator of air pollution. Following parameters were analyzed in 159 collected samples: pH, electric conductivity, concentration of formaldehyde and phenols, concentration of NH4+, Ca2 +, K+, Na+, and Mg2 + cations and NO2-, NO3-, SO42 -, Cl-, F-, and PO43 - anions. The frequency of dew was approximately the same, both in urban and rural conditions reaching 43% of the measurement period. Dew intensity, expressed by volume, was on average two times larger in rural environment than in urban conditions. Urban landuse was recognized as the main factor reducing dew intensity in the urban station in comparison to the rural. Furthermore, the intensity of dew depended on synoptic scale air circulation at both measurement sites. As expected, samples collected in Cracow were much more polluted than the ones from Gaik-Brzezowa. The average TIC (Total Ionic Content) parameter was approximately 50% higher at the urban station. The pH in the rural station was more acidic. NO3- anions and Ca2 + cations were predominant in both measurement sites, however the participation of Ca2 + in Cracow was higher. NO3- indicates pollutions emitted by transport and industrial sources. The concentration of the analytes in both stations, as the volume, depended on air circulation direction. For Gaik-Brzezowa the highest TIC was observed mainly within southern circulation, while for Cracow the highest TIC was noted within both northern and southern. In general the rural station represented background pollution for the whole region and the pollution in Cracow was more dependent on local urban sources as transport or industry.

Research on the technologies of cracking-resistance of mass concrete in subway station

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sheng, Yanmin; Li, Shujin; Jiang, Guoquan; Shi, Xiaoqing; Yang, Zhu; Zhu, Zhihang

2018-03-01

This paper takes the theory of multi-field coupling and the model of hydration-temperature-humidity-constraint to assess the effect of cracking-resistance on structural concrete and optimize the controlling index of crack resistance. The effect is caused by structure, material and construction, etc. The preparation technology of high cracking-resistance concrete is formed through the researching on the temperature rising and deformation over the controlling influence of new anti-cracking materials and technologies. A series of technologies on anti-cracking and waterproof in underground structural concrete of urban rail transit are formed based on the above study. The technologies include design, construction, materials and monitoring. Those technologies are used in actual engineering to improve the quality of urban rail transit and this brings significant economic and social benefits.

The study of ozone variations in the Las Vegas metropolitan area using remote sensing information and ground observations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Xian, G.; Crane, M.

2006-01-01

Urban development in the Las Vegas Valley, Nevada, has grown rapidly in the past fifty years. Associated with this growth has been a change in landscape from natural cover types to developed urban land mixed with planned vegetation canopy throughout in the metropolitan area. Air quality in the Las Vegas Valley has been affected by increases in anthropogenic emissions and concentrations of carbon monoxide, ozone, and criteria pollutants of particular matter. Ozone concentration in the region is generally influenced by synoptic and mesoscale meteorological conditions, as well as regional transport of pollutants from the western side of Las Vegas. Local influences from ground-level nitrogen oxide emissions and vegetation canopy coverage also affect ozone concentration. Multi-year observational data collected by a network of local air monitoring stations in Clark County, Nevada, indicate that ozone maximums develop in May and June, while minimums exist primarily from November to February. Ozone concentrations are high on the west and northwest sides of the valley. A nighttime ozone reduction in the urban area characterizes the heterogeneous features of spatial distribution for average ozone levels in the Las Vegas urban area. The urban vegetation canopy has a locally positive effect by reducing ozone in urban areas. Decreased ozone levels associated with increased urban development density suggests that the highest ozone concentrations are associated with medium- to low-density urban development in Las Vegas.

Optimizing Seismic Monitoring Networks for EGS and Conventional Geothermal Projects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kraft, Toni; Herrmann, Marcus; Bethmann, Falko; Stefan, Wiemer

2013-04-01

In the past several years, geological energy technologies receive growing attention and have been initiated in or close to urban areas. Some of these technologies involve injecting fluids into the subsurface (e.g., oil and gas development, waste disposal, and geothermal energy development) and have been found or suspected to cause small to moderate sized earthquakes. These earthquakes, which may have gone unnoticed in the past when they occurred in remote sparsely populated areas, are now posing a considerable risk for the public acceptance of these technologies in urban areas. The permanent termination of the EGS project in Basel, Switzerland after a number of induced ML~3 (minor) earthquakes in 2006 is one prominent example. It is therefore essential for the future development and success of these geological energy technologies to develop strategies for managing induced seismicity and keeping the size of induced earthquakes at a level that is acceptable to all stakeholders. Most guidelines and recommendations on induced seismicity published since the 1970ies conclude that an indispensable component of such a strategy is the establishment of seismic monitoring in an early stage of a project. This is because an appropriate seismic monitoring is the only way to detect and locate induced microearthquakes with sufficient certainty to develop an understanding of the seismic and geomechanical response of the reservoir to the geotechnical operation. In addition, seismic monitoring lays the foundation for the establishment of advanced traffic light systems and is therefore an important confidence building measure towards the local population and authorities. We have developed an optimization algorithm for seismic monitoring networks in urban areas that allows to design and evaluate seismic network geometries for arbitrary geotechnical operation layouts. The algorithm is based on the D-optimal experimental design that aims to minimize the error ellipsoid of the linearized location problem. Optimization for additional criteria (e.g., focal mechanism determination or installation costs) can be included. We consider a 3D seismic velocity model, an European ambient seismic noise model derived from high-resolution land-use data, and existing seismic stations in the vicinity of the geotechnical site. Additionally, we account for the attenuation of the seismic signal with travel time and ambient seismic noise with depth to be able to correctly deal with borehole station networks. Using this algorithm we are able to find the optimal geometry and size of the seismic monitoring network that meets the predefined application-oriented performance criteria. This talk will focus on optimal network geometries for deep geothermal projects of the EGS and hydrothermal type, and discuss the requirements for basic seismic surveillance and high-resolution reservoir monitoring and characterization.

Field calibration of electrochemical NO2 sensors in a citizen science context

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mijling, Bas; Jiang, Qijun; de Jonge, Dave; Bocconi, Stefano

2018-03-01

In many urban areas the population is exposed to elevated levels of air pollution. However, real-time air quality is usually only measured at few locations. These measurements provide a general picture of the state of the air, but they are unable to monitor local differences. New low-cost sensor technology is available for several years now, and has the potential to extend official monitoring networks significantly even though the current generation of sensors suffer from various technical issues.Citizen science experiments based on these sensors must be designed carefully to avoid generation of data which is of poor or even useless quality. This study explores the added value of the 2016 Urban AirQ campaign, which focused on measuring nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Sixteen low-cost air quality sensor devices were built and distributed among volunteers living close to roads with high traffic volume for a 2-month measurement period. Each electrochemical sensor was calibrated in-field next to an air monitoring station during an 8-day period, resulting in R2 ranging from 0.3 to 0.7. When temperature and relative humidity are included in a multilinear regression approach, the NO2 accuracy is improved significantly, with R2 ranging from 0.6 to 0.9. Recalibration after the campaign is crucial, as all sensors show a significant signal drift in the 2-month measurement period. The measurement series between the calibration periods can be corrected for after the measurement period by taking a weighted average of the calibration coefficients.Validation against an independent air monitoring station shows good agreement. Using our approach, the standard deviation of a typical sensor device for NO2 measurements was found to be 7 µg m-3, provided that temperatures are below 30 °C. Stronger ozone titration on street sides causes an underestimation of NO2 concentrations, which 75 % of the time is less than 2.3 µg m-3.Our findings show that citizen science campaigns using low-cost sensors based on the current generations of electrochemical NO2 sensors may provide useful complementary data on local air quality in an urban setting, provided that experiments are properly set up and the data are carefully analysed.

Klang River water quality modelling using music

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zahari, Nazirul Mubin; Zawawi, Mohd Hafiz; Muda, Zakaria Che; Sidek, Lariyah Mohd; Fauzi, Nurfazila Mohd; Othman, Mohd Edzham Fareez; Ahmad, Zulkepply

2017-09-01

Water is an essential resource that sustains life on earth; changes in the natural quality and distribution of water have ecological impacts that can sometimes be devastating. Recently, Malaysia is facing many environmental issues regarding water pollution. The main causes of river pollution are rapid urbanization, arising from the development of residential, commercial, industrial sites, infrastructural facilities and others. The purpose of the study was to predict the water quality of the Connaught Bridge Power Station (CBPS), Klang River. Besides that, affects to the low tide and high tide and. to forecast the pollutant concentrations of the Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) and Total Suspended Solid (TSS) for existing land use of the catchment area through water quality modeling (by using the MUSIC software). Besides that, to identifying an integrated urban stormwater treatment system (Best Management Practice or BMPs) to achieve optimal performance in improving the water quality of the catchment using the MUSIC software in catchment areas having tropical climates. Result from MUSIC Model such as BOD5 at station 1 can be reduce the concentration from Class IV to become Class III. Whereas, for TSS concentration from Class III to become Class II at the station 1. The model predicted a mean TSS reduction of 0.17%, TP reduction of 0.14%, TN reduction of 0.48% and BOD5 reduction of 0.31% for Station 1 Thus, from the result after purposed BMPs the water quality is safe to use because basically water quality monitoring is important due to threat such as activities are harmful to aquatic organisms and public health.

Effect of land use activities on PAH contamination in urban soils of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, Pakistan.

PubMed

Ud Din, Ikhtiar; Rashid, Audil; Mahmood, Tariq; Khalid, Azeem

2013-10-01

Urbanization can increase the vulnerability of soils to various types of contamination. Increased contamination of urban soils with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) could relate to increased number of petrol pump stations and mechanical workshops-a phenomenon that needs to be constantly monitored. This study was undertaken to explore the soil PAH levels in Rawalpindi and Islamabad urban areas in relation to land use activities. Composite soil samples from petrol pump stations and mechanical workshops (n = 32) areas were evaluated for five PAHs--naphthalene, phenanthrene, pyrene, benzo[a]pyrene, and indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene-and compared with control area locations with minimum petroleum-related activity (n = 16). Surface samples up to 3 cm depth were collected and extraction of analytes was carried out using n-hexane and dichloromethane. Prior to running the samples, standards (100 μg ml(-1)) were run on HPLC to optimize signal to noise ratio using acetonitrile as mobile phase at a flow rate of 1.25 ml/min at 40 °C. Significant differences between petrol pump stations and mechanical workshop areas were observed for individual PAH as well as with control area soil samples. Naphthalene was found to be the most abundant PAH in soil, ranging from 2.47 to 24.36 mg kg(-1). Correlation between the benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) level in soil and the total PAH concentration (r = 0.82, P < 0.0001) revealed that BaP can be used as a potential marker for PAH pollution. A clear segregation between petrogenic and pyrogenic sources of contamination was observed when low molecular weight PAHs detected in soil was plotted against high molecular weight PAHs. The former source comprised lubricants and used engine oil found at mechanical workshops, whereas the latter could be mostly attributed to vehicular emission at petrol pumps. The results indicate that PAH contamination in urban areas of Rawalpindi and Islamabad has direct relevance with land use for petroleum activity. We conclude that in order to reduce the soil PAH exposure in urban environment, petrol pumps and mechanical workshops must be shifted to less densely populated areas because of their role as important point sources for PAH emission.

Estimated nitrogen loads from selected tributaries in Connecticut draining to Long Island Sound, 1999–2009

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mullaney, John R.; Schwarz, Gregory E.

2013-01-01

The total nitrogen load to Long Island Sound from Connecticut and contributing areas to the north was estimated for October 1998 to September 2009. Discrete measurements of total nitrogen concentrations and continuous flow data from 37 water-quality monitoring stations in the Long Island Sound watershed were used to compute total annual nitrogen yields and loads. Total annual computed yields and basin characteristics were used to develop a generalized-least squares regression model for use in estimating the total nitrogen yields from unmonitored areas in coastal and central Connecticut. Significant variables in the regression included the percentage of developed land, percentage of row crops, point-source nitrogen yields from wastewater-treatment facilities, and annual mean streamflow. Computed annual median total nitrogen yields at individual monitoring stations ranged from less than 2,000 pounds per square mile in mostly forested basins (typically less than 10 percent developed land) to more than 13,000 pounds per square mile in urban basins (greater than 40 percent developed) with wastewater-treatment facilities and in one agricultural basin. Medians of computed total annual nitrogen yields for water years 1999–2009 at most stations were similar to those previously computed for water years 1988–98. However, computed medians of annual yields at several stations, including the Naugatuck River, Quinnipiac River, and Hockanum River, were lower than during 1988–98. Nitrogen yields estimated for 26 unmonitored areas downstream from monitoring stations ranged from less than 2,000 pounds per square mile to 34,000 pounds per square mile. Computed annual total nitrogen loads at the farthest downstream monitoring stations were combined with the corresponding estimates for the downstream unmonitored areas for a combined estimate of the total nitrogen load from the entire study area. Resulting combined total nitrogen loads ranged from 38 to 68 million pounds per year during water years 1999–2009. Total annual loads from the monitored basins represent 63 to 74 percent of the total load. Computed annual nitrogen loads from four stations near the Massachusetts border with Connecticut represent 52 to 54 percent of the total nitrogen load during water years 2008–9, the only years with data for all the border sites. During the latter part of the 1999–2009 study period, total nitrogen loads to Long Island Sound from the study area appeared to increase slightly. The apparent increase in loads may be due to higher than normal streamflows, which consequently increased nonpoint nitrogen loads during the study, offsetting major reductions of nitrogen from wastewater-treatment facilities. Nitrogen loads from wastewater treatment facilities declined as much as 2.3 million pounds per year in areas of Connecticut upstream from the monitoring stations and as much as 5.8 million pounds per year in unmonitored areas downstream in coastal and central Connecticut.

Modifications of the urban heat island characteristics under exceptionally hot weather - A case study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Founda, Dimitra; Pierros, Fragiskos; Santamouris, Mathew

2016-04-01

Considerable recent research suggests that heat waves are becoming more frequent, more intense and longer in the future. Heat waves are characterised by the dominance of prolonged abnormally hot conditions related to synoptic scale anomalies, thus they affect extensive geographical areas. Heat waves (HW) have a profound impact on humans and they have been proven to increase mortality. Urban areas are known to be hotter than the surrounding rural areas due to the well documented urban heat island (UHI) phenomenon. Urban areas face increased risk under heat waves, due to the added heat from the urban heat island and increased population density. Given that urban populations keep increasing, citizens are exposed to significant heat related risk. Mitigation and adaptation strategies require a deep understanding of the response of the urban heat islands under extremely hot conditions. The response of the urban heat island under selected episodes of heat waves is examined in the city of Athens, from the comparison between stations of different characteristics (urban, suburban, coastal and rural). Two distinct episodes of heat waves occurring during summer 2000 were selected. Daily maximum air temperature at the urban station of the National Observatory of Athens (NOA) exceeded 40 0C for at least three consecutive days for both episodes. The intensity of UHI during heat waves was compared to the intensity under 'normal' conditions, represented from a period 'before' and 'after' the heat wave. Striking differences of UHI features between HW and no HW cases were observed, depending on the time of the day and the type of station. The comparison between the urban and the coastal station showed an increase of the order of 3 0C in the intensity of UHI during the HW days, as regards both daytime and nighttime conditions. The comparison between urban and a suburban (inland) station, revealed some different behaviour during HWs, with increases of the order of 3 0C in the nocturnal UHI intensity under HW, but decrease in the daily UHI. The findings were confirmed qualitatively and quantitatively from other two severe episodes of heat waves, occurring during summer 2007.

The air quality forecast in Beijing with Community Multi-scale Air Quality Modeling (CMAQ) System: model evaluation and improvement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Q.

2013-12-01

The MM5-SMOKE-CMAQ model system, which is developed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency(U.S. EPA) as the Models-3 system, has been used for the daily air quality forecast in the Beijing Municipal Environmental Monitoring Center(Beijing MEMC), as a part of the Ensemble Air Quality Forecast System for Beijing(EMS-Beijing) since the Olympic Games year 2008. In this study, we collect the daily forecast results of the CMAQ model in the whole year 2010 for the model evaluation. The results show that the model play a good model performance in most days but underestimate obviously in some air pollution episode. A typical air pollution episode from 11st - 20th January 2010 was chosen, which the air pollution index(API) of particulate matter (PM10) observed by Beijing MEMC reaches to 180 while the prediction of PM10-API is about 100. Taking in account all stations in Beijing, including urban and suburban stations, three numerical methods are used for model improvement: firstly, enhance the inner domain with 4km grids, the coverage from only Beijing to the area including its surrounding cities; secondly, update the Beijing stationary area emission inventory, from statistical county-level to village-town level, that would provide more detail spatial informance for area emissions; thirdly, add some industrial points emission in Beijing's surrounding cities, the latter two are both the improvement of emission. As the result, the peak of the nine national standard stations averaged PM10-API, which is simulated by CMAQ as daily hindcast PM10-API, reach to 160 and much near to the observation. The new results show better model performance, which the correlation coefficent is 0.93 in national standard stations average and 0.84 in all stations, the relative error is 15.7% in national standard stations averaged and 27% in all stations. The time series of 9 national standard in Beijing urban The scatter diagram of all stations in Beijing, the red is the forecast and the blue is new result.

On the feasibility of measuring urban air pollution by wireless distributed sensor networks.

PubMed

Moltchanov, Sharon; Levy, Ilan; Etzion, Yael; Lerner, Uri; Broday, David M; Fishbain, Barak

2015-01-01

Accurate evaluation of air pollution on human-wellbeing requires high-resolution measurements. Standard air quality monitoring stations provide accurate pollution levels but due to their sparse distribution they cannot capture the highly resolved spatial variations within cities. Similarly, dedicated field campaigns can use tens of measurement devices and obtain highly dense spatial coverage but normally deployment has been limited to short periods of no more than few weeks. Nowadays, advances in communication and sensory technologies enable the deployment of dense grids of wireless distributed air monitoring nodes, yet their sensor ability to capture the spatiotemporal pollutant variability at the sub-neighborhood scale has never been thoroughly tested. This study reports ambient measurements of gaseous air pollutants by a network of six wireless multi-sensor miniature nodes that have been deployed in three urban sites, about 150 m apart. We demonstrate the network's capability to capture spatiotemporal concentration variations at an exceptional fine resolution but highlight the need for a frequent in-situ calibration to maintain the consistency of some sensors. Accordingly, a procedure for a field calibration is proposed and shown to improve the system's performance. Overall, our results support the compatibility of wireless distributed sensor networks for measuring urban air pollution at a sub-neighborhood spatial resolution, which suits the requirement for highly spatiotemporal resolved measurements at the breathing-height when assessing exposure to urban air pollution. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Leisure, economy and colonial urbanism: Darjeeling, 1835-1930.

PubMed

Bhattacharya, Nandini

2013-08-01

This article posits that the hill station of Darjeeling was a unique form of colonial urbanism. It shifts historiographical interest from major urban centres in colonial India (such as Bombay or Calcutta) and instead attempts a greater understanding of smaller urban centres. In the process, it also interrogates the category of hill stations, which have been understood as exotic and scenic sites rather than as towns that were integral to the colonial economy. In arguing that hill stations, particularly Darjeeling, were not merely the scenic and healthy 'other' of the clamorous, dirty and diseased plains of India, it refutes suggestions that the 'despoiling' or overcrowding of Darjeeling was incremental to the purposes of its establishment. Instead, it suggests that Darjeeling was part of the colonial mainstream; its urbanization and inclusion into the greater colonial economy was effected from the time of its establishment. Therefore, a constant tension between its exotic and its functional elements persisted throughout.

Retrieval of AOD and PM2.5 Concentrations over Urban Areas of Shenyang City using MODIS Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Z.

2016-12-01

Atmospheric aerosols play an important part in the Earth's radiation balance as well as global climate change, aerosols also have very important impact on environment as well as human and other organisms' health, PM2.5 and other small particle aerosols, can enter bronchi directly, thus causing bronchitis, cardiovascular disease, asthma and so on.Detection of AOD by satellite and remote sensing is currently one of the hotest issues , diffierent from the traditional monitoring method, this method has much more advantanges, for emample wide area coverage, fast and convenient etc. So it is possible for people to know the regional changes of AOD real time over large area. Now, detection aerosol by RS technology has reached a high level in marine and dense vegetation land areas, but result is not ideal for urban areas, the higher surface reflectance in urban areas is a bottleneck of AOD retrieval. Focus on the high surface reflectance and low accuracy of the AOD products of urban areas, this paper propose an algorithm coupled with surface reflectance to get red band surface reflectance, based on Dens Dark Vegetation algorithm and geometrical optics model theory, to distinguish urban reflectivity from other targets. Considering the appropriate aerosol model which adapt to season and other proper parameters, this paper uses 6S model to establish look-up table, thus retrieve AOD for urban as well as other high reflectance areas. This paper take Shenyang region as pilot area, then retrieve the AOD and PM2.5 concentration of Shenyang in 2015 based on MODIS data, thus get 1km resolution distribution map, and then analyzed the results in spatial, intensity and temporal. At last, real-time monitoring data from the ground monitor station is used to verify the outcome, the results have good accuracy and the the correlation reached 0.9004 when the weather is sunny. The research shows that this algorithm has relatively higher precision and certain universality. This method has better applicability to retrieve AOD and PM2.5 concentration by remote sensing in Shenyang and Liaoning Provience, and owes guiding and reference significance, and it has a high value in terms of atmospheric environment monitoring.

Assessing the Impact of Urbanization Using Remote Sensing On A Global Scale, Past Present And Future Directions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luvall, J. C.

2016-12-01

It is estimated that by the year 2025, 80% of the world's population will live in cities. This conversion of the natural landscape vegetation into man-made urban structures such as roads and buildings drastically alter the regional surface energy budgets, hydrology, precipitation patterns, and meteorology. The urban heat island (UHI) results from the energy that is absorbed by man-made materials during the day and is released at night resulting in the heating of the air within the urban area. The magnitude of the air temperature differences between the urban and surrounding countryside can be 2-8 o C. The UHI was one of the earliest recognized and measured phenomena of urbanization which was reported as early as 1833 for London (Howard, 1833) and 1862 for Paris. Research studies from many cities have documented that these effects range from decreases in air quality, increased energy consumption, and alteration of regional climate to direct effects on human health. To understand why the UHI phenomena exists, it is useful to define the surface in terms of the surface energy budget. Surface temperature and albedo are major components of the surface energy budget. Knowledge of it is important in any attempt to describe the radiative and mass fluxes that occur at the surface. Use of energy terms in modeling surface energy budgets allows the direct comparison of various land surfaces encountered in an urban landscape, from vegetated (forest and herbaceous) to non-vegetated (bare soil, roads, and buildings). These terms are also easily measured using remote sensing from aircraft or satellite platforms allowing one to examine the spatial variability of the urban surface. Planned NASA space borne missions include an ECOsystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment on Space Station (ECOSTRESS) a five channel, 37x 50m resolution thermal instrument on space station and a Hyperspectral Infrared Imager (HyspIRI), a 30m resolution hyperspectral and 60m resolution multispectral channel mid/thermal infrared instrument. These instruments build on a long heritage of NASA funded research using aircraft based urban remote sensing instruments to develop techniques for assessing the UHI. HyspIRI will provide the global datasets necessary to monitor and study the impacts of urbanization on a global scale.

GPS Monitor Station Upgrade Program at the Naval Research Laboratory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Galysh, Ivan J.; Craig, Dwin M.

1996-01-01

One of the measurements made by the Global Positioning System (GPS) monitor stations is to measure the continuous pseudo-range of all the passing GPS satellites. The pseudo-range contains GPS and monitor station clock errors as well as GPS satellite navigation errors. Currently the time at the GPS monitor station is obtained from the GPS constellation and has an inherent inaccuracy as a result. Improved timing accuracy at the GPS monitoring stations will improve GPS performance. The US Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) is developing hardware and software for the GPS monitor station upgrade program to improve the monitor station clock accuracy. This upgrade will allow a method independent of the GPS satellite constellation of measuring and correcting monitor station time to US Naval Observatory (USNO) time. THe hardware consists of a high performance atomic cesium frequency standard (CFS) and a computer which is used to ensemble the CFS with the two CFS's currently located at the monitor station by use of a dual-mixer system. The dual-mixer system achieves phase measurements between the high-performance CFS and the existing monitor station CFS's to within 400 femtoseconds. Time transfer between USNO and a given monitor station is achieved via a two way satellite time transfer modem. The computer at the monitor station disciplines the CFS based on a comparison of one pulse per second sent from the master site at USNO. The monitor station computer is also used to perform housekeeping functions, as well as recording the health status of all three CFS's. This information is sent to the USNO through the time transfer modem. Laboratory time synchronization results in the sub nanosecond range have been observed and the ability to maintain the monitor station CFS frequency to within 3.0 x 10 (sup minus 14) of the master site at USNO.

20 years of Black Carbon measurements in Germany

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kutzner, Rebecca; Quedenau, Jörn; Kuik, Friderike; von Schneidemesser, Erika; Schmale, Julia

2016-04-01

Black Carbon (BC) is an important short-lived climate-forcing pollutant contributing to global warming through absorption of sunlight. At the same time, BC, as a component of particulate matter (PM) exerts adverse health effects, like decreased lung function and exacerbated asthma. Globally, anthropogenic emission sources of BC include residential heating, transport, and agricultural fires, while the dominant natural emission sources are wildfires. Despite the various adverse effects of BC, legislation that requires mandatory monitoring of BC concentrations does not currently exist in the European Union. Instead, BC is only indirectly monitored as component of PM10 and PM2.5 (particulate matter with a diameter smaller 10 μm and 2.5 μm). Before the introduction of mandatory PM10 and PM2.5 monitoring in the European Union in 2005 and 2015, respectively, 'black smoke', a surrogate for BC, was a required measurement in Germany from the early 1990s. The annual mean limit value was 14 μg m-3 from 1995 and 8 μg m-3 from 1998 onwards. Many 'black smoke' measurements were stopped in 2004, with the repeal of the regulations obtaining at the time. However, in most German federal states a limited number BC monitoring stations continued to operate. Here we present a synthesis of BC data from 213 stations across Germany covering the period between 1994 and 2014. Due to the lack of a standardized method and respective legislation, the data set is very heterogeneous relying on twelve different measurement methods including chemical, optical, and thermal-optical methods. Stations include locations classified as background, urban-background, industrial and traffic among other types. Raw data in many different formats has been modelled and integrated in a relational database, allowing various options for further data analysis. We highlight results from the year 2009, as it is the year with the largest measurement coverage based on the same measurement method, with 30 stations. In 2009 daily average concentrations at 12 background stations ranged from 0.20 to 9.10 μg m-3 BC, while at traffic sites (15 stations) concentrations ranged from 0.30 to 30.60 μg m-3 BC, and industrial sites (3 stations) showed concentrations ranging between 0.30 and 9.4 μg m-3. The seasonal cycle for the year 2009 shows a similar pattern for industrial and background stations with a tendency of higher concentrations in winter. The concentrations at traffic stations are not as clearly coupled to seasons but have a strong weekly cycle with lower concentrations during weekends. Investigating the trends in BC concentration over at least 10 years was possible for 13 stations. Preliminary results suggest that concentrations have declined at traffic and background stations between 2005 and 2014. This implies that a general reduction of BC has already been achieved. However, preliminary results also show that elevated concentrations still occur during the colder months, most likely linked to residential heating.

Quality of stormwater runoff from paved surfaces of two production sites.

PubMed

Gnecco, I; Berretta, C; Lanza, L G; La Barbera, P

2006-01-01

In order to investigate stormwater pollutant loads associated with different anthropic activities and the related pollutant build-up and wash-off processes, two pilot sites have been equipped in the Liguria Region (Italy) for monitoring first flush water quality in a gas station and an auto dismantler facility. TSS, COD, HCtot and heavy metals in dissolved form (Zn, Pb, Cu, Ni, Cd, Cr) have been analyzed during the monitoring campaign (started in February 2004). Stormwater flow and quality data collected in both production sites confirm that EMC values are significantly higher than those observed in an urban site. In the auto dismantler site, the EMC values for TSS, COD and HC largely exceed the standard values (EC 91/271). Contrary to urban surface runoff, scarce correlation between TSS and COD concentrations is observed in runoff from both production sites. The occurrence and nature of the pollutant load connected to first flush flows is discussed by inspection of the M(V)-curves that are provided for all monitored water quality parameters. Significant first flush phenomenon is evidenced for TSS and HC, while such clear behavior doesn't emerge for heavy metals. Hydrologic and climatic characteristics (ADWP, rainfall intensity/depth) appear to scarcely affect the build-up and wash-off processes.

Temporal trend and determinants of river water quality across urbanization gradients in a coastal city, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, W.; Zhu, X.

2015-12-01

Water contamination in rivers embedded in urbanizing areas is increasingly affected by anthropogenic factors. The impacts may vary with location, time and water variables particularly in rapidly growing areas with clear urbanization gradients. Therefore, characterizing the temporal trend and identifying responsible divers to water quality changes in areas with different urbanization intensity could greatly improve our knowledge about human-water interactions. We employed geographically weighted regression (GWR) to interpret the determinants of river water quality changes in four urban development zones, i.e. central urban, suburban, central county and rural areas. Monitoring data of 8 variables- permanganate (CODMn), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), ammonium (NH3-N), petroleum (oil), volatile phenol (VP), phosphorus (TP), mercury (Hg) and lead (Pb) from 33 stations were collected from 2004, 2008 and 2010. Five determinants were identified: urban land use intensity, environmental policies, industrial zone expansion, land use composition, and gross domestic product (GDP). Relationships between these identified determinants and water quality changes showed great variations due to their different nature and sensitivity. Typically, for zones with higher urbanization intensity located in central cities and central counties, urban land use had positive impacts on river water quality improvement. However, in less urbanized areas, rapid urban expansion indicated rapid river water degradation. Environmental policies had distinct influences on river pollution control in highly-urbanized areas, but led to unexpected negative impacts in areas beyond the management priorities. Industrial activities were the major contributor to heavy metal pollution in suburban areas while boosted N, P decrease in central cities. Our study highlighted the importance of "local" management instead of one-size-fits-all system in mitigating undesirable impacts of urbanization on water environment.

Wet acid deposition in Chinese natural and agricultural ecosystems: Evidence from national-scale monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Haili; He, Nianpeng; Wang, Qiufeng; Zhu, Jianxing; Xu, Li; Zhu, Zhilin; Yu, Guirui

2016-09-01

Acid deposition in precipitation has received widespread attention. However, it is necessary to monitor the acid deposition in Chinese agricultural and natural ecosystems because data derived from traditional urban/suburban observations might overestimate it to some extent. In this study, we continuously measured the acid deposition through precipitation (pH, sulfate (SO42-), and nitrate (NO3-)) in 43 field stations from 2009 to 2014 to explore the spatial patterns and the main influencing factors of acid deposition in Chinese agricultural and natural ecosystems. The results showed that the average precipitation pH at the 43 stations varied between 4.10 and 8.25 (average: 6.2) with nearly 20% of the observation sites being subjected to acid precipitation (pH < 5.6). The average deposition of SO42- and NO3- was 115.99 and 32.93 kg ha-1 yr-1, respectively. An apparent regional difference of acid deposition in Chinese agricultural and natural ecosystems was observed, which was most serious in south and central China and less serious in northwest China, Inner Mongolia, and Qinghai-Tibet. The level of economic development and amount of precipitation could explain most of the spatial variations of pH, SO42-, and NO3- depositions. It is anticipated that acid deposition might increase further, although the current level of acid deposition in these Chinese agricultural and natural ecosystems was found to be less serious than projected from urban/suburban data. The control of energy consumption should be strengthened in future to prevent an increase of acid deposition in China.

Wet acid deposition of Chinese natural and agricultural ecosystems: Evidence from national-scale monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, H.; He, N.; Wang, Q.; Zhu, J.; Xu, L.; Zhu, Z.; Yu, G.

2016-12-01

Acid deposition in precipitation has received widespread attention. However, it is necessary to monitor the acid deposition in Chinese agricultural and natural ecosystems because data derived from traditional urban/suburban observations might overestimate it to some extent. In this study, we continuously measured the acid deposition through precipitation [pH, sulfate (SO42-), and nitrate (NO3-)] in 43 field stations from 2009 to 2014 to explore the spatial patterns of acid deposition in Chinese agricultural and natural ecosystems and to explore the main influencing factors. The results showed that the average precipitation pH at the 43 stations varied between 4.10 and 8.25 (average: 6.2) with nearly 20% of the observation sites being subjected to acid precipitation (pH < 5.6). The average deposition of SO42- and NO3- was 115.99 and 32.93 kg ha-1 yr-1, respectively. An apparent regional difference in acid deposition in Chinese agricultural and natural ecosystems was observed, which was most serious in South and Central China and less serious in North-west China, Inner Mongolia, and Qinghai-Tibet. The level of economic development and amount of precipitation could explain most of the spatial variations of pH and of SO42-, and NO3- depositions. It is anticipated that acid deposition might increase further, although the current level of acid deposition in these Chinese agricultural and natural ecosystems was found to be less serious than projected from urban/suburban data. The control of energy consumption should be strengthened in future to prevent an increase of acid deposition in China.

Environmental and biological monitoring of benzene in traffic policemen, police drivers and rural outdoor male workers.

PubMed

Manuela, Ciarrocca; Francesco, Tomei; Tiziana, Caciari; Assunta, Capozzella; Lara, Scimitto; Nadia, Nardone; Giorgia, Andreozzi; Barbara, Scala; Maria, Fiaschetti; Carlotta, Cetica; Valeria, Di Giorgio; Pia, Schifano Maria; Gianfranco, Tomei; Angela, Sancini

2012-05-01

To evaluate exposure to benzene in urban and rural areas, an investigation into personal exposure to benzene in traffic policemen, police drivers and rural (roadmen) male outdoor workers was carried out. Personal samples and data acquired using fixed monitoring stations located in different areas of the city were used to measure personal exposure to benzene in 62 non-smoker traffic policemen, 22 police drivers and 57 roadmen. Blood benzene, urinary trans-trans muconic acid (t,t-MA) and S-phenyl-mercapturic acid (S-PMA) were measured at the end of work shift in 62 non-smoker traffic policemen, 22 police drivers and 57 roadmen and 34 smoker traffic policemen, 21 police drivers and 53 roadmen. Exposure to benzene was similar among non-smoker traffic policemen and police drivers and higher among non-smoker urban workers compared to rural workers. Blood benzene, t,t-MA and S-PMA were similar among non-smoker traffic policemen and police drivers; blood benzene and t,t-MA were significantly higher in non-smoker urban workers compared to rural workers. Significant increases in t,t-MA were found in smokers vs. non-smokers. In non-smoker urban workers airborne benzene and blood benzene, and t,t-MA and S-PMA were significantly correlated. This study gives an evaluation of the exposure to benzene in an urban area, comparing people working in the street or in cars, to people working in a rural area. Benzene is a certain carcinogen for humans. The results we showed should lead to more in-depth studies about the effects on health of these categories of workers.

Pollen Forecast and Dispersion Modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Costantini, Monica; Di Giuseppe, Fabio; Medaglia, Carlo Maria; Travaglini, Alessandro; Tocci, Raffaella; Brighetti, M. Antonia; Petitta, Marcello

2014-05-01

The aim of this study is monitoring, mapping and forecast of pollen distribution for the city of Rome using in-situ measurements of 10 species of common allergenic pollens and measurements of PM10. The production of daily concentration maps, associated to a mobile phone app, are innovative compared to existing dedicated services to people who suffer from respiratory allergies. The dispersal pollen is one of the most well-known causes of allergic disease that is manifested by disorders of the respiratory functions. Allergies are the third leading cause of chronic disease and it is estimated that tens millions of people in Italy suffer from it. Recent works reveal that during the last few years there was a progressive increase of affected subjects, especially in urban areas. This situation may depend: on the ability to transport of pollutants, on the ability to react between pollutants and pollen and from a combination of other irritants, existing in densely populated and polluted urban areas. The methodology used to produce maps is based on in-situ measurements time series relative to 2012, obtained from networks of air quality and pollen stations in the metropolitan area of Rome. The monitoring station aerobiological of University of Rome "Tor Vergata" is located at the Department of Biology. The instrument used to pollen monitoring is a volumetric sampler type Hirst (Hirst 1952), Model 2000 VPPS Lanzoni; the data acquisition is carried out as reported in Standard UNI 11008:2004 - "Qualità dell'aria - Metodo di campionamento e conteggio dei granuli pollinici e delle spore fungine aerodisperse" - the protocol that describes the procedure for measuring of the concentration of pollen grains and fungal spores dispersed into the atmosphere, and reported in the "Manuale di gestione e qualità della R.I.M.A" (Travaglini et. al. 2009). All 10 allergenic pollen are monitored since 1996. At Tor Vergata university is also operating a meteorological station (SP2000, CAE Bologna, Italy). With pollen and meteorological dataset was created a provisional model for Poaceae. A PLSDA (Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis) approach was used in order to predict Poaceae pollen critical concentration (Brighetti et al. 2013) To preserve spatial correlation between pollens and PM10, we choose a Multiavariate Linear Spatial Interpolation Method to quantify pollen concentration in function of PM10, wind, rain and temperature. A test and validation procedure have been conducted to estimate the error associated to the pollen concentration. Validation for the year 2012 shows a good agreement between measured and estimated data , in each area depending of orography and of road traffic (r >0.83, 1%< RRMSE <5% ). This study aims to be a added value to agro-meteorological data in a different branch from the classic sector of defence and of crop production, emphasizing the importance of monitoring and forecast the pollen dispersal in urban areas, evaluated its effect on health and quality of life. In the health area the combined analysis between climate, pollution and dispersal of pollen allows to realize significant operational tools and to develop a reference for subsequent implementations.

Source Apportionment of PM2.5 using PMF and CMB: Comparison of the Effects of Transboundary and Local Pollutions in the Western Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iijima, A.; Sugata, S.

2014-12-01

PM2.5 has become one of the most important aspects in recent air pollution issues. In Japan, the achievement rate of the environmental quality standard for PM2.5 is in a worse situation so far (43.3% for ambient air monitoring station, 33.3% for roadside air pollution monitoring station in FY2012). Therefore, source apportionment will be essential to policy and decision making for improving the PM2.5 pollution. Since 2011, we started the field monitoring study called "Current Status Elucidation and Source Contribution Assessment of PM2.5 Pollution in Collaboration with Environmental Research Institutes across Japan" which was granted by the Environment Research and Technology Development Fund (5B-1101) of the Ministry of the Environment, Japan. PM2.5 samples were collected at 14 sites during four campaigns. Chemical analyses of carbonaceous compounds, ionic species, and elements were conducted. Source apportionment was performed by using Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF, EPA PMF 3.0) and Chemical Mass Balance (CMB, EPA CMB 8.1) models. PMF model resolved a six-factor solution. Each of these factors has a distinctive grouping of species that can be associated with a specific source sector (F1: Biomass burning, F2: Sulfate + Oil combustion, F3: Industry, F4: Nitrate, F5: Sulfate + Coal combustion, and F6: Chloride). In the winter campaign (Jan. 24 to Feb. 7) in 2013, F5 accounted for 50% of total PM2.5 mass at Tsushima (34.2°N 129.3°E, the westernmost remote site). The contribution of F5 tended to decrease toward the eastern sites (27% at Fukuoka (33.5°N 130.5°E, urban site), 22% at Higashi-Osaka (34.7°N 135.6°E, urban site)). CMB model showed similar results in the same campaign. Coal combustion accounted for 49%, 30%, and 22% of total PM2.5 mass at Tsushima, Fukuoka, and Higashi-Osaka, respectively (Fig.1). On the other hand, at urban sites, higher contributions from local sources such as secondary nitrate (16% at Fukuoka, 21% at Higashi-Osaka), diesel fuel automobile (11% at Fukuoka, 12% at Higashi-Osaka), and waste incineration (7% at Fukuoka, 14% at Higashi-Osaka) were observed. This study clearly shows that the effects from the local sources are also important at the urban sites in Japan, while the impact of transboundary pollution from the Asian Continent has attracted a lot of attention in recent years.

Predicting PM10 concentration in Seoul metropolitan subway stations using artificial neural network (ANN).

PubMed

Park, Sechan; Kim, Minjeong; Kim, Minhae; Namgung, Hyeong-Gyu; Kim, Ki-Tae; Cho, Kyung Hwa; Kwon, Soon-Bark

2018-01-05

The indoor air quality of subway systems can significantly affect the health of passengers since these systems are widely used for short-distance transit in metropolitan urban areas in many countries. The particles generated by abrasion during subway operations and the vehicle-emitted pollutants flowing in from the street in particular affect the air quality in underground subway stations. Thus the continuous monitoring of particulate matter (PM) in underground station is important to evaluate the exposure level of PM to passengers. However, it is difficult to obtain indoor PM data because the measurement systems are expensive and difficult to install and operate for significant periods of time in spaces crowded with people. In this study, we predicted the indoor PM concentration using the information of outdoor PM, the number of subway trains running, and information on ventilation operation by the artificial neural network (ANN) model. As well, we investigated the relationship between ANN's performance and the depth of underground subway station. ANN model showed a high correlation between the predicted and actual measured values and it was able to predict 67∼80% of PM at 6 subway station. In addition, we found that platform shape and depth influenced the model performance. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Nitrogen oxides and ozone in Portugal: trends and ozone estimation in an urban and a rural site.

PubMed

Fernández-Guisuraga, José Manuel; Castro, Amaya; Alves, Célia; Calvo, Ana; Alonso-Blanco, Elisabeth; Blanco-Alegre, Carlos; Rocha, Alfredo; Fraile, Roberto

2016-09-01

This study provides an analysis of the spatial distribution and trends of NO, NO2 and O3 concentrations in Portugal between 1995 and 2010. Furthermore, an estimation model for daily ozone concentrations was developed for an urban and a rural site. NO concentration showed a significant decreasing trend in most urban stations. A decreasing trend in NO2 is only observed in the stations with less influence from emissions of primary NO2. Several stations showed a significant upward trend in O3 as a result of the decrease in the NO/NO2 ratio. In the northern rural region, ozone showed a strong correlation with wind direction, highlighting the importance of long-range transport. In the urban site, most of the variance is explained by the NO2/NOX ratio. The results obtained by the ozone estimation model in the urban site fit 2013 observed data. In the rural site, the estimated ozone during extreme events agrees with observed concentration.

Leisure, economy and colonial urbanism: Darjeeling, 1835–1930

PubMed Central

BHATTACHARYA, NANDINI

2013-01-01

This article posits that the hill station of Darjeeling was a unique form of colonial urbanism. It shifts historiographical interest from major urban centres in colonial India (such as Bombay or Calcutta) and instead attempts a greater understanding of smaller urban centres. In the process, it also interrogates the category of hill stations, which have been understood as exotic and scenic sites rather than as towns that were integral to the colonial economy. In arguing that hill stations, particularly Darjeeling, were not merely the scenic and healthy ‘other’ of the clamorous, dirty and diseased plains of India, it refutes suggestions that the ‘despoiling’ or overcrowding of Darjeeling was incremental to the purposes of its establishment. Instead, it suggests that Darjeeling was part of the colonial mainstream; its urbanization and inclusion into the greater colonial economy was effected from the time of its establishment. Therefore, a constant tension between its exotic and its functional elements persisted throughout. PMID:24273391

Relationship between Surface Urban Heat Island intensity and sensible heat flux retrieved from meteorological parameters observed by road weather stations in urban area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gawuć, Lech

2017-04-01

Urban Heat Island (UHI) is a direct consequence of altered energy balance in urban areas (Oke 1982). There has been a significant effort put into an understanding of air temperature variability in urban areas and underlying mechanisms (Arnfield 2003, Grimmond 2006, Stewart 2011, Barlow 2014). However, studies that are concerned on surface temperature are less frequent. Therefore, Voogt & Oke (2003) proposed term "Surface Urban Heat Island (SUHI)", which is analogical to UHI and it is defined as a difference in land surface temperature (LST) between urban and rural areas. SUHI is a phenomenon that is not only concerned with high spatial variability, but also with high temporal variability (Weng and Fu 2014). In spite of the fact that satellite remote sensing techniques give a full spatial pattern over a vast area, such measurements are strictly limited to cloudless conditions during a satellite overpass (Sobrino et al., 2012). This significantly reduces the availability and applicability of satellite LST observations, especially over areas and seasons with high cloudiness occurrence. Also, the surface temperature is influenced by synoptic conditions (e.g., wind and humidity) (Gawuc & Struzewska 2016). Hence, utilising single observations is not sufficient to obtain a full image of spatiotemporal variability of urban LST and SUHI intensity (Gawuc & Struzewska 2016). One of the possible solutions would be a utilisation of time-series of LST data, which could be useful to monitor the UHI growth of individual cities and thus, to reveal the impact of urbanisation on local climate (Tran et al., 2006). The relationship between UHI and synoptic conditions have been summarised by Arnfield (2003). However, similar analyses conducted for urban LST and SUHI are lacking. We will present analyses of the relationship between time series of remotely-sensed LST and SUHI intensity and in-situ meteorological observations collected by road weather stations network, namely: road surface kinetic temperature, wind speed, air temperature, soil temperature at a depth of 30 cm, road surface condition, relative humidity. Also, as there are wind speed and temperature observations at different heights available, we will calculate sensible heat flux in order to relate it to the intensity of SUHI.

Observational evidence of a long-term increase in precipitation due to urbanization effects and its implications for sustainable urban living.

PubMed

Wai, K M; Wang, X M; Lin, T H; Wong, M S; Zeng, S K; He, N; Ng, E; Lau, K; Wang, D H

2017-12-01

Although projected precipitation increases in East Asia due to future climate change have aroused concern, less attention has been paid by the scientific community and public to the potential long-term increase in precipitation due to rapid urbanization. A ten-year precipitation dataset was analysed for both a rapidly urbanized megacity and nearby suburban/rural stations in southern China. Rapid urbanization in the megacity was evident from satellite observations. A statistically significant, long-term, increasing trend of precipitation existed only at the megacity station (45.6mm per decade) and not at the other stations. The increase was attributed to thermal and dynamical modifications of the tropospheric boundary layer related to urbanization, which was confirmed by the results of our WRF-SLUCM simulations. The results also suggested that a long-term regional increase in precipitation, caused by greenhouse gas-induced climate change, for instance, was not evident within the study period. The urbanization-induced increase was found to be higher than the precipitation increase (18.3mm per decade) expected from future climate change. The direct climate impacts due to rapid urbanization is highlighted with strong implications for urban sustainable development and the planning of effective adaptation strategies for issues such as coastal defenses, mosquito-borne disease spread and heat stress mortality. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Do Transit-Oriented Developments (TODs) and Established Urban Neighborhoods Have Similar Walking Levels in Hong Kong?

PubMed

Lu, Yi; Gou, Zhonghua; Xiao, Yang; Sarkar, Chinmoy; Zacharias, John

2018-03-20

A sharp drop in physical activity and skyrocketing obesity rate has accompanied rapid urbanization in China. The urban planning concept of transit-oriented development (TOD) has been widely advocated in China to promote physical activity, especially walking. Indeed, many design features thought to promote walking-e.g., mixed land use, densification, and well-connected street network-often characterize both TODs and established urban neighborhoods. Thus, it is often assumed that TODs have similar physical activity benefits as established urban neighborhoods. To verify this assumption, this study compared walking behaviors in established urban neighborhoods and transit-oriented new towns in Hong Kong. To address the limitation of self-selection bias, we conducted a study using Hong Kong citywide public housing scheme, which assigns residents to different housing estates by flat availability and family size rather than personal preference. The results show new town residents walked less for transportation purpose than urban residents. New town residents far from the transit station (800-1200 m) walked less for recreational purpose than TOD residents close to a rail transit station (<400 m) or urban residents. The observed disparity in walking behaviors challenges the common assumption that TOD and established urban neighborhoods have similar impact on walking behavior. The results suggest the necessity for more nuanced planning strategies, taking local-level factors into account to promote walking of TOD residents who live far from transit stations.

Evaluation of concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and particulate matter (PM) in an urban area downwind of major petrochemical complexes, in Harris County, Texas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilkerson, Daryl F.

Highly Reactive Volatile Organic Compounds (HRVOCs), in particular, the toxic ozone precursors, ethylene, propylene, butenes (1-butene, cis-2-butene, trans-2-butene) and 1, 3 butadiene found in the Houston area are the most critical in the formation of ozone. Exposure to such chemical can cause adverse health effect on the local population of the area, ranging from respiratory distress, asthma, COPD to Cancer. Urban ambient air samples were collected and analyzed from eight monitoring stations (Sites), encompassing the Houston Ship Channel (HSC), in Harris County, Texas. The data was interpreted and analyzed for changes in the concentration of air pollutants, data was collected daily (24 hours) over a time period from September 2013 to August 2014. One 40-minute sample was collected each hour and analyzed by automated gas chromatograph (Auto-GCs) on-site. A total of 70 compounds are measured hourly at each site, in this research the following chemicals were analysis for their average, seasonal and monthly concentrations: ethane, ethylene, propane, propylene, isobutane, n-butane, 1-butene, c-2-butene, t-2-butene and 1,3-butadiene. In this study, seasonal conditions in the area produced ranges from low to high concentrations of these compounds at certain locations. Two Stations had extremely high yearly average concentrations of butane and its isomers (c-2-butene, t-2-butene) and three stations, 1-butene and isobutene concentrations exceeded normal safety limits along with 1,3-butadiene. One station, in particular, close to the HSC had the highest yearly average propylene concentration. Local meteorology also promotes risk issues to the local health of persons within the area/community of interest. This research concluded that the analyzed results of ambient air samples in the urban areas surrounding the Houston Ship Channel (HSC) in Harris County, Texas posed a dual threat. The production of ozone in the daylight hours and depletion of ozone at night, as well as the continuous presence of these precursors in the atmosphere, are both harmful to mankind and toxic to the environment.

LaSVM-based big data learning system for dynamic prediction of air pollution in Tehran.

PubMed

Ghaemi, Z; Alimohammadi, A; Farnaghi, M

2018-04-20

Due to critical impacts of air pollution, prediction and monitoring of air quality in urban areas are important tasks. However, because of the dynamic nature and high spatio-temporal variability, prediction of the air pollutant concentrations is a complex spatio-temporal problem. Distribution of pollutant concentration is influenced by various factors such as the historical pollution data and weather conditions. Conventional methods such as the support vector machine (SVM) or artificial neural networks (ANN) show some deficiencies when huge amount of streaming data have to be analyzed for urban air pollution prediction. In order to overcome the limitations of the conventional methods and improve the performance of urban air pollution prediction in Tehran, a spatio-temporal system is designed using a LaSVM-based online algorithm. Pollutant concentration and meteorological data along with geographical parameters are continually fed to the developed online forecasting system. Performance of the system is evaluated by comparing the prediction results of the Air Quality Index (AQI) with those of a traditional SVM algorithm. Results show an outstanding increase of speed by the online algorithm while preserving the accuracy of the SVM classifier. Comparison of the hourly predictions for next coming 24 h, with those of the measured pollution data in Tehran pollution monitoring stations shows an overall accuracy of 0.71, root mean square error of 0.54 and coefficient of determination of 0.81. These results are indicators of the practical usefulness of the online algorithm for real-time spatial and temporal prediction of the urban air quality.

Development of Sub-Daily Intensity Duration Frequency (IDF) Curves for Major Urban Areas in India

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ali, H.; Mishra, V.

2014-12-01

Extreme precipitation events disrupt urban transportation and cause enormous damage to infrastructure. Urban areas are fast responding catchments due to significant impervious surface. Stormwater designs based on daily rainfall data provide inadequate information. We, therefore, develop intensity-duration-frequency curves using sub-daily (1 hour to 12 hour) rainfall data for 57 major urban areas in India. While rain gage stations data from urban areas are most suitable, but stations are unevenly distributed and their data have gaps and inconsistencies. Therefore, we used hourly rainfall data from the Modern Era Retrospective-analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA), which provides a long term data (1979 onwards). Since reanalysis products have uncertainty associated with them we need to enhance their accuracy before their application. We compared daily rain gage station data obtained from Global Surface Summary of Day Data (GSOD) available for 65 stations for the period of 2000-2010 with gridded daily rainfall data provided by Indian Meteorological Department (IMD). 3-hourly data from NOAA/Climate Prediction Center morphing technique (CMORPH), Precipitation Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information using Artificial Neural Networks (PERSIANN), and the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Multisatellite Precipitation Analysis (TMPA) were aggregated to daily for comparison with GSOD station data . TMPA is found to be best correlated with GSOD data. We used TMPA data to correct MERRA's hourly precipitation, which were applied to develop IDF curves. We compared results with IDF curves from empirical methods and found substantial disparities in the existing stormwater designs in India.

Optimization of municipal pressure pumping station layout and sewage pipe network design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tian, Jiandong; Cheng, Jilin; Gong, Yi

2018-03-01

Accelerated urbanization places extraordinary demands on sewer networks; thus optimization research to improve the design of these systems has practical significance. In this article, a subsystem nonlinear programming model is developed to optimize pumping station layout and sewage pipe network design. The subsystem model is expanded into a large-scale complex nonlinear programming system model to find the minimum total annual cost of the pumping station and network of all pipe segments. A comparative analysis is conducted using the sewage network in Taizhou City, China, as an example. The proposed method demonstrated that significant cost savings could have been realized if the studied system had been optimized using the techniques described in this article. Therefore, the method has practical value for optimizing urban sewage projects and provides a reference for theoretical research on optimization of urban drainage pumping station layouts.

Analysis of Nitrogen Loads From Long Island Sound Watersheds, 1988-98

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mullaney, J. R.; Trench, E. C.

2001-05-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recently estimated annual nonpoint-source nitrogen loads from watersheds that drain to Long Island Sound. The study, was conducted in cooperation with the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, to assist these agencies with the issue of low concentrations of dissolved oxygen in Long Island Sound caused by nitrogen enrichment. A regression model was used to determine annual nitrogen loads at 27 streams monitored by the USGS during 1988-98. Estimates of nitrogen loads from municipal wastewater-treatment plants (where applicable) were subtracted from the total nitrogen loads to determine the nonpoint-source nitrogen load for each water-quality monitoring station. The nonpoint-source load information was applied to unmonitored areas by comparing the land-use and land-cover characteristics of monitored areas with unmonitored areas, and selecting basins that were most similar. In extrapolating load estimates to unmonitored areas, regional differences in mean annual runoff between monitored and unmonitored areas also were considered, using flow information from nearby USGS gaging stations. Estimates of nonpoint nitrogen loads from monitored areas with point sources of nitrogen discharge and estimates from unmonitored areas are subject to uncertainty. These estimates could be improved with additional data collection in coastal basins and in basins with a large percentage of urbanized land, measurements of instream transformation or losses of nitrogen, improved reporting of total nitrogen concentrations from municipal wastewater treatment facilities, and tracking of intrabasin and (or) interbasin diversion of water.

Measurement of atmospheric mercury species with manual sampling and analysis methods in a case study in Indiana

USGS Publications Warehouse

Risch, M.R.; Prestbo, E.M.; Hawkins, L.

2007-01-01

Ground-level concentrations of three atmospheric mercury species were measured using manual sampling and analysis to provide data for estimates of mercury dry deposition. Three monitoring stations were operated simultaneously during winter, spring, and summer 2004, adjacent to three mercury wet-deposition monitoring stations in northern, central, and southern Indiana. The monitoring locations differed in land-use setting and annual mercury-emissions level from nearby sources. A timer-controlled air-sampling system that contained a three-part sampling train was used to isolate reactive gaseous mercury, particulate-bound mercury, and elemental mercury. The sampling trains were exchanged every 6 days, and the mercury species were quantified in a laboratory. A quality-assurance study indicated the sampling trains could be held at least 120 h without a significant change in reactive gaseous or particulate-bound mercury concentrations. The manual sampling method was able to provide valid mercury concentrations in 90 to 95% of samples. Statistical differences in mercury concentrations were observed during the project. Concentrations of reactive gaseous and elemental mercury were higher in the daytime samples than in the nighttime samples. Concentrations of reactive gaseous mercury were higher in winter than in summer and were highest at the urban monitoring location. The results of this case study indicated manual sampling and analysis could be a reliable method for measurement of atmospheric mercury species and has the capability for supplying representative concentrations in an effective manner from a long-term deposition-monitoring network. ?? 2007 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

Variable Streamflow Contributions in Nested Subwatersheds of a US Midwestern Urban Watershed

DOE PAGES

Wei, Liang; Hubbart, Jason A.; Zhou, Hang

2017-09-09

Quantification of runoff is critical to estimate and control water pollution in urban regions, but variation in impervious area and land-use type can complicate the quantification of runoff. We quantified the streamflow contributions of subwatersheds and the historical changes in streamflow in a flood prone urbanizing watershed in US Midwest to guide the establishment of a future pollution-control plan. Streamflow data from five nested hydrological stations enabled accurate estimations of streamflow contribution from five subwatersheds with variable impervious areas (from 0.5% to 26.6%). We corrected the impact of Missouri river backwatering at the most downstream station by comparing its streamflowmore » with an upstream station using double-mass analysis combined with Bernaola-Galvan Heuristic Segmentation approach. We also compared the streamflow of the urbanizing watershed with seven surrounding rural watersheds to estimate the cumulative impact of urbanization on the streamflow regime. The two most urbanized subwatersheds contributed >365 mm streamflow in 2012 with 657 mm precipitation, which was more than fourfold greater than the two least urbanized subwatersheds. Runoff occurred almost exclusively over the most urbanized subwatersheds during the dry period. The frequent floods occurred and the same amount of precipitation produced ~100 mm more streamflow in 2008–2014 than 1967–1980 in the urbanizing watershed; such phenomena did not occur in surrounding rural watersheds. Our approaches provide comprehensive information for planning on runoff control and pollutant reduction in urban watersheds.« less

Variable Streamflow Contributions in Nested Subwatersheds of a US Midwestern Urban Watershed

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wei, Liang; Hubbart, Jason A.; Zhou, Hang

Quantification of runoff is critical to estimate and control water pollution in urban regions, but variation in impervious area and land-use type can complicate the quantification of runoff. We quantified the streamflow contributions of subwatersheds and the historical changes in streamflow in a flood prone urbanizing watershed in US Midwest to guide the establishment of a future pollution-control plan. Streamflow data from five nested hydrological stations enabled accurate estimations of streamflow contribution from five subwatersheds with variable impervious areas (from 0.5% to 26.6%). We corrected the impact of Missouri river backwatering at the most downstream station by comparing its streamflowmore » with an upstream station using double-mass analysis combined with Bernaola-Galvan Heuristic Segmentation approach. We also compared the streamflow of the urbanizing watershed with seven surrounding rural watersheds to estimate the cumulative impact of urbanization on the streamflow regime. The two most urbanized subwatersheds contributed >365 mm streamflow in 2012 with 657 mm precipitation, which was more than fourfold greater than the two least urbanized subwatersheds. Runoff occurred almost exclusively over the most urbanized subwatersheds during the dry period. The frequent floods occurred and the same amount of precipitation produced ~100 mm more streamflow in 2008–2014 than 1967–1980 in the urbanizing watershed; such phenomena did not occur in surrounding rural watersheds. Our approaches provide comprehensive information for planning on runoff control and pollutant reduction in urban watersheds.« less

Urban cyclist exposure to fine particle pollution in a rapidly growing city

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luce, B. W.; Barrett, T. E.; Ponette-González, A.

2017-12-01

Urban cyclists are exposed to elevated atmospheric concentrations of fine particulate matter (particles <2.5 µm or PM2.5). Major urban sources of PM2.5 include the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels from vehicle exhaust, which is emitted directly into cyclists' "breathing zone." In cities, human exposure to PM2.5 is a concern because its small size allows it to be inhaled deeper into the lungs than most particles. The aim of this research is to determine "hotspots" (locations with high PM2.5 concentrations) within the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, Texas, where urban cyclists are most exposed to fine particle pollution. Recent research indicates that common exposure hotspots include traffic signals, junctions, bus stations, parking lots, and inclined streets. To identify these and other hotspots, a bicycle equipped with a low-cost, portable, battery-powered particle counter (Dylos 1700) coupled with a Trimble Geo 5T handheld Global Positioning System (GPS; ≤1 m ± resolution) will be used to map and measure particle mass concentrations along predetermined routes. Measurements will be conducted during a consecutive four-month period (Sep-Dec) during morning and evening rush hours when PM2.5 levels are generally highest, as well as during non-rush hour times to determine background concentrations. PM2.5 concentrations will be calculated from particle counts using an equation developed by Steinle et al. (2015). In addition, traffic counts will be conducted along the routes coinciding with the mobile monitoring times. We will present results on identified "hotspots" of high fine particle concentrations and PM2.5 exposure in the City of Denton, where particle pollution puts urban commuters most at risk, as well as average traffic counts from monitoring times. These data can be used to determine pollution mitigation strategies in rapidly growing urban areas.

Assessment of the impacts of vehicular pollution on urban air quality.

PubMed

Ghose, Mrinal K; Paul, R; Banerjee, S K

2004-01-01

Air quality crisis in cities is mainly due to vehicular emissions. Owing to the expanding economic base Indian cities are growing at a faster rate. Transportation systems are increasing everywhere and the improved technology is insufficient to counteract growth. The effect of vehicular emission on urban air quality and human health has been described. A survey has been conducted in an Indian mega city to evaluate the status of air pollution at traffic intersections and the unique problem arising out of vehicular emissions in the study area has been narrated. Approach for the selection of the air monitoring stations, methodology adopted for data collection and the results have been discussed. Vulnerability analysis (VA) has been carried out to identify the zones at what pollution stress. Options for reducing mobile source emission have been discussed and a strategic air quality management plan has been proposed to mitigate the air pollution in the city.

Outdoor near-roadway, community and residential pollen, carbon dioxide and particulate matter measurements in the urban core of an agricultural region in central CA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shendell, Derek G.; Therkorn, Jennifer H.; Yamamoto, Naomichi; Meng, Qingyu; Kelly, Sarah W.; Foster, Christine A.

2012-04-01

We can control asthma through proper clinical and environmental management and education. The U.S. population is growing, urbanizing and aging; seniors of low-to-middle income families are working and living longer. We conducted community-based participatory research in Visalia, Tulare County, California with a prospective, cross-sectional repeated measures design and quantitative and qualitative process; home environment and health-related outcomes data were collected. In this paper, we presented results of the air quality sampling-pollen, carbon dioxide (CO2) and particulate matter (PM) outdoors away from most major sources (agricultural fields, large pollinating trees, etc)-at a community central site close to a mobile line source and participant homes in the cooling season, July, 2009. Weather was hot and dry with light winds; diurnal variation ranged between 65-107 °F (18-42 °C) and 12-76% relative humidity at the study's central site. Co-located active (reference) and passive (PAAS) samplers were used for pollen; passive monitoring for CO2 (Telaire 7001) and active sampling for PM were conducted. Overall, we observed spatial variability in CO2, fine PM (PM2.5), and pollen counts. Weekday and study week average CO2 and PM2.5 concentrations were higher near study homes compared to central site sampling points, but peak measures and overnight/pre-dawn time period averages were elevated at the central site. Pollen counts were typically lower at homes-even if grass, trees, flowers or potted plants were present-compared to the central site closer to and generally downwind from commercial agricultural tree production. Data are new; the nine-county San Joaquin Valley has one pollen count station in the national network, and two of four government outdoor air monitoring stations in the county are in national parks. We suggest-given poor air quality in large part due to PM-adding routine pollen counts to regional/state agency air monitoring sites and more CO2 and PM monitoring.

Urban Noise Recorded by Stationary Monitoring Stations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bąkowski, Andrzej; Radziszewski, Leszek; Dekýš, Vladimir

2017-10-01

The paper presents the analysis results of equivalent sound level recorded by two road traffic noise monitoring stations. The stations were located in Kielce (an example of a medium-size town in Poland) at the roads in the town in the direction of Łódź and Lublin. The measurements were carried out through stationary stations monitoring the noise and traffic of motor vehicles. The RMS values based on A-weighted sound level were recorded every 1 s in the buffer and the results were registered every 1 min over the period of investigations. The registered data were the basis for calculating the equivalent sound level for three time intervals: from 6:00 to 18:00, from 18:00 to 22:00 and from 22:00 to 6:00. Analysis included the values of the equivalent sound level recorded for different days of the week split into 24h periods, nights, days and evenings. The data analysed included recordings from 2013. The agreement of the distribution of the variable under analysis with normal distribution was evaluated. It was demonstrated that in most cases (for both roads) there was sufficient evidence to reject the null hypothesis at the significance level of 0.05. It was noted that compared with Łódź Road, in the case of Lublin Road data, more cases were recorded for which the null hypothesis could not be rejected. Uncertainties of the equivalent sound level measurements were compared within the periods under analysis. The standard deviation, coefficient of variation, the positional coefficient of variation, the quartile deviation was proposed for performing a comparative analysis of the obtained data scattering. The investigations indicated that the recorded data varied depending on the traffic routes and time intervals. The differences concerned the values of uncertainties and coefficients of variation of the equivalent sound levels.

An explosion of a CNG fuel vessel in an urban bus.

PubMed

Park, Chan-Seong; Jeon, Seung-Won; Moon, Jung-Eun; Lee, Kyu-Jung

2010-03-01

An investigation is presented of the explosion of a CNG (compressed natural gas) fuel vessel, called a liner, in an urban bus. The explosion happened at a gas station 10 min after filling was completed. There were no traces of soot and flames at the failed liner, which would be indicative of explosion by ignition of the gas. The filling process of the station was automatically monitored and recorded in a computer. There was no unusual record of the filling system that indicated excess pressure at the time of the accident. There were cracks on the liner that were initiated at the outer surface of the cylindrical shell located at a point 4 cm above the lower dome where cracks did not originate easily as a result of overload. Chemical analysis was performed on a specimen that was cut from the liner, and there was no peculiarity in the mix. Mechanical analysis was performed on the specimens and showed that the hardness was not in the specified range because of inadequate heat treatment of the metal. The hardness of the liner was strictly controlled in the manufacturing process. All the liners that were manufactured at the same period with the failed liner were recalled for examination.

Trend analysis of long-term temperature time series in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mohsin, Tanzina; Gough, William A.

2010-08-01

As the majority of the world’s population is living in urban environments, there is growing interest in studying local urban climates. In this paper, for the first time, the long-term trends (31-162 years) of temperature change have been analyzed for the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Annual and seasonal time series for a number of urban, suburban, and rural weather stations are considered. Non-parametric statistical techniques such as Mann-Kendall test and Theil-Sen slope estimation are used primarily for the assessing of the significance and detection of trends, and the sequential Mann test is used to detect any abrupt climate change. Statistically significant trends for annual mean and minimum temperatures are detected for almost all stations in the GTA. Winter is found to be the most coherent season contributing substantially to the increase in annual minimum temperature. The analyses of the abrupt changes in temperature suggest that the beginning of the increasing trend in Toronto started after the 1920s and then continued to increase to the 1960s. For all stations, there is a significant increase of annual and seasonal (particularly winter) temperatures after the 1980s. In terms of the linkage between urbanization and spatiotemporal thermal patterns, significant linear trends in annual mean and minimum temperature are detected for the period of 1878-1978 for the urban station, Toronto, while for the rural counterparts, the trends are not significant. Also, for all stations in the GTA that are situated in all directions except south of Toronto, substantial temperature change is detected for the periods of 1970-2000 and 1989-2000. It is concluded that the urbanization in the GTA has significantly contributed to the increase of the annual mean temperatures during the past three decades. In addition to urbanization, the influence of local climate, topography, and larger scale warming are incorporated in the analysis of the trends.

Remote sensing of GHG over Paris megacity and Orléans forest using ground-based QualAir FTS and TCCON-Orléans

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Te, Y.; Jeseck, P.; Da Costa, J.; Deutscher, N. M.; Warneke, T.; Notholt, J.

2012-04-01

In a growing world with more than 7 billion inhabitants and big emerging countries such as China, Brazil and India, emissions of anthropogenic pollutants are increasing continuously. Monitoring and control of atmospheric pollutants in megacities have become a major challenge for scientists and public health authorities in environmental research area. The QualAir platform at University Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC), is an innovating experimental research platform dedicated to survey greenhouse gases (GHGs) and urban air quality. As one of the major instruments of the QualAir platform, the ground-based Fourier transform spectrometer (QualAir FTS, IFS 125HR model) analyses the composition of the urban atmosphere of Paris, which is the third European megacity. The continuous monitoring of atmospheric pollutants is essential to improve the understanding of urban air pollution processes. Associated with a sun-tracker, the QualAir remote sensing FTS operates in solar infrared absorption and enables to monitor many trace gases, and to follow up their variability in the Ile-de-France region. A description of the QualAir FTS will be given. Concentrations of atmospheric GHG, especially CO2 and CH4, are retrieved by the radiative transfer model PROFFIT. Located in the centre of Paris, the QualAir FTS can provide new and complementary urban measurements as compared to unpolluted ground-based stations of existing networks (NDACC and TCCON). The work made by LPMAA to join the TCCON network will also be presented. TCCON-Orléans is a ground-based FTS of the TCCON network located in the forest of Orléans (100 km south of Paris). Preliminary comparisons of GHGs measurements from both sites will be shown. Such ground-based information will help to better characterize regional GHGs, especially regarding anthropogenic emissions and trends.

Use of biomarkers in resident organisms as a tool for environmental monitoring in a cold coastal system, Tierra del Fuego Island.

PubMed

Comoglio, L; Amin, O; Botté, S; Marcovecchio, J

2011-03-01

Antioxidant status of Nacella (P) magellanica and Mytilus edulis related with heavy metal in sediment and tissues were analysed in five stations close to Ushuaia city in winter and spring. The principal component analysis produced a two-dimensional pattern of the degree of similarity between sites. The Industrial-Urban Contamination Index (IUCI) showed that the Industrial Zone (IZ) and Oil Marine Station (OMS) represent areas with anthropic inputs. Heavy metals have differential association with biomarkers depending on the species. In limpets, digestive gland presented major activities of enzyme defence in winter and gonads have shown higher values of Catalase (CAT) during spring while lipid peroxidation (LPO) presented higher values in IZ. For mussels CAT and LPO increased in spring time. For superoxide dismutase (SOD) peaks have been detected in IZ and NW stations for winter. Differences in biomarker responses due to seasons did not influence the grouping of the sites into references and contaminated groups. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

On the assessment of exposure to airborne ultrafine particles in urban environments.

PubMed

Gomes, João Fernando Pereira; Bordado, João Carlos Moura; Albuquerque, Paula Cristina Silva

2012-01-01

The aim of this study was to contribute to the assessment of exposure levels of ultrafine particles in the urban environment of Lisbon, Portugal, due to automobile traffic, by monitoring lung deposited alveolar surface area (resulting from exposure to ultrafine particles) in a major avenue leading to the town center during late spring, as well as in indoor buildings facing it. Data revealed differentiated patterns for week days and weekends, consistent with PM(2.5) and PM₁₀ patterns currently monitored by air quality stations in Lisbon. The observed ultrafine particulate levels may be directly correlated with fluxes in automobile traffic. During a typical week, amounts of ultrafine particles per alveolar deposited surface area varied between 35 and 89.2 μm²/cm³, which are comparable with levels reported for other towns in Germany and the United States. The measured values allowed for determination of the number of ultrafine particles per cubic centimeter, which are comparable to levels reported for Madrid and Brisbane. In what concerns outdoor/indoor levels, we observed higher levels (32 to 63%) outdoors, which is somewhat lower than levels observed in houses in Ontario.

Comparing the diurnal and seasonal variabilities of atmospheric and surface urban heat islandsbased on the Beijing urban meteorological network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jiang, S.; Wang, K.; Wang, J.; Zhou, C.; Wang, X.; Lee, X.

2017-12-01

This study compared the diurnal and seasonal cycles of atmospheric and surface urban heat islands (UHIs) based on hourly air temperatures (Ta) collected at 65 out of 262 stations in Beijing and land surface temperature (Ts) derived from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer in the years 2013-2014. We found that the nighttime atmospheric and surface UHIs referenced to rural cropland stations exhibited significant seasonal cycles, with the highest in winter. However, the seasonal variations in the nighttime UHIs referenced to mountainous forest stations were negligible, because mountainous forests have a higher nighttime Ts in winter and a lower nighttime T a in summer than rural croplands. Daytime surface UHIs showed strong seasonal cycles, with the highest in summer. The daytime atmospheric UHIs exhibited a similar but less seasonal cycle under clear-sky conditions, which was not apparent under cloudy-sky conditions. Atmospheric UHIs in urban parks were higher in daytime. Nighttime atmospheric UHIs are influenced by energy stored in urban materials during daytime and released during nighttime. The stronger anthropogenic heat release in winter causes atmospheric UHIs to increase with time during winter nights, but decrease with time during summer nights. The percentage of impervious surfaces is responsible for 49%-54% of the nighttime atmospheric UHI variability and 31%-38% of the daytime surface UHI variability. However, the nighttime surface UHI was nearly uncorrelated with the percentage of impervious surfaces around the urban stations.

Network Optimization for Induced Seismicity Monitoring in Urban Areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kraft, T.; Husen, S.; Wiemer, S.

2012-12-01

With the global challenge to satisfy an increasing demand for energy, geological energy technologies receive growing attention and have been initiated in or close to urban areas in the past several years. Some of these technologies involve injecting fluids into the subsurface (e.g., oil and gas development, waste disposal, and geothermal energy development) and have been found or suspected to cause small to moderate sized earthquakes. These earthquakes, which may have gone unnoticed in the past when they occurred in remote sparsely populated areas, are now posing a considerable risk for the public acceptance of these technologies in urban areas. The permanent termination of the EGS project in Basel, Switzerland after a number of induced ML~3 (minor) earthquakes in 2006 is one prominent example. It is therefore essential to the future development and success of these geological energy technologies to develop strategies for managing induced seismicity and keeping the size of induced earthquake at a level that is acceptable to all stakeholders. Most guidelines and recommendations on induced seismicity published since the 1970ies conclude that an indispensable component of such a strategy is the establishment of seismic monitoring in an early stage of a project. This is because an appropriate seismic monitoring is the only way to detect and locate induced microearthquakes with sufficient certainty to develop an understanding of the seismic and geomechanical response of the reservoir to the geotechnical operation. In addition, seismic monitoring lays the foundation for the establishment of advanced traffic light systems and is therefore an important confidence building measure towards the local population and authorities. We have developed an optimization algorithm for seismic monitoring networks in urban areas that allows to design and evaluate seismic network geometries for arbitrary geotechnical operation layouts. The algorithm is based on the D-optimal experimental design that aims to minimize the error ellipsoid of the linearized location problem. Optimization for additional criteria (e.g., focal mechanism determination or installation costs) can be included. We consider a 3D seismic velocity model, an European ambient seismic noise model derived from high-resolution land-use data and existing seismic stations in the vicinity of the geotechnical site. Using this algorithm we are able to find the optimal geometry and size of the seismic monitoring network that meets the predefined application-oriented performance criteria. In this talk we will focus on optimal network geometries for deep geothermal projects of the EGS and hydrothermal type. We will discuss the requirements for basic seismic surveillance and high-resolution reservoir monitoring and characterization.

Temperature trends and Urban Heat Island intensity mapping of the Las Vegas valley area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Black, Adam Leland

Modified urban climate regions that are warmer than rural areas at night are referred to as Urban Heat Islands or UHI. Islands of warmer air over a city can be 12 degrees Celsius greater than the surrounding cooler air. The exponential growth in Las Vegas for the last two decades provides an opportunity to detect gradual temperature changes influenced by an increasing presence of urban materials. This thesis compares ground based thermometric observations and satellite based remote sensing temperature observations to identify temperature trends and UHI areas caused by urban development. Analysis of temperature trends between 2000 and 2010 at ground weather stations has revealed a general cooling trend in the Las Vegas region. Results show that urban development accompanied by increased vegetation has a cooling effect in arid climates. Analysis of long term temperature trends at McCarran and Nellis weather stations show 2.4 K and 1.2 K rise in temperature over the last 60 years. The ground weather station temperature data is related to the land surface temperature images from the Landsat Thematic Mapper to estimate and evaluate urban heat island intensity for Las Vegas. Results show that spatial and temporal trends of temperature are related to the gradual change in urban landcover. UHI are mainly observed at the airport and in the industrial areas. This research provides useful insight into the temporal behavior of the Las Vegas area.

Identifying common practices and challenges for local urban tree monitoring programs across the United States

Treesearch

Lara A. Roman; E. Gregory McPherson; Bryant C. Scharenbroch; Julia Bartens

2013-01-01

Urban forest monitoring data are essential to assess the impacts of tree planting campaigns and management programs. Local practitioners have monitoring projects that have not been well documented in the urban forestry literature. To learn more about practitioner-driven monitoring efforts, the authors surveyed 32 local urban forestry organizations across the United...

Spatial and Temporal Patterns of Suspended Sediment Yields in Nested Urban Catchments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kemper, J. T.; Miller, A. J.; Welty, C.

2017-12-01

In a highly regulated area such as the Chesapeake Bay watershed, suspended sediment is a matter of primary concern. Near real-time turbidity and discharge data have been collected continuously for more than four years at five stream gages representing three nested watershed scales (1-2 sq km, 5-6 sq km, 14 sq km) in the highly impervious Dead Run watershed, located in Baltimore County, MD. Using turbidity-concentration relationships based on sample analyses at the gage site, sediment yields for each station can be quantified for a variety of temporal scales. Sediment yields have been calculated for 60+ different storms across four years. Yields show significant spatial variation, both at equivalent sub-watershed scales and from headwaters to mouth. Yields are higher at the headwater station with older development and virtually no stormwater management (DR5) than at the station with more recent development and more extensive stormwater management (DR2). However, this pattern is reversed for the stations at the next larger scale: yields are lower at DR4, downstream of DR5, than at DR3, downstream of DR2. This suggests spatial variation in the dominant sediment sources within each subwatershed. Additionally, C-Q hysteresis curves display consistent counterclockwise behavior at the DR4 station, in contrast to the consistent clockwise behavior displayed at the DR3 station. This further suggests variation in dominant sediment sources (perhaps distal vs local, respectively). We observe consistent seasonal trends in the relative magnitudes of sediment yield for different subwatersheds (e.g. DR3>DR4 in summer, DR5>DR2 in spring). We also observe significant year-to-year variation in sediment yield at the headwater and intermediate scales, whereas yields at the 14 sq km scale are largely similar across the monitored years. This observation would be consistent with the possibility that internal storage and remobilization tend to modulate downstream yields even with spatial and temporal variation in upstream sources. The fine-scale design of this study represents a unique opportunity to compare and contrast sediment yields across a variety of spatial and temporal scales, and provide insight into sediment transport dynamics within an urbanized watershed.

Do Transit-Oriented Developments (TODs) and Established Urban Neighborhoods Have Similar Walking Levels in Hong Kong?

PubMed Central

Xiao, Yang; Sarkar, Chinmoy; Zacharias, John

2018-01-01

A sharp drop in physical activity and skyrocketing obesity rate has accompanied rapid urbanization in China. The urban planning concept of transit-oriented development (TOD) has been widely advocated in China to promote physical activity, especially walking. Indeed, many design features thought to promote walking—e.g., mixed land use, densification, and well-connected street network—often characterize both TODs and established urban neighborhoods. Thus, it is often assumed that TODs have similar physical activity benefits as established urban neighborhoods. To verify this assumption, this study compared walking behaviors in established urban neighborhoods and transit-oriented new towns in Hong Kong. To address the limitation of self-selection bias, we conducted a study using Hong Kong citywide public housing scheme, which assigns residents to different housing estates by flat availability and family size rather than personal preference. The results show new town residents walked less for transportation purpose than urban residents. New town residents far from the transit station (800–1200 m) walked less for recreational purpose than TOD residents close to a rail transit station (<400 m) or urban residents. The observed disparity in walking behaviors challenges the common assumption that TOD and established urban neighborhoods have similar impact on walking behavior. The results suggest the necessity for more nuanced planning strategies, taking local-level factors into account to promote walking of TOD residents who live far from transit stations. PMID:29558379

Assessment of long-term measurements of particulate matter and gaseous pollutants in South-East Mediterranean

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mouzourides, Petros; Kumar, Prashant; Neophytou, Marina K.-A.

2015-04-01

This work examines long-term measurements of major criteria pollutants concentrations in an urban station in South-Eastern Mediterranean, in Nicosia - Cyprus, which is susceptible both to transboundary air pollution transport from Sahara-dust events as well as to evaporative transport of sea-sprays. The work investigates in particular the role of such multi-scale contributions in the urban air quality measurements, which are important considerations in the assessment of the effectiveness of any mitigation policies implemented by regulatory authorities. Attention is drawn in the regional-scale component of the particulate matter concentrations (PM10; ≤10 μm in diameter) and its contribution in the local measurements. Hourly averaged data of CO, NOx and PM10 concentrations as well as of meteorological parameters were collected from the Air Quality Monitoring Station (AQMS) of the University of Cyprus over a period of more than 5 years (2008-13) and were analysed. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) was used to identify chemical characteristics of PM10 and to attribute it to possible sources. A total of 321 days over the entire period were found to exceed the daily limit value of 50 μg/m3 for PM10 concentrations which corresponds to ∼19% of the actual monitored time. Numerical simulations using the Dust REgional Atmospheric Model from Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC/DREAM) gave a strong indication that PM10 exceedances were associated with the high regional background dust concentrations during westerly winds. It was also found that despite the implementation of tighter regulations for vehicular and industrial emissions in Europe, the monthly average concentration values of criteria pollutants do not exhibit any falling trend.

Intervention assessments in the control of PM10 emissions from an urban waste transfer station.

PubMed

Barratt, B M; Fuller, G W

2014-05-01

While vehicle emissions present the most widespread cause of breaches of EU air quality standards in urban areas of the UK, the greatest PM10 concentrations are often recorded close to small industrial sites with significant and long-term public exposure within close proximity. This is particularly the case in London, where monitoring in densely populated locations, adjacent to waste transfer stations (WTS), routinely report the highest PM10 concentrations in the city. This study aims to assess the impact of dust abatement measures taken at a WTS in west London and, in so doing, develop analysis techniques transferrable to other similar industrial situations. The study was performed in a 'blinded fashion', i.e., no details of operating times, activities or remediation measures were provided prior to the analysis. The study established that PM10 concentrations were strongly related to the industrial area's working hours and atmospheric humidity. The primary source of local particulate matter during working hours was found to be from the industrial area itself, not from the adjacent road serving the site. CUSUM analysis revealed a strong, sustained change point coinciding with a number of modifications at the WTS. Analysis suggested that introducing a vehicle washer bay, leading to a less dry and dusty yard, and ceasing stock piling and waste handling activities outside of the open shed had the greatest effect on PM10 concentrations. The techniques developed in this study should empower licensing authorities to more effectively characterise and mitigate particulate matter generated by urban industrial activities, thereby improving the health and quality of life of the local population.

Assessing measurement uncertainty in meteorology in urban environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Curci, S.; Lavecchia, C.; Frustaci, G.; Paolini, R.; Pilati, S.; Paganelli, C.

2017-10-01

Measurement uncertainty in meteorology has been addressed in a number of recent projects. In urban environments, uncertainty is also affected by local effects which are more difficult to deal with than for synoptic stations. In Italy, beginning in 2010, an urban meteorological network (Climate Network®) was designed, set up and managed at national level according to high metrological standards and homogeneity criteria to support energy applications. The availability of such a high-quality operative automatic weather station network represents an opportunity to investigate the effects of station siting and sensor exposure and to estimate the related measurement uncertainty. An extended metadata set was established for the stations in Milan, including siting and exposure details. Statistical analysis on an almost 3-year-long operational period assessed network homogeneity, quality and reliability. Deviations from reference mean values were then evaluated in selected low-gradient local weather situations in order to investigate siting and exposure effects. In this paper the methodology is depicted and preliminary results of its application to air temperature discussed; this allowed the setting of an upper limit of 1 °C for the added measurement uncertainty at the top of the urban canopy layer.

Exploring the roles of temperature and NOx on ozone production in the Sacramento urban plume

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lafranchi, B. W.; Cohen, R. C.

2009-12-01

We investigate the role of temperature and NOx (NOx = NO+NO2) on ozone (O3) production in the Sacramento urban plume over a stretch of seven years (2001-2007) using data collected at UC Blodgett Forest Research Station (a forested site in the Sierra Nevadas about 80 km downwind of Sacramento, CA) and at a series of California Air Resources Board (CARB) sites along the Sacramento-Blodgett transect. The consistent daytime wind patterns between the Central Valley of California and the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains permits the assumption of plume transport from downtown Sacramento, over the CARB monitoring sites in the eastern suburbs, and past the Blodgett Forest research site. While NOx emissions are limited primarily to the urban and suburban regions of the transect, biogenic volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions are significant throughout the transect, thus there is a fast transition from VOC-limited to NOx-limited as the plume travels away from the urban center, and we have the opportunity to analyze the differences in ozone production across these two chemical regimes. For this analysis, the Sacramento-Blodgett transect is separated into three segments: urban, suburban, and rural, defined by the locations of selected monitoring sites. Ozone concentrations across each segment are controlled by chemical production (Pchem) and loss (Lchem), deposition to surfaces (Ldep), and mixing with background air (Lmix). At an assumed deposition rate, mixing rate, and background O3 concentration, the net chemical flux of ozone (Pchem - Lchem) can be inferred from differences in ozone concentrations between adjacent monitoring sites. We show that ozone production rates, in general, increase with temperature. We also show that decreases in NOx emissions over the period from 2001-2007 have been effective at reducing ozone production at all points along the transect, but only on days where temperatures are highest. At low temperatures, this decrease is less apparent, and in the urban transect, ozone production is observed to increase as NOx concentrations decrease. This is attributed to the high NOx/VOC ratio that results from reduced biogenic emissions and strong local inputs of NOx, thus driving the chemical environment into a NOx-saturated regime. From these results, we give predictions of future ozone exceedences for various emissions and climate scenarios.

Use of portable exposure meters for comparing mobile phone base station radiation in different types of areas in the cities of Basel and Amsterdam.

PubMed

Urbinello, Damiano; Huss, Anke; Beekhuizen, Johan; Vermeulen, Roel; Röösli, Martin

2014-01-15

Radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) are highly variable and differ considerably within as well as between areas. Exposure assessment studies characterizing spatial and temporal variation are limited so far. Our objective was to evaluate sources of data variability and the repeatability of daily measurements using portable exposure meters (PEMs). Data were collected at 12 days between November 2010 and January 2011 with PEMs in four different types of urban areas in the cities of Basel (BSL) and Amsterdam (AMS). Exposure from mobile phone base stations ranged from 0.30 to 0.53 V/m in downtown and business areas and in residential areas from 0.09 to 0.41 V/m. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) demonstrated that measurements from various days were highly reproducible (measurement duration of approximately 30 min) with only 0.6% of the variance of all measurements from mobile phone base station radiation being explained by the measurement day and only 0.2% by the measurement time (morning, noon, afternoon), whereas type of area (30%) and city (50%) explained most of the data variability. We conclude that mobile monitoring of exposure from mobile phone base station radiation with PEMs is useful due to the high repeatability of mobile phone base station exposure levels, despite the high spatial variation. © 2013.

Lidar ceilometer observations and modeling of a fireworks plume in Vancouver, British Columbia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van der Kamp, Derek; McKendry, Ian; Wong, May; Stull, Roland

Observations of a plume emanating from a 30-min duration pyrotechnic display with a lidar ceilometer are described for an urban setting in complex, coastal terrain. Advection of the plume across the ceilometer occurred at a mean height of 250 m AGL. The plume traveled downwind at ˜3 m s -1, and at a distance of 8 km downwind, was ˜100 m in vertical thickness with particulate matter (PM) concentrations of order 30-40 μg m -3. Surface PM observations from surrounding urban monitoring stations suggest that the plume was not mixed to ground over the urban area. Plume trajectories at ˜250 m simulated by three numerical models all traveled to the northeast of the ceilometer location. Horizontal plume dispersion estimates suggest that the model trajectories were too far north to accommodate the likely lateral plume spread necessary to explain the ceilometer observations. This poor agreement between near surface observations and model output is consistent with previous mesoscale model validations in this region of complex urbanized terrain, and suggests that despite improvements in mesoscale model resolution, there remains an urgent need to improve upstream initial conditions over the Pacific Ocean, data assimilation over complex terrain, the representation of urban areas in mesoscale models, and to further validate such models for nocturnal applications in complex settings.

Evaluation of water quality index for River Sabarmati, Gujarat, India

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shah, Kosha A.; Joshi, Geeta S.

2017-06-01

An attempt has been made to develop water quality index (WQI), using six water quality parameters pH, dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, electrical conductivity, nitrate nitrogen and total coliform measured at three different stations along the Sabarmati river basin from the year 2005 to 2008. Rating scale is developed based on the tolerance limits of inland waters and health point of view. Weighted arithmetic water quality index method was used to find WQI along the stretch of the river basin. It was observed from this study that the impact of human activity and sewage disposal in the river was severe on most of the parameters. The station located in highly urban area showed the worst water quality followed by the station located in moderately urban area and lastly station located in a moderately rural area. It was observed that the main cause of deterioration in water quality was due to the high anthropogenic activities, illegal discharge of sewage and industrial effluent, lack of proper sanitation, unprotected river sites and urban runoff.

[Distributions of the numbers of monitoring stations in the surveillance of infectious diseases in Japan].

PubMed

Murakami, Y; Hashimoto, S; Taniguchi, K; Nagai, M

1999-12-01

To describe the characteristics of monitoring stations for the infectious disease surveillance system in Japan, we compared the distributions of the number of monitoring stations in terms of population, region, size of medical institution, and medical specialty. The distributions of annual number of reported cases in terms of the type of diseases, the size of medical institution, and medical specialty were also compared. We conducted a nationwide survey of the pediatrics stations (16 diseases), ophthalmology stations (3 diseases) and the stations of sexually transmitted diseases (STD) (5 diseases) in Japan. In the survey, we collected the data of monitoring stations and the annual reported cases of diseases. We also collected the data on the population, served by the health center where the monitoring stations existed, from the census. First, we compared the difference between the present number of monitoring stations and the current standard established by the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MHW). Second, we compared the distribution of all medical institutions in Japan and the monitoring stations in terms of the size of the medical institution. Third, we compared the average number of annual reported cases of diseases in terms of the size of medical institution and the medical specialty. In most health centers, the number of monitoring stations achieved the current standard of MHW, while a few health centers had no monitoring station, although they had a large population. Most prefectures also achieved the current standard of MHW, but some prefectures were well below the standard. Among pediatric stations, the sampling proportion of large hospitals was higher than other categories. Among the ophthalmology stations, the sampling proportion of hospitals was higher than other categories. Among the STD stations, the sampling proportion of clinics of obstetrics and gynecology was lower than other categories. Except for some diseases, it made little difference in the average number of annual reported cases of diseases in terms of the type of medical institution. Among STD, there was a great difference in the average number of annual reported cases of diseases in terms of medical specialty.

Source Characterization of Volatile Organic Compounds Affecting the Air Quality in a Coastal Urban Area of South Texas

PubMed Central

Sanchez, Marciano; Karnae, Saritha; John, Kuruvilla

2008-01-01

Selected Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) emitted from various anthropogenic sources including industries and motor vehicles act as primary precursors of ozone, while some VOC are classified as air toxic compounds. Significantly large VOC emission sources impact the air quality in Corpus Christi, Texas. This urban area is located in a semi-arid region of South Texas and is home to several large petrochemical refineries and industrial facilities along a busy ship-channel. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has setup two continuous ambient monitoring stations (CAMS 633 and 634) along the ship channel to monitor VOC concentrations in the urban atmosphere. The hourly concentrations of 46 VOC compounds were acquired from TCEQ for a comprehensive source apportionment study. The primary objective of this study was to identify and quantify the sources affecting the ambient air quality within this urban airshed. Principal Component Analysis/Absolute Principal Component Scores (PCA/APCS) was applied to the dataset. PCA identified five possible sources accounting for 69% of the total variance affecting the VOC levels measured at CAMS 633 and six possible sources affecting CAMS 634 accounting for 75% of the total variance. APCS identified natural gas emissions to be the major source contributor at CAMS 633 and it accounted for 70% of the measured VOC concentrations. The other major sources identified at CAMS 633 included flare emissions (12%), fugitive gasoline emissions (9%), refinery operations (7%), and vehicle exhaust (2%). At CAMS 634, natural gas sources were identified as the major source category contributing to 31% of the observed VOC. The other sources affecting this site included: refinery operations (24%), flare emissions (22%), secondary industrial processes (12%), fugitive gasoline emissions (8%) and vehicle exhaust (3%). PMID:19139530

Assessment of uncertainties of an aircraft-based mass balance approach for quantifying urban greenhouse gas emissions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cambaliza, M. O. L.; Shepson, P. B.; Caulton, D. R.; Stirm, B.; Samarov, D.; Gurney, K. R.; Turnbull, J.; Davis, K. J.; Possolo, A.; Karion, A.; Sweeney, C.; Moser, B.; Hendricks, A.; Lauvaux, T.; Mays, K.; Whetstone, J.; Huang, J.; Razlivanov, I.; Miles, N. L.; Richardson, S. J.

2014-09-01

Urban environments are the primary contributors to global anthropogenic carbon emissions. Because much of the growth in CO2 emissions will originate from cities, there is a need to develop, assess, and improve measurement and modeling strategies for quantifying and monitoring greenhouse gas emissions from large urban centers. In this study the uncertainties in an aircraft-based mass balance approach for quantifying carbon dioxide and methane emissions from an urban environment, focusing on Indianapolis, IN, USA, are described. The relatively level terrain of Indianapolis facilitated the application of mean wind fields in the mass balance approach. We investigate the uncertainties in our aircraft-based mass balance approach by (1) assessing the sensitivity of the measured flux to important measurement and analysis parameters including wind speed, background CO2 and CH4, boundary layer depth, and interpolation technique, and (2) determining the flux at two or more downwind distances from a point or area source (with relatively large source strengths such as solid waste facilities and a power generating station) in rapid succession, assuming that the emission flux is constant. When we quantify the precision in the approach by comparing the estimated emissions derived from measurements at two or more downwind distances from an area or point source, we find that the minimum and maximum repeatability were 12 and 52%, with an average of 31%. We suggest that improvements in the experimental design can be achieved by careful determination of the background concentration, monitoring the evolution of the boundary layer through the measurement period, and increasing the number of downwind horizontal transect measurements at multiple altitudes within the boundary layer.

Intelligent Urban Public Transportation for Accessibility Dedicated to People with Disabilities

PubMed Central

Zhou, Haiying; Hou, Kun-Mean; Zuo, Decheng; Li, Jian

2012-01-01

The traditional urban public transport system generally cannot provide an effective access service for people with disabilities, especially for disabled, wheelchair and blind (DWB) passengers. In this paper, based on advanced information & communication technologies (ICT) and green technologies (GT) concepts, a dedicated public urban transportation service access system named Mobi+ has been introduced, which facilitates the mobility of DWB passengers. The Mobi+ project consists of three subsystems: a wireless communication subsystem, which provides the data exchange and network connection services between buses and stations in the complex urban environments; the bus subsystem, which provides the DWB class detection & bus arrival notification services; and the station subsystem, which implements the urban environmental surveillance & bus auxiliary access services. The Mobi+ card that supports multi-microcontroller multi-transceiver adopts the fault-tolerant component-based hardware architecture, in which the dedicated embedded system software, i.e., operating system micro-kernel and wireless protocol, has been integrated. The dedicated Mobi+ embedded system provides the fault-tolerant resource awareness communication and scheduling mechanism to ensure the reliability in data exchange and service provision. At present, the Mobi+ system has been implemented on the buses and stations of line ‘2’ in the city of Clermont-Ferrand (France). The experiential results show that, on one hand the Mobi+ prototype system reaches the design expectations and provides an effective urban bus access service for people with disabilities; on the other hand the Mobi+ system is easily to deploy in the buses and at bus stations thanks to its low energy consumption and small form factor. PMID:23112622

Intelligent urban public transportation for accessibility dedicated to people with disabilities.

PubMed

Zhou, Haiying; Hou, Kun-Mean; Zuo, Decheng; Li, Jian

2012-01-01

The traditional urban public transport system generally cannot provide an effective access service for people with disabilities, especially for disabled, wheelchair and blind (DWB) passengers. In this paper, based on advanced information & communication technologies (ICT) and green technologies (GT) concepts, a dedicated public urban transportation service access system named Mobi+ has been introduced, which facilitates the mobility of DWB passengers. The Mobi+ project consists of three subsystems: a wireless communication subsystem, which provides the data exchange and network connection services between buses and stations in the complex urban environments; the bus subsystem, which provides the DWB class detection & bus arrival notification services; and the station subsystem, which implements the urban environmental surveillance & bus auxiliary access services. The Mobi+ card that supports multi-microcontroller multi-transceiver adopts the fault-tolerant component-based hardware architecture, in which the dedicated embedded system software, i.e., operating system micro-kernel and wireless protocol, has been integrated. The dedicated Mobi+ embedded system provides the fault-tolerant resource awareness communication and scheduling mechanism to ensure the reliability in data exchange and service provision. At present, the Mobi+ system has been implemented on the buses and stations of line '2' in the city of Clermont-Ferrand (France). The experiential results show that, on one hand the Mobi+ prototype system reaches the design expectations and provides an effective urban bus access service for people with disabilities; on the other hand the Mobi+ system is easily to deploy in the buses and at bus stations thanks to its low energy consumption and small form factor.

Designing a Sustainable Noise Mapping System Based on Citizen Scientists Smartphone Sensor Data.

PubMed

Shim, Eunyoung; Kim, Dohyeong; Woo, Hyekyung; Cho, Youngtae

2016-01-01

In this study, we attempted to assess the feasibility of collecting population health data via mobile devices. Specifically, we constructed noise maps based on sound information monitored by individuals' smartphones. We designed a sustainable way of creating noise maps that can overcome the shortcomings of existing station-based noise-monitoring systems. Three hundred and nine Seoul residents aged 20-49 years who used Android-based smartphones were recruited, and the subjects installed a special application that we developed for this study. This application collected information on sound and geographical location every 10 min for 7 days. Using GIS, we were able to construct various types of noise maps of Seoul (e.g., daytime/nighttime and weekdays/weekends) using the information on sound and geographical location obtained via the users' smartphones. Despite the public health importance of noise management, a number of countries and cities lack a sustainable system to monitor noise. This pilot study showed the possibility of using the smartphones of citizen scientists as an economical and sustainable way of monitoring noise, particularly in an urban context in developing countries.

Development and Application of a ZigBee-Based Building Energy Monitoring and Control System

PubMed Central

Peng, Changhai

2014-01-01

Increasing in energy consumption, particularly with the ever-increasing growth and development of urban systems, has become a major concern in most countries. In this paper, the authors propose a cost-effective ZigBee-based building energy monitoring and control system (ZBEMCS), which is composed of a gateway, a base station, and sensors. Specifically, a new hardware platform for power sensor nodes is developed to perform both local/remote power parameter measurement and power on/off switching for electric appliances. The experimental results show that the ZBEMCS can easily monitor energy usage with a high level of accuracy. Two typical applications of ZBEMCS such as subentry metering and household metering of building energy are presented. The former includes lighting socket electricity, HVAC electricity, power electricity and special electricity. The latter includes household metering according to the campus's main function zone and each college or department. Therefore, this system can be used for energy consumption monitoring, long-term energy conservation planning, and the development of automated energy conservation for building applications. PMID:25254249

Designing a Sustainable Noise Mapping System Based on Citizen Scientists Smartphone Sensor Data

PubMed Central

Shim, Eunyoung; Kim, Dohyeong; Woo, Hyekyung; Cho, Youngtae

2016-01-01

In this study, we attempted to assess the feasibility of collecting population health data via mobile devices. Specifically, we constructed noise maps based on sound information monitored by individuals’ smartphones. We designed a sustainable way of creating noise maps that can overcome the shortcomings of existing station-based noise-monitoring systems. Three hundred and nine Seoul residents aged 20–49 years who used Android-based smartphones were recruited, and the subjects installed a special application that we developed for this study. This application collected information on sound and geographical location every 10 min for 7 days. Using GIS, we were able to construct various types of noise maps of Seoul (e.g., daytime/nighttime and weekdays/weekends) using the information on sound and geographical location obtained via the users’ smartphones. Despite the public health importance of noise management, a number of countries and cities lack a sustainable system to monitor noise. This pilot study showed the possibility of using the smartphones of citizen scientists as an economical and sustainable way of monitoring noise, particularly in an urban context in developing countries. PMID:27626273

Development and application of a ZigBee-based building energy monitoring and control system.

PubMed

Peng, Changhai; Qian, Kun

2014-01-01

Increasing in energy consumption, particularly with the ever-increasing growth and development of urban systems, has become a major concern in most countries. In this paper, the authors propose a cost-effective ZigBee-based building energy monitoring and control system (ZBEMCS), which is composed of a gateway, a base station, and sensors. Specifically, a new hardware platform for power sensor nodes is developed to perform both local/remote power parameter measurement and power on/off switching for electric appliances. The experimental results show that the ZBEMCS can easily monitor energy usage with a high level of accuracy. Two typical applications of ZBEMCS such as subentry metering and household metering of building energy are presented. The former includes lighting socket electricity, HVAC electricity, power electricity and special electricity. The latter includes household metering according to the campus's main function zone and each college or department. Therefore, this system can be used for energy consumption monitoring, long-term energy conservation planning, and the development of automated energy conservation for building applications.

Effects of urbanization on climate of İstanbul and Ankara

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karaca, Mehmet; Tayanç, Mete; Toros, Hüseyi˙n.

The purpose of this work is to study regional climate change and investigate the effects of urbanization on climates of two largest cities in Turkey: İstanbul and Ankara. Air temperature (mean, maximum and minimum) data of İstanbul and Ankara are analyzed to study regional climate change and to understand the possible effects of urbanization on the climate of these regions owing to industrialization and large flux of migration from rural parts of the country. For the trend analysis, linear regression and the sequential version of the Mann-Kendall test is used. A significant upward trend is found in the urban temperatures of southern İstanbul, which is the most highly populated and industrialized part of the city compared to its rural parts. Northern stations do not show any warming trend; instead, they have a cooling trend. Urbanization and industrialization in the southern part of İstanbul has a negative effect on regional cooling. In spite of Ankara's urban geometry and air pollution problem, the urban station in Ankara does not show any warming trend. A significant urban heat island intensity ( urban-rural) is not observed in Ankara.

A statistical downscaling approach for roadside NO2 concentrations: Application to a WRF-Chem study for Berlin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuik, Friderike; Lauer, Axel; von Schneidemesser, Erika; Butler, Tim

2017-04-01

Many European cities continue to struggle with meeting the European air quality limits for NO2. In Berlin, Germany, most of the exceedances in NO2 recorded at monitoring sites near busy roads can be largely attributed to emissions from traffic. In order to assess the impact of changes in traffic emissions on air quality at policy relevant scales, we combine the regional atmosphere-chemistry transport model WRF-Chem at a resolution of 1kmx1km with a statistical downscaling approach. Here, we build on the recently published study evaluating the performance of a WRF-Chem setup in representing observed urban background NO2 concentrations from Kuik et al. (2016) and extend this setup by developing and testing an approach to statistically downscale simulated urban background NO2 concentrations to street level. The approach uses a multilinear regression model to relate roadside NO2 concentrations observed with the municipal monitoring network with observed NO2 concentrations at urban background sites and observed traffic counts. For this, the urban background NO2 concentrations are decomposed into a long term, a synoptic and a diurnal component using the Kolmogorov-Zurbenko filtering method. We estimate the coefficients of the regression model for five different roadside stations in Berlin representing different street types. In a next step we combine the coefficients with simulated urban background concentrations and observed traffic counts, in order to estimate roadside NO2 concentrations based on the results obtained with WRF-Chem at the five selected stations. In a third step, we extrapolate the NO2 concentrations to all major roads in Berlin. The latter is based on available data for Berlin of daily mean traffic counts, diurnal and weekly cycles of traffic as well as simulated urban background NO2 concentrations. We evaluate the NO2 concentrations estimated with this method at street level for Berlin with additional observational data from stationary measurements and mobile measurements conducted during a campaign in summer 2014. The results show that this approach allows us to estimate NO2 concentrations at roadside reasonably well. The approach can be applied when observations show a strong correlation between roadside NO2 concentrations and traffic emissions from a single type of road. The method, however, shows weaknesses for intersections where observed NO2 concentrations are influenced by traffic on several different roads. We then apply this downscaling approach to estimate the impact of different traffic emission scenarios both on urban background and street level NO2 concentrations. References Kuik, F., Lauer, A., Churkina, G., Denier van der Gon, H. A. C., Fenner, D., Mar, K. A., and Butler, T. M.: Air quality modelling in the Berlin-Brandenburg region using WRF-Chem v3.7.1: sensitivity to resolution of model grid and input data, Geosci. Model Dev., 9, 4339-4363, doi:10.5194/gmd-9-4339-2016, 2016.

Evaluation of an atmospheric model with surface and ABL meteorological data for energy applications in structured areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Triantafyllou, A. G.; Kalogiros, J.; Krestou, A.; Leivaditou, E.; Zoumakis, N.; Bouris, D.; Garas, S.; Konstantinidis, E.; Wang, Q.

2018-03-01

This paper provides the performance evaluation of the meteorological component of The Air Pollution Model (TAPM), a nestable prognostic model, in predicting meteorological variables in urban areas, for both its surface layer and atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) turbulence parameterizations. The model was modified by incorporating four urban land surface types, replacing the existing single urban surface. Control runs were carried out over the wider area of Kozani, an urban area in NW Greece. The model was evaluated for both surface and ABL meteorological variables by using measurements of near-surface and vertical profiles of wind and temperature. The data were collected by using monitoring surface stations in selected sites as well as an acoustic sounder (SOnic Detection And Ranging (SODAR), up to 300 m above ground) and a radiometer profiler (up to 600 m above ground). The results showed the model demonstrated good performance in predicting the near-surface meteorology in the Kozani region for both a winter and a summer month. In the ABL, the comparison showed that the model's forecasts generally performed well with respect to the thermal structure (temperature profiles and ABL height) but overestimated wind speed at the heights of comparison (mostly below 200 m) up to 3-4 ms-1.

Fine-Scale Spatial Variability of Pedestrian-Level Particulate Matters in Compact Urban Commercial Districts in Hong Kong

PubMed Central

Ng, Edward

2017-01-01

Particulate matters (PM) at the pedestrian level significantly raises the health impacts in the compact urban environment of Hong Kong. A detailed investigation of the fine-scale spatial variation of pedestrian-level PM is necessary to assess the health risk to pedestrians in the outdoor environment. However, the collection of PM data is difficult in the compact urban environment of Hong Kong due to the limited amount of roadside monitoring stations and the complicated urban context. In this study, we measured the fine-scale spatial variability of the PM in three of the most representative commercial districts of Hong Kong using a backpack outdoor environmental measuring unit. Based on the measurement data, 13 types of geospatial interpolation methods were examined for the spatial mapping of PM2.5 and PM10 with a group of building geometrical covariates. Geostatistical modelling was adopted as the basis of spatial interpolation of the PM. The results show that the original cokriging with the exponential kernel function provides the best performance in the PM mapping. Using the fine-scale building geometrical features as covariates slightly improves the interpolation performance. The study results also imply that the fine-scale, localized pollution emission sources heavily influence pedestrian exposure to PM. PMID:28869527

Urban-Rural Humidity Contrasts in Mexico City

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jáuregui, E.; Tejeda, A.

1997-02-01

Data from one pair of urban-suburban (Tacubaya and Airport) andone pair of urban-rural (School of Mines and Plan Texcoco) temperature and humidity measuring stations were used to illustrate specific humidity(q) contrasts in Mexico City. Results show a marked seasonal variation of q from around 7.9 g kg-1 during the dry months to 10 g kg-1 in the wet season (May-October) on both urban and suburban sites. The mean monthly contrasts for this pair of stations, albeit small, show that the city air is somewhat drier during the first half of the year. Comparison of urban and rural q on an hourly basis shows that although urban air is more humid at night the reverse is true during the afternoon. Areal distribution of q shows two centres of maximum humidity over the city at night and a corresponding minimum during the afternoon. On average the urban-rural contrasts in q were found to be somewhat smaller than the estimated uncertainty. The above results are in agreement with mid-latitude experience.

Long-term monitoring of black carbon across Germany

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kutzner, Rebecca D.; von Schneidemesser, Erika; Kuik, Friderike; Quedenau, Jörn; Weatherhead, Elizabeth C.; Schmale, Julia

2018-07-01

Lately, black carbon (BC) has received significant attention due to its climate-warming properties and adverse health effects. Nevertheless, long-term observations in urban areas are scarce, most likely because BC monitoring is not required by environmental legislation. This, however, handicaps the evaluation of air quality models which can be used to assess the effectiveness of policy measures which aim to reduce BC concentrations. Here, we present a new dataset of atmospheric BC measurements from Germany constructed from over six million measurements at over 170 stations. Data covering the period between 1994 and 2014 were collected from twelve German Federal States and the Federal Environment Agency, quality checked and harmonized into a database with comprehensive metadata. The final data in original time resolution are available for download (https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.881173) Our analysis focuses on 2009, the year with the largest data coverage with one single methodology, as well as on the relative changes in long-term trends over ten years. For 2009, we find that BC concentrations at traffic sites were at least twice as high as at urban background, industrial and rural sites. Weekly cycles are most prominent at traffic stations, however, the presence of differences in concentrations during the week and on weekends at other station types suggests that traffic plays an important role throughout the full network. Generally higher concentrations and weaker weekly cycles during the winter months point towards the influence of other sources such as domestic heating. Regarding the long-term trends, advanced statistical techniques allow us to account for instrumentation changes and to separate seasonal and long-term changes in our dataset. Analysis shows a downward trend in BC at nearly all locations and in all conditions, with a high level of confidence for the period of 2005-2014. In depth analysis indicates that background BC is decreasing slowly, while the occurrences of high concentrations are decreasing more rapidly. In summary, legislation - both in Europe and locally - to reduce particulate emissions and indirectly BC appear to be working, based on this analysis. Adverse human health and climate impacts are likely to be diminished because of the improvements in air quality.

Short-term monitoring of benzene air concentration in an urban area: a preliminary study of application of Kruskal-Wallis non-parametric test to assess pollutant impact on global environment and indoor.

PubMed

Mura, Maria Chiara; De Felice, Marco; Morlino, Roberta; Fuselli, Sergio

2010-01-01

In step with the need to develop statistical procedures to manage small-size environmental samples, in this work we have used concentration values of benzene (C6H6), concurrently detected by seven outdoor and indoor monitoring stations over 12 000 minutes, in order to assess the representativeness of collected data and the impact of the pollutant on indoor environment. Clearly, the former issue is strictly connected to sampling-site geometry, which proves critical to correctly retrieving information from analysis of pollutants of sanitary interest. Therefore, according to current criteria for network-planning, single stations have been interpreted as nodes of a set of adjoining triangles; then, a) node pairs have been taken into account in order to estimate pollutant stationarity on triangle sides, as well as b) node triplets, to statistically associate data from air-monitoring with the corresponding territory area, and c) node sextuplets, to assess the impact probability of the outdoor pollutant on indoor environment for each area. Distributions from the various node combinations are all non-Gaussian, in the consequently, Kruskal-Wallis (KW) non-parametric statistics has been exploited to test variability on continuous density function from each pair, triplet and sextuplet. Results from the above-mentioned statistical analysis have shown randomness of site selection, which has not allowed a reliable generalization of monitoring data to the entire selected territory, except for a single "forced" case (70%); most important, they suggest a possible procedure to optimize network design.

Change in mean temperature as a predictor of extreme temperature change in the Asia-Pacific region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Griffiths, G. M.; Chambers, L. E.; Haylock, M. R.; Manton, M. J.; Nicholls, N.; Baek, H.-J.; Choi, Y.; della-Marta, P. M.; Gosai, A.; Iga, N.; Lata, R.; Laurent, V.; Maitrepierre, L.; Nakamigawa, H.; Ouprasitwong, N.; Solofa, D.; Tahani, L.; Thuy, D. T.; Tibig, L.; Trewin, B.; Vediapan, K.; Zhai, P.

2005-08-01

Trends (1961-2003) in daily maximum and minimum temperatures, extremes and variance were found to be spatially coherent across the Asia-Pacific region. The majority of stations exhibited significant trends: increases in mean maximum and mean minimum temperature, decreases in cold nights and cool days, and increases in warm nights. No station showed a significant increase in cold days or cold nights, but a few sites showed significant decreases in hot days and warm nights. Significant decreases were observed in both maximum and minimum temperature standard deviation in China, Korea and some stations in Japan (probably reflecting urbanization effects), but also for some Thailand and coastal Australian sites. The South Pacific convergence zone (SPCZ) region between Fiji and the Solomon Islands showed a significant increase in maximum temperature variability.Correlations between mean temperature and the frequency of extreme temperatures were strongest in the tropical Pacific Ocean from French Polynesia to Papua New Guinea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and southern Japan. Correlations were weaker at continental or higher latitude locations, which may partly reflect urbanization.For non-urban stations, the dominant distribution change for both maximum and minimum temperature involved a change in the mean, impacting on one or both extremes, with no change in standard deviation. This occurred from French Polynesia to Papua New Guinea (except for maximum temperature changes near the SPCZ), in Malaysia, the Philippines, and several outlying Japanese islands. For urbanized stations the dominant change was a change in the mean and variance, impacting on one or both extremes. This result was particularly evident for minimum temperature.The results presented here, for non-urban tropical and maritime locations in the Asia-Pacific region, support the hypothesis that changes in mean temperature may be used to predict changes in extreme temperatures. At urbanized or higher latitude locations, changes in variance should be incorporated.

Research on centrality of urban transport network nodes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Kui; Fu, Xiufen

2017-05-01

Based on the actual data of urban transport in Guangzhou, 19,150 bus stations in Guangzhou (as of 2014) are selected as nodes. Based on the theory of complex network, the network model of Guangzhou urban transport is constructed. By analyzing the degree centrality index, betweenness centrality index and closeness centrality index of nodes in the network, the level of centrality of each node in the network is studied. From a different point of view to determine the hub node of Guangzhou urban transport network, corresponding to the city's key sites and major transfer sites. The reliability of the network is determined by the stability of some key nodes (transport hub station). The research of network node centralization can provide a theoretical basis for the rational allocation of urban transport network sites and public transport system planning.

The dynamics of heatwave over a coastal megacity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramamurthy, P.

2017-12-01

A majority of the current population in the U.S. resides in urban areas and nearly 40% live in urban coastal communities. These cities are disproportionately affected by extreme events such as heatwaves, hurricanes and extreme precipitation. The microclimate of the coastal cities is profoundly influenced by the interaction between the highly convective urban core and the moist sea breeze advection. However, such interactions are poorly characterized due to lack of observations over these complex terrains. Herein we use a comprehensive observational platform and numerical simulations to characterize the impact of heatwaves over New York City. As part of the campaign the urban boundary layer over New York City was continuously monitored during July 2016, a period that witnessed three heatwave events. Surface weather stations and indoor sensors were also used to characterize the urban heat island intensity. Our results reveal that during the month, the urban heat island intensity was nearly twice as compared to the decadal average. During the heatwave episodes urban heat island intensities as high as 10 ˚C were observed. The thermal profiles indicate elevated temperatures in much of the boundary layer between 800-2500 m during the heatwave episodes. The profiles indicate a complex thermal structure and high intra-city variability. Thermal internal boundary layer was observed in neighborhoods populated by tall buildings. The results show that heat released from buildings heating and air conditioning system during extreme heat events can be as high as 18 percent of the overall available energy. Overall the high-pressure system during the heatwave episodes acted as a thermal block and much of the heat generated in the urban surface layer remained within the boundary layer, thereby amplifying the near surface air temperature.

Space Station Induced Monitoring

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spann, James F. (Editor); Torr, Marsha R. (Editor)

1988-01-01

This report contains the results of a conference convened May 10-11, 1988, to review plans for monitoring the Space Station induced environment, to recommend primary components of an induced environment monitoring package, and to make recommendations pertaining to suggested modifications of the Space Station External Contamination Control Requirements Document JSC 30426. The contents of this report are divided as Follows: Monitoring Induced Environment - Space Station Work Packages Requirements, Neutral Environment, Photon Emission Environment, Particulate Environment, Surface Deposition/Contamination; and Contamination Control Requirements.

Influence of landscape mosaic on streamflow of a peri-urban catchment under Mediterranean climate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferreira, Carla; Walsh, Rory; Ferreira, António

2017-04-01

Peri-urban areas tend to be characterized by patchy landscape mosaics of different land-uses. Although the impact of land-use changes on catchment hydrology have been widely investigated, the impact of mixed land-use patterns on the streamflow of peri-urban areas is still poorly understood. This study aims to (i) explore and quantify streamflow delivery from sub-catchments characterized by distinct landscape mosaics; (ii) assess the impact of different urbanization styles on hydrograph properties; and (iii) explore the influence of urbanization type on flow connectivity and stream discharge. The study was carried out in Ribeira dos Covões, a small (6.2km2) peri-urban catchment in central Portugal. The climate is Mediterranean, with a mean annual rainfall of 892mm. Catchment geology comprises sandstone (56%), limestone (41%) and alluvial deposits (3%). Soils developed on sandstone are generally deep (>3m) Fluvisols and Podsols, whereas on limestone the Leptic Cambisols are typically shallow (<0.4m). Forest is the dominant land-use (56%), but urban areas cover an extensive area (40%), whereas agricultural land has declined to a very small area (4%). The urban area comprises contrasting urban styles, notably older discontinuous urban areas with buildings separated by gardens of low population density (<25 inhabitants km-2), and recent well-defined continuous urban cores dominated by apartment blocks and of high population density (9900 inhabitants km-2). The study uses hydrological data recorded over three hydrological years, starting in November 2010, in a monitoring network comprising eight streamflow gauging stations (instrumented with water level recorders) and five rainfall gauges. The gauging stations provide information on the discharge response to rainstorms of the catchment outlet and upstream sub-catchments of different size, urban pattern (in terms of percentage urban land-use and impervious area, distance to the stream network, and storm water management), and lithology (either sandstone or limestone). Annual storm runoff coefficients were lowest (13.7%) in catchments dominated by forest (>80%) and greatest (17.3-17.6%) in the most urbanized sub-catchments (49-53% urban). Impervious area seems to control streamflow particularly during dry periods. Winter runoff (streamflow per unit area) was 2-4 times higher than summer runoff in highly urbanized areas, but was 21-fold higher in winter than in summer in the least urbanized sub-catchment, indicating greater flow connectivity in winter, enhanced by increased soil moisture. Lithology also played an important role on hydrology, with sandstone sub-catchments exhibiting greater annual baseflow index values (23-46%) than found in limestone ones (<5%). For sub-catchments underlain by both lithologies, linear relationships were found between storm runoff coefficients and percentage urban and percentage impervious area, but with greater runoff responses in the sandstone ones. Nevertheless, linear regression lines for both lithologies get close to each other when the extent of urban areas reached about 50%. The proximity of urban areas to the stream network and whether urban storm runoff is directly piped to the stream network were important parameters influencing peak flows and response time. Landscape mosaics that include land-use patches of high soil permeability tend to provide locations of surface water retention and enhanced infiltration, thereby breaking flow connectivity between hillslope urban surfaces and the stream network. This kind of spatial pattern should be considered for urban planning, in order to minimize flood hazards.

Complex Mobile Independent Power Station for Urban Areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tunik, A. A.; Tolstoy, M. Y.

2017-11-01

A new type of a complex mobile independent power station developed in the Department of Engineering Communications and Life-Support Systems of Irkutsk National Research Technical University, is presented in this article. This station contains only solar panel, wind turbine, accumulator, diesel generator and microbial fuel cell for to produce electric energy, heat pump and solar collector to generate heat energy and also wastewater treatment plant and new complex control system. The complex mobile independent power station is intended for full power supply of a different kind of consumers located even in remote areas thus reducing their dependence from centralized energy supply systems, decrease the fossil fuel consumption, improve the environment of urban areas and solve the problems of the purification of industrial and municipal wastewater.

Relationship Between Job Burnout and Neuroendocrine Indicators in Soldiers in the Xinjiang Arid Desert: A Cross-Sectional Study.

PubMed

Tao, Ning; Zhang, Jianjiang; Song, Zhixin; Tang, Jinhua; Liu, Jiwen

2015-12-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between job burnout and neuroendocrine indicators in soldiers living in a harsh environment. Three hundred soldiers stationed in the arid desert and 600 in an urban area were recruited. They filled in the Chinese Maslach Burnout Inventory questionnaire. One hundred soldiers were randomly selected from each group to measure their levels of noradrenaline, serotonin, heat shock protein (HSP)-70, adrenocorticotropic hormone, and serum cortisol. Job burnout was more common in soldiers from urban areas than those from rural areas. Job burnout was significantly higher among soldiers stationed in the arid desert than those in urban areas. For soldiers in the arid desert, the levels of HSP-70, serum cortisol, and adrenocorticotropic hormone were significantly higher than in soldiers in urban areas. Correlation analyses showed that the degree of job burnout was weakly negatively correlated with the level of HSP-70. Being an only child, HSP-70 levels, cortisol levels, and ACTH levels were independently associated with job burnout in soldiers stationed in the arid desert. A higher level of job burnout in soldiers stationed in arid desert and a corresponding change in neuroendocrine indicators indicated a correlation between occupational stress and neurotransmitters.

40 CFR 58.10 - Annual monitoring network plan and periodic network assessment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... part of SLAMS, NCore stations, STN stations, State speciation stations, SPM stations, and/or, in... analysis method(s) for each measured parameter. (4) The operating schedules for each monitor. (5) Any...

40 CFR 58.10 - Annual monitoring network plan and periodic network assessment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... part of SLAMS, NCore stations, STN stations, State speciation stations, SPM stations, and/or, in... and analysis method(s) for each measured parameter. (4) The operating schedules for each monitor. (5...

40 CFR 58.10 - Annual monitoring network plan and periodic network assessment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... part of SLAMS, NCore stations, STN stations, State speciation stations, SPM stations, and/or, in... and analysis method(s) for each measured parameter. (4) The operating schedules for each monitor. (5...

Data Acquisition for Land Subsidence Control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, Y.; Balke, K.

2009-12-01

For controlling land subsidence caused by groundwater over-exploitation, loading of engineered structures, mining and other anthropogenic activities in this fast changing world, a large variety of different data of various scales of concerning areas are needed for scientific study and administrative operational purposes. The economical, social and environmental impacts of anthropogenic land subsidence have long been recognized by many scientific institutions and management authorities based on results of monitoring and analysis at an interdisciplinary level. The land subsidence information systems composed of the surface and subsurface monitoring nets (monitoring and development wells, GPS stations and other facilities) and local data processing centers as a system management tool in Shanghai City was started with the use of GPS technology to monitor land subsidence in 1998. After years of experiences with a set of initiatives by adopting adequate countermeasures, the particular attention given to new improved methodologies to monitor and model the process of land subsidence in a simple and timely way, this is going to be promoted in the whole Yangtze River Delta region in China, where land subsidence expands in the entire region of urban cluster. The Delta land subsidence monitoring network construction aims to establish an efficient and coordinated water resource management system. The land subsidence monitoring network records "living history" of land subsidence, produces detailed scheduled reports and environmental impact statements. For the different areas with local factors and site characteristics, parallel packages need to be designed for predicting changes, land sensitivity and uncertainty analysis, especially for the risk analysis in the rapid growth of megacities and urban areas. In such cases, the new models with new types of local data and the new ways of data acquisition provide the best information for the decision makers for their mitigating decisions. The problems with outputs to professional and non-professional users, planning vs exploitation conflicts, 3D modeling and visualization are not yet solved due to the complex issues.

Air quality for metals and sulfur in Shanghai, China, determined with moss bags.

PubMed

Cao, Tong; Wang, Min; An, Li; Yu, Yinghao; Lou, Yuxia; Guo, Shuiliang; Zuo, Benrong; Liu, Yan; Wu, Jiming; Cao, Yang; Zhu, Zhirui

2009-04-01

In order to better understand the spatial and temporal distribution pattern of metals and sulfur present in Shanghai, moss bags with Haplocladium microphyllum (Hedw.) Broth. were suspended at 14 local monitoring stations from April through June 2006 in Shanghai, the largest city in China. The results showed that the concentrations of S, Cu, Pb, and Zn in the moss bags after exposure were higher at the sites in the industrial district and most urban districts and lower at the sites in suburban areas, and well correlated with SO(2) API and PM10 API in the air both in terms of space and time. The present study provided evidence that the moss H. microphyllum is suitable for bio-monitoring air pollution with moss bags and further confirmed that the moss-bag method is a simple, inexpensive and useful technique.

Study of Spatial Variability of Air Temperature by Means of Remote Sensing Data and Weather Stations in Urban Areas: A Case Study for Campinas - São Paulo, Brazil.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bezerra, L. M.; Avila, A. M. H. D.; Pereira, V. R.; Gonçalves, R. R. D. V.; Coltri, P. P.

2016-12-01

The surface meteorological and satellite Landsat8 data time series the city of Campinas, southeastern Brazil, has shown the rising temperatures in recent decades. According to scientific studies, part of this increase may be related to the urban sprawl of the city that currently has degree urbanization 98.28% and 1,164,098 inhabitants. Thus, the thermal images can represent reliable information of the surface temperature and this varies according to the land use and land cover. Therefore, were used 17 images of TIRS sensor (Thermal Infrared Sensor), band 10 and spatial resolution of 100 meters aboard satellite Landsat8 between 2013 and 2015 and temperature data from three meteorological stations of the city in different locations. After, was used the Pearson correlation between the measured weather data under 1.5 meters above ground level and surface temperature data estimated by satellite with a real difference 1 hour to less between stations and the satellite. The results indicated the 49% correlation in University of Campinas / Cepagri station, 86% in the Agronomic Institute of Campinas station and 90% in the Viracopos International Airport. This fact can be explained by the different degrees of urbanization where the weather stations are located and the heterogeneous characteristics of the local surface, as its roughness, impermeability, vegetation cover and concentration of buildings. Although these factors contribute to that there is a distortion of the surface temperature values detected by the satellite, the satellite was Landsat8 efficient to represent the spatial variability of temperature. In future studies, new techniques to obtain more accurate data through remote sensing will be studied.

Worker-specific exposure monitor and method for surveillance of workers

DOEpatents

Lovejoy, Michael L.; Peeters, John P.; Johnson, A. Wayne

2000-01-01

A person-specific monitor that provides sensor information regarding hazards to which the person is exposed and means to geolocate the person at the time of the exposure. The monitor also includes means to communicate with a remote base station. Information from the monitor can be downloaded at the base station for long term storage and analysis. The base station can also include means to recharge the monitor.

Rainfall, runoff, and water-quality data for the urban storm-water program in the Albuquerque, New Mexico, metropolitan area, water year 2004

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kelly, Todd; Romero, Orlando; Jimenez, Mike

2006-01-01

Urbanization has dramatically increased precipitation runoff to the system of drainage channels and natural stream channels in the Albuquerque, New Mexico, metropolitan area. Rainfall and runoff data are important for planning and designing future storm-water conveyance channels in newly developing areas. Storm-water quality also is monitored in accordance with the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System mandated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority, the City of Albuquerque, and the U.S. Geological Survey began a cooperative program to collect hydrologic data to assist in assessing the quality and quantity of surface-water resources in the Albuquerque area. This report presents water-quality, streamflow, and rainfall data collected from October 1, 2003, to September 30, 2004 (water year 2004). Also provided is a station analysis for each of the 18 streamflow-gaging sites and 39 rainfall-gaging sites, which includes a description of monitoring equipment, problems associated with data collection during the year, and other information used to compute streamflow discharges or rainfall records. A hydrographic comparison shows the effects that the largest drainage channel in the metropolitan area, the North Floodway Channel, has on total flow in the Rio Grande.

Frequent detection of a human fecal indicator in the urban ocean: environmental drivers and covariation with enterococci.

PubMed

Jennings, Wiley C; Chern, Eunice C; O'Donohue, Diane; Kellogg, Michael G; Boehm, Alexandria B

2018-03-01

Fecal pollution of surface waters presents a global human health threat. New molecular indicators of fecal pollution have been developed to address shortcomings of traditional culturable fecal indicators. However, there is still little information on their fate and transport in the environment. The present study uses spatially and temporally extensive data on traditional (culturable enterococci, cENT) and molecular (qPCR-enterococci, qENT and human-associated marker, HF183/BacR287) indicator concentrations in marine water surrounding highly-urbanized San Francisco, California, USA to investigate environmental and anthropogenic processes that impact fecal pollution. We constructed multivariable regression models for fecal indicator bacteria at 14 sampling stations. The human marker was detected more frequently in our study than in many other published studies, with detection frequency at some stations as high as 97%. The odds of cENT, qENT, and HF183/BacR287 exceeding health-relevant thresholds were statistically elevated immediately following discharges of partially treated combined sewage, and cENT levels dissipated after approximately 1 day. However, combined sewer discharges were not important predictors of indicator levels typically measured in weekly monitoring samples. Instead, precipitation and solar insolation were important predictors of cENT in weekly samples, while precipitation and water temperature were important predictors of HF183/BacR287 and qENT. The importance of precipitation highlights the significance of untreated storm water as a source of fecal pollution to the urban ocean, even for a city served by a combined sewage system. Sunlight and water temperature likely control persistence of the indicators via photoinactivation and dark decay processes, respectively.

UNMIX Methods Applied to Characterize Sources of Volatile Organic Compounds in Toronto, Ontario

PubMed Central

Porada, Eugeniusz; Szyszkowicz, Mieczysław

2016-01-01

UNMIX, a sensor modeling routine from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), was used to model volatile organic compound (VOC) receptors in four urban sites in Toronto, Ontario. VOC ambient concentration data acquired in 2000–2009 for 175 VOC species in four air quality monitoring stations were analyzed. UNMIX, by performing multiple modeling attempts upon varying VOC menus—while rejecting the results that were not reliable—allowed for discriminating sources by their most consistent chemical characteristics. The method assessed occurrences of VOCs in sources typical of the urban environment (traffic, evaporative emissions of fuels, banks of fugitive inert gases), industrial point sources (plastic-, polymer-, and metalworking manufactures), and in secondary sources (releases from water, sediments, and contaminated urban soil). The remote sensing and robust modeling used here produces chemical profiles of putative VOC sources that, if combined with known environmental fates of VOCs, can be used to assign physical sources’ shares of VOCs emissions into the atmosphere. This in turn provides a means of assessing the impact of environmental policies on one hand, and industrial activities on the other hand, on VOC air pollution. PMID:29051416

Land use/land cover change effects on temperature trends at U.S. Climate Normals stations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hale, R.C.; Gallo, K.P.; Owen, T.W.; Loveland, Thomas R.

2006-01-01

Alterations in land use/land cover (LULC) in areas near meteorological observation stations can influence the measurement of climatological variables such as temperature. Urbanization near climate stations has been the focus of considerable research attention, however conversions between non-urban LULC classes may also have an impact. In this study, trends of minimum, maximum, and average temperature at 366 U.S. Climate Normals stations are analyzed based on changes in LULC defined by the U.S. Land Cover Trends Project. Results indicate relatively few significant temperature trends before periods of greatest LULC change, and these are generally evenly divided between warming and cooling trends. In contrast, after the period of greatest LULC change was observed, 95% of the stations that exhibited significant trends (minimum, maximum, or mean temperature) displayed warming trends. Copyriht 2006 by the American Geophysical Union.

Carbon dioxide reduction through urban forestry: guidelines for professional and volunteer tree planters

Treesearch

E. Gregory McPherson; James R. Simpson

1999-01-01

Carbon dioxide reduction through urban forestry—Guidelines for professional and volunteer tree planters has been developed by the Pacific Southwest Research Station’s Western Center for Urban Forest Research and Education as a tool for utilities, urban foresters and arborists, municipalities, consultants, non-profit organizations and others to...

Data Quality: 1979 Southeastern Virginia Urban Plume Study (SEV-UPS): Surface and Airborne studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

White, J. H.; Strong, R. B.; Saeger, M. L.; Eaton, W. C.; Lommerdahl, J. B.

1981-01-01

The SEV-UPS field study conducted during August 1979 involved the coordinated air quality data collection efforts of three different organizations operating a total of four aircraft and 12 ground stations. Incorporated into plans for that program were numerous quality assurance activities designed to identify potential hazards for data quality in time for their correction and to take data to allow assessment of the consistency of the data from different stations. The purpose of this study was to document QA procedures that were performed by participating agencies and revise data from all platforms for mutual compatibility. For the latter effort, cases were identified on 21 occasions on seven different days where two or more monitoring systems were operating in the same location at nearly the same time. Data from the systems involved were tabulated in 200 m altitude segments, averaged and compared to detect any bias between measurements made from different systems. The results of these comparisons along with the results of independent performance audits are presented.

The Mussel Watch California pilot study on contaminants of emerging concern (CECs): synthesis and next steps

USGS Publications Warehouse

Maruya, Keith A.; Dodder, Nathan G.; Weisberg, Stephen B.; Gregorio, Dominic; Bishop, Jonathan S.; Klosterhaus, Susan; Alvarez, David A.; Furlong, Edward T.; Bricker, Suzanne B.; Kimbrough, Kimani L.; Lauenstein, Gunnar G.

2014-01-01

A multiagency pilot study on mussels (Mytilus spp.) collected at 68 stations in California revealed that 98% of targeted contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) were infrequently detectable at concentrations ⩽1 ng/g. Selected chemicals found in commercial and consumer products were more frequently detected at mean concentrations up to 470 ng/g dry wt. The number of CECs detected and their concentrations were greatest for stations categorized as urban or influenced by storm water discharge. Exposure to a broader suite of CECs was also characterized by passive sampling devices (PSDs), with estimated water concentrations of hydrophobic compounds correlated with Mytilus concentrations. The results underscore the need for focused CEC monitoring in coastal ecosystems and suggest that PSDs are complementary to bivalves in assessing water quality. Moreover, the partnership established among participating agencies led to increased spatial coverage, an expanded list of analytes and a more efficient use of available resources.

4onse: four times open & non-conventional technology for sensing the environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cannata, Massimiliano; Ratnayake, Rangageewa; Antonovic, Milan; Strigaro, Daniele; Cardoso, Mirko; Hoffmann, Marcus

2017-04-01

The availability of complete, quality and dense monitoring hydro-meteorological data is essential to address a number of practical issues including, but not limited to, flood-water and urban drainage management, climate change impact assessment, early warning and risk management, now-casting and weather predictions. Thanks to the recent technological advances such as Internet Of Things, Big Data and Ubiquitous Internet, non-conventional monitoring systems based on open technologies and low cost sensors may represent a great opportunity either as a complement of authoritative monitoring network or as a vital source of information wherever existing monitoring networks are in decline or completely missing. Nevertheless, scientific literature on such a kind of open and non-conventional monitoring systems is still limited and often relates to prototype engineering and testing in rather limited case studies. For this reason the 4onse project aims at integrating existing open technologies in the field of Free & Open Source Software, Open Hardware, Open Data, and Open Standards and evaluate this kind of system in a real case (about 30 stations) for a medium period of 2 years to better scientifically understand strengths, criticalities and applicabilities in terms of data quality; system durability; management costs; performances; sustainability. The ultimate objective is to contribute in non-conventional monitoring systems adoption based on four open technologies.

Development, deployment, and evaluation of a remote monitoring system and a virtual weigh station : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2005-11-01

In order to extend commercial vehicle enforcement coverage to routes that are not monitored by fixed weigh stations, Kentucky has developed and implemented a Remote Monitoring System (RMS) and a Virtual Weight Station (VWS). The RMS captures images o...

24 CFR 91.330 - Monitoring.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Monitoring. 91.330 Section 91.330 Housing and Urban Development Office of the Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development... Consolidated Plan § 91.330 Monitoring. The consolidated plan must describe the standards and procedures that...

24 CFR 91.430 - Monitoring.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Monitoring. 91.430 Section 91.430 Housing and Urban Development Office of the Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development... Plan § 91.430 Monitoring. The consolidated plan must describe the standards and procedures that the...

Winter fog monitoring over south asia by using multi satellite data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yasmin, Naila

2016-07-01

committing The South Asian region in general and the Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) in particular hold about 1/6th of the world's population and is considered as one of the major hotspots of increasing atmospheric pollution. Due to growing population and globalization, South Asia is experiencing high transformations in the urban and industrial sectors. Fog is one of the meteorological/environmental phenomena which can generate significant social and economic problems especially a major havoc to air and road traffic. Meteorological stations provide information about the fog episodes only on the basis of point observation. Continuous monitoring as well as a spatially coherent picture of fog distribution can only be possible through the use of satellite imagery. Current study focus on winter fog episodes over South Asian region using Moderate Resolution Image Spectrometer (MODIS) Level 2 terra Product and MODIS Aerosol Product and OMI Absorbing Aerosol Index. The datasets used in this study includes MODIS Corrected Reflectance RGBs are used to analyse fog situation over study area. MOD04 level 2 Collection 6 data is used to study aerosol load and distribution which are characterised using aerosol type land. In order to study the variation of ground based observations from satellite data MODIS, CALIPSO, AERONET and high volume air Sampler were used. Objectives of the study was to map the spatial extent of fog as well as monitor its causes and similarly to analyze the Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) over South Asia with particular focus over Indo Gangetic Plans (IGP). Current studies show an increase in AOD from past few decades over South Asia and is contributing to poor air quality in the region due to growing population, urbanization, and industrialization. Smoke and absorbing aerosol are major constituent of fog over south Asia. Furthermore, winter 2014-15 extended span of Fog was also observed over South Asia. A significant correlation between MODIS (AOD) and AERONET Station (AOD) data was identified. Mass concentration of PM 2.5 and PM 10 over sampling sites exceeded the NEQS's Level at most occasions.

Development and Deployment of Mobile Emissions Laboratory for Continuous Long-Term Unattended Measurements of Greenhouse Gases, Fluxes, Isotopes and Pollutants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gardner, A.; Baer, D. S.; Owano, T. G.; Provencal, R. A.; Gupta, M.; Parsotam, V.; Graves, P.; Goldstein, A.; Guha, A.

2010-12-01

Development and Deployment of Mobile Emissions Laboratory for Continuous Long-Term Unattended Measurements of Greenhouse Gases, Fluxes, Isotopes and Pollutants A. Gardner(1), D. Baer (1), T. Owano (1), R. Provencal (1), V. Parsotam (1), P. Graves (1), M. Gupta (1), Allen Goldstein (2), Abhinav Guha (2) (1) Los Gatos Research, 67 East Evelyn Avenue, Suite 3, Mountain View, CA 94041-1529 (2) Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California at Berkeley Quantifying the Urban Fossil Fuel Plume: Convergence of top-down and bottom-up approaches (Session A54). We report on the design, development and deployment of a novel Mobile Emissions Laboratory, consisting of innovative laser-based gas analyzers, for rapid measurements of multiple greenhouse gases and pollutants. Designed for real-time mobile and stationery emissions monitoring, the Mobile Emissions Laboratory was deployed at several locations during 2010, including CalNEX 2010, Caldecott Tunnel (Oakland, CA), and Altamont Landfill (Livermore, CA), to record real-time continuous measurements of isotopic CO2 (δ13C, CO2), methane (CH4), acetylene (C2H2), nitrous oxide (N2O), carbon monoxide (CO), and isotopic water vapor (H2O; δ18O, δ2H). The commercial gas analyzers are based on novel cavity-enhanced laser absorption spectroscopy. The portable analyzers provide measurements in real time, require about 150 watts (each) of power and do not need liquid nitrogen to operate. These instruments have been applied in the field for applications that require high data rates (for eddy correlation flux), wide dynamic range (e.g., for chamber flux and other applications with concentrations that can be 10-1000 times higher than typical ambient levels) and highest accuracy (atmospheric monitoring stations). The Mobile Emissions Laboratory, which contains onboard batteries for long-term unattended measurements without access to mains power, can provide regulatory agencies, monitoring stations, scientists and researchers with temporally and spatially resolved data (including measurements of important greenhouse gases, isotopes and pollutants) necessary for compliance monitoring, hot-spot detection, as well as cap and trade, at any location. Details of extended measurement campaigns (including lessons learned) at the various field sites (urban and rural environments) will be presented.

Monitoring urban air quality using a high-density network of low-cost sensor nodes in Oslo, Norway.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castell, Nuria; Schneider, Philipp; Vogt, Matthias; Dauge, Franck R.; Lahoz, William; Bartonova, Alena

2017-04-01

Urban air quality represents a major public health burden and is a long-standing concern to citizens. Air pollution is associated with a range of diseases, symptoms and conditions that impair health and quality of life. In Oslo, traffic, especially exhaust from heavy-duty and private diesel vehicles and dust resuspension from studded tyres, together with wood burning in winter, are the main sources of pollution. Norway, as part of the European Economic Area, is obliged to comply with the European air quality regulations and ensure clean air. Despite this, Oslo has exceeded both the NO2 and PM10 thresholds for health protection defined in the Directive 2008/50/EC. The air quality in the Oslo area is continuously monitored in 12 compliance monitoring stations. These stations provide reliable and accurate data but their density is too low to provide a detailed spatial distribution of air quality. The emergence of low-cost nodes enables observations at high spatial resolution, providing the opportunity to enhance existing monitoring systems. However, the data generated by these nodes is significantly less accurate and precise than the data provided by reference equipment. We have conducted an evaluation of low-cost nodes to monitor NO2 and PM10, comparing the data collected with low-cost nodes against CEN (European Standardization Organization) reference analysers. During January and March 2016, a network of 24 nodes was deployed in Oslo. During January, high NO2 levels were observed for several days in a row coinciding with the formation of a thermal inversion. During March, we observed an episode with high PM10 levels due to road dust resuspension. Our results show that there is a major technical challenge associated with current commercial low-cost sensors, regarding the sensor robustness and measurement repeatability. Despite this, low-cost sensor nodes are able to reproduce the NO2 and PM10 variability. The data from the sensors was employed to generate detailed NO2 and PM10 air quality maps using a data fusion technique. This way we were able to offer localized air quality information for the city of Oslo. The outlook for commercial low-cost sensors is promising, and our results show that currently some sensors are already capable of providing coarse information about air quality, indicating if the air quality is good, moderate or if the air is heavily polluted. This type of information could be suitable for applications that aim to raise awareness, or engage the community by monitoring local air quality, as such applications do not require the same accuracy as scientific or regulatory monitoring.

47 CFR 90.307 - Protection criteria.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

...) and antenna height of the proposed land mobile base station and the ERP for the associated control...)). (a) Base stations operating on the frequencies available for land mobile use in any urbanized area...) For base stations having antenna heights between 152 and 914 meters (500-3000 feet) above average...

Timing and Duration of Flow in Ephemeral Streams of the Sierra Vista Subwatershed of the Upper San Pedro Basin, Cochise County, Southeastern Arizona

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gungle, Bruce

2006-01-01

Frequency, timing, and duration of streamflow were monitored in 20 ephemeral-stream channels across the Sierra Vista Subwatershed of the Upper San Pedro Basin, southeastern Arizona, during an 18-month period. One channel (Walnut Gulch) had Agricultural Research Service streamflow-gaging stations in place. The sediments of the remaining 19 ephemeral-stream channels were instrumented with multiple temperature loggers along the channel lengths. A thermograph-interpretation technique was developed in order to determine frequency, timing, and duration of streamflow in these channels. Streamflow onset was characterized by exceedance of a critical minimum drop in temperature within the channel sediments during any 15-minute interval, whereas streamflow cessation was identified by the local temperature minimum that immediately followed the critical temperature drop. All data for the 18-month period from December 1, 2000, to May 31, 2002, were analyzed in terms of monsoon (June 1 to September 19) and nonmonsoon (September 20 to May 31) periods. Nonmonsoon precipitation during the 2000-2002 study period (excludes October and November 2000) was 82 percent and 39 percent of the 30-year average, respectively, whereas monsoon precipitation during 2001 was 99 percent of the 30-year average. Ephemeral streamflow was detected at least once during the monitoring period at 87 percent of the monitoring sites (45 of the 52 sites that returned useful data; includes 4 streamflow-gaging stations). The summer monsoon period accounted for 82 percent of all streamflow events by number and 71 percent of all events by total streamflow duration. Nonmonsoon streamflow events peaked in number, total streamflow duration, and mean streamflow duration midway between the Huachuca Mountains and the San Pedro River on the west side of the subwatershed. These three streamflow parameters dropped off sharply about 10 kilometers from the mountain front. The number and total duration of nonmonsoon streamflows on the east side of the subwatershed trended downward with increased distance from the mountain fronts. Monsoon streamflow events were more evenly distributed across the subwatershed than nonmonsoon events, and the number and duration of streamflows generally trended upward with distance from the mountain fronts. Additional years of data are needed to determine whether these patterns are consistent year to year, or were due to randomness in the spatial distribution of precipitation. Streamflows in three ephemeral-stream channels were analyzed in detail. More than two-thirds of the streamflow events detected in each of these channels occurred at no more than one monitoring site along the channel length. In only one of the three channels-Garden Canyon-was a streamflow event detected at all logger sites along its length. Five temperature loggers provided data from urbanized areas, and these loggers detected streamflow more than 50 percent more often and of a duration nearly three times greater than did temperature loggers across the rural parts of the subwatershed. Because historical records do not indicate that more precipitation occurs in the urbanized area than in the rural areas, the increased frequency of flow detection in the urban area is attributed to an increase in runoff from the impervious surfaces throughout the urbanized area.

Land use planning using transit oriented development concept: Case study: Salaya station

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jarritthai, Supanee; Techpeeraparnich, Wasaporn

2017-10-01

The urban sprawl of Bangkok has increased with a motorization rate along with the expansion of the road network to adjacent cities. Nakhonpathom province, located at the southern edge of Bangkok has been affected by the urban sprawl. One of Nakhonpathom's Districts named "Salaya" Salaya has been quickly urbanized due to the establishment of many large academic institutes, such as universities, colleges and high schools as well as many commercial shopping malls. The period of 2013-2017, the Thai government introduced sustainable urban planning policy and promoted the use of public transportation systems. The Light Red Line railway extension of the Bangkok Metro Transit system will soon be constructed and the current Salaya Station will be replaced with new station. Many railway expansion projects will be built, should be designed by using transit-oriented development (TOD) scheme. This paper explores demographic information of the area, the demands of the community and relevant stakeholders for designing of the area using TOD. The proposed land use planning is designed based on the existing condition of the area as much as possible to meet the TOD standard and stakeholders' requirement. The result revealed that the guidelines of transit oriented development concept were of importance not only for planning of urban land use, supporting public transport, but also improving the quality of life.

iss028e050184

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-09-15

ISS028-E-050184 (15 Sept. 2011) --- This unique photographic angle, featuring the International Space Station?s Cupola and crew activity inside it, other hardware belonging to the station, city lights on Earth and airglow, was captured by one of the Expedition 28 crew members. The major urban area on the coast is Brisbane, Australia. The station was passing over an area southwest of Canberra.

iss028e050185

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-09-15

ISS028-E-050185 (15 Sept. 2011) --- This unique photographic angle, featuring the International Space Station?s Cupola and crew activity inside it, other hardware belonging to the station, city lights on Earth and airglow,was captured by one of the Expedition 28 crew members. The major urban area on the coast is Brisbane, Australia. The station was passing over an area southwest of Canberra.

iss028e050186

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-09-15

ISS028-E-050186 (15 Sept. 2011) --- This unique photographic angle, featuring the International Space Station?s Cupola and crew activity inside it, other hardware belonging to the station, city lights on Earth and airglow, was captured by one of the Expedition 28 crew members. The major urban area on the coast is Brisbane, Australia. The station was passing over an area southwest of Canberra.

Application of spatially gridded temperature and land cover data sets for urban heat island analysis

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gallo, Kevin; Xian, George Z.

2014-01-01

Two gridded data sets that included (1) daily mean temperatures from 2006 through 2011 and (2) satellite-derived impervious surface area, were combined for a spatial analysis of the urban heat-island effect within the Dallas-Ft. Worth Texas region. The primary advantage of using these combined datasets included the capability to designate each 1 × 1 km grid cell of available temperature data as urban or rural based on the level of impervious surface area within the grid cell. Generally, the observed differences in urban and rural temperature increased as the impervious surface area thresholds used to define an urban grid cell were increased. This result, however, was also dependent on the size of the sample area included in the analysis. As the spatial extent of the sample area increased and included a greater number of rural defined grid cells, the observed urban and rural differences in temperature also increased. A cursory comparison of the spatially gridded temperature observations with observations from climate stations suggest that the number and location of stations included in an urban heat island analysis requires consideration to assure representative samples of each (urban and rural) environment are included in the analysis.

Black Carbon and Particulate Matter (PM2.5) Concentrations in New York City’s Subway Stations

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

The New York City (NYC) subway is the main mode of transport for over 5 million passengers on an average weekday. Therefore, airborne pollutants in the subway stations could have a significant impact on commuters and subway workers. This study looked at black carbon (BC) and particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations in selected subway stations in Manhattan. BC and PM2.5 levels were measured in real time using a Micro-Aethalometer and a PDR-1500 DataRAM, respectively. Simultaneous samples were also collected on quartz filters for organic and elemental carbon (OC/EC) analysis and on Teflon filters for gravimetric and trace element analysis. In the underground subway stations, mean real time BC concentrations ranged from 5 to 23 μg/m3, with 1 min average peaks >100 μg/m3, while real time PM2.5 levels ranged from 35 to 200 μg/m3. Mean EC levels ranged from 9 to 12.5 μg/m3. At street level on the same days, the mean BC and PM2.5 concentrations were below 3 and 10 μg/m3, respectively. This study shows that both BC soot and PM levels in NYC’s subways are considerably higher than ambient urban street levels and that further monitoring and investigation of BC and PM subway exposures are warranted. PMID:25409007

Black carbon and particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations in New York City's subway stations.

PubMed

Vilcassim, M J Ruzmyn; Thurston, George D; Peltier, Richard E; Gordon, Terry

2014-12-16

The New York City (NYC) subway is the main mode of transport for over 5 million passengers on an average weekday. Therefore, airborne pollutants in the subway stations could have a significant impact on commuters and subway workers. This study looked at black carbon (BC) and particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations in selected subway stations in Manhattan. BC and PM2.5 levels were measured in real time using a Micro-Aethalometer and a PDR-1500 DataRAM, respectively. Simultaneous samples were also collected on quartz filters for organic and elemental carbon (OC/EC) analysis and on Teflon filters for gravimetric and trace element analysis. In the underground subway stations, mean real time BC concentrations ranged from 5 to 23 μg/m(3), with 1 min average peaks >100 μg/m(3), while real time PM2.5 levels ranged from 35 to 200 μg/m(3). Mean EC levels ranged from 9 to 12.5 μg/m(3). At street level on the same days, the mean BC and PM2.5 concentrations were below 3 and 10 μg/m(3), respectively. This study shows that both BC soot and PM levels in NYC's subways are considerably higher than ambient urban street levels and that further monitoring and investigation of BC and PM subway exposures are warranted.

Greater Baltimore Open Air: an Internet of Things (IoT) approach to citizen science and community-driven climate, air quality, and urban heat island monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scott, A.; Kelley, C.; Azdoud, Y.; Ambikapathi, R.; Hobson, M.; Lehman, A.; Ghugare, P.; He, C.; Zaitchik, B. F.; Waugh, D.; McCormack, M.; Baja, K.

2017-12-01

Anthropogenic activities alter the urban surface and surface atmosphere, generating heat and pollutants that have known detrimental impacts on health. Monitoring these environmental variables in urban environments is made difficult by the spatial heterogeneity of urban environments, meaning that two nearby locations may have significantly different temperatures, humidities, or gas concentrations. Thus, urban monitoring often requires more densely placed monitors than current standards or budgets allow. Recent advances in low-cost sensors and Internet of Things (IoT) enabled hardware offer possible solutions. We present an autonomous wireless, open-source, IoT-enabled environmental monitor called a WeatherCube, developed for the Greater Baltimore Open Air project, funded in part by the EPA SmartCity Challenge. The WeatherCube is suitable for urban monitoring and capable of measuring meteorological variables (temperature and humidity) as well as air quality (ozone, nitrogen dioxide, and sulfur dioxide). The WeatherCube devices were built in collaboration with Johns Hopkins University, local government, and community members, including through an innovative job training program. Monitors are hosted by community partners and libraries throughout Baltimore city and surrounding communities. We present the first wave of data collected by the Greater Baltimore Open Air project and compare it to data collected by the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE). Additionally, we will provide an overview of our experience engaging with the local makers, citizen scientists, and environmental groups to improve their urban environmental monitoring. By developing low-cost devices tailored for urban environmental monitoring, we present an innovative model for both conducting research and community outreach.

46 CFR 35.40-17 - Foam hose/monitor stations-T/ALL.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 46 Shipping 1 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Foam hose/monitor stations-T/ALL. 35.40-17 Section 35.40... Requirements-TB/ALL. § 35.40-17 Foam hose/monitor stations—T/ALL. (a) At each required foam hose/monitor valve there shall be marked in not less than 2-inch red letters and figures: “FOAM STATION 1,” 2, 3, etc. (b...

46 CFR 35.40-17 - Foam hose/monitor stations-T/ALL.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Foam hose/monitor stations-T/ALL. 35.40-17 Section 35.40... Requirements-TB/ALL. § 35.40-17 Foam hose/monitor stations—T/ALL. (a) At each required foam hose/monitor valve there shall be marked in not less than 2-inch red letters and figures: “FOAM STATION 1,” 2, 3, etc. (b...

Long-Term Daily and Monthly Climate Records from Stations Across the Contiguous United States (U.S.Historical Climatology Network) (NDP-019)

DOE Data Explorer

Menne, M. J. [National Climatic Data Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Williams, Jr., C. N. [National Climatic Data Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Vose, R. S. [National Climatic Data Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

2016-01-01

The United States Historical Climatology Network (USHCN) is a high-quality data set of daily and monthly records of basic meteorological variables from 1218 observing stations across the 48 contiguous United States. Daily data include observations of maximum and minimum temperature, precipitation amount, snowfall amount, and snow depth; monthly data consist of monthly-averaged maximum, minimum, and mean temperature and total monthly precipitation. Most of these stations are U.S. Cooperative Observing Network stations located generally in rural locations, while some are National Weather Service First-Order stations that are often located in more urbanized environments. The USHCN has been developed over the years at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) to assist in the detection of regional climate change. Furthermore, it has been widely used in analyzing U.S. climte. The period of record varies for each station. USHCN stations were chosen using a number of criteria including length of record, percent of missing data, number of station moves and other station changes that may affect data homogeneity, and resulting network spatial coverage. Collaboration between NCDC and CDIAC on the USHCN project dates to the 1980s (Quinlan et al. 1987). At that time, in response to the need for an accurate, unbiased, modern historical climate record for the United States, the Global Change Research Program of the U.S. Department of Energy and NCDC chose a network of 1219 stations in the contiguous United States that would become a key baseline data set for monitoring U.S. climate. This initial USHCN data set contained monthly data and was made available free of charge from CDIAC. Since then it has been comprehensively updated several times [e.g., Karl et al. (1990) and Easterling et al. (1996)]. The initial USHCN daily data set was made available through CDIAC via Hughes et al. (1992) and contained a 138-station subset of the USHCN. This product was updated by Easterling et al. (1999) and expanded to include 1062 stations. In 2009 the daily USHCN dataset was expanded to include all 1218 stations in the USHCN.

Mobile system for on-road measurements of air pollutants.

PubMed

Katulski, Ryszard J; Namieśnik, Jacek; Sadowski, Jarosław; Stefański, Jacek; Szymańska, Krystyna; Wardencki, Waldemar

2010-04-01

The paper presents a prototype of a mobile monitoring system for measuring the levels of the main traffic air pollutants (C(6)H(6), NO(2), NO(x), CO, and CO(2),) in cities. The novelty of the proposed system lies in the fact that it can be utilized to monitor emissions from urban traffic along roads and areas where traditional monitoring stations cannot be placed. In the proposed system, the monitoring device can be mounted on any moving vehicle (such as a car, bus, or truck) rather than be attached to a dedicated van, as most systems of this kind found in literature are. Analyzers used in this system are small portable structures that contain an electronic instrument to measure, record, and transmit relevant data on concentrations of the pollutants to a website. The model outcome for carbon monoxide obtained in functional tests in real conditions is also presented here. Data on temporal changes of carbon monoxide concentration are compared against meteorological parameters and speed of the vehicle. Spatial interpolation techniques are applied to obtain a nonplanar visualization of carbon monoxide and benzene concentrations in the main arteries of a city.

Mobile system for on-road measurements of air pollutants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Katulski, Ryszard J.; Namieśnik, Jacek; Sadowski, Jarosław; Stefański, Jacek; Szymańska, Krystyna; Wardencki, Waldemar

2010-04-01

The paper presents a prototype of a mobile monitoring system for measuring the levels of the main traffic air pollutants (C6H6, NO2, NOx, CO, and CO2,) in cities. The novelty of the proposed system lies in the fact that it can be utilized to monitor emissions from urban traffic along roads and areas where traditional monitoring stations cannot be placed. In the proposed system, the monitoring device can be mounted on any moving vehicle (such as a car, bus, or truck) rather than be attached to a dedicated van, as most systems of this kind found in literature are. Analyzers used in this system are small portable structures that contain an electronic instrument to measure, record, and transmit relevant data on concentrations of the pollutants to a website. The model outcome for carbon monoxide obtained in functional tests in real conditions is also presented here. Data on temporal changes of carbon monoxide concentration are compared against meteorological parameters and speed of the vehicle. Spatial interpolation techniques are applied to obtain a nonplanar visualization of carbon monoxide and benzene concentrations in the main arteries of a city.

A preliminary investigation of noise impact within metro stations in the urban city of Guangzhou, China.

PubMed

Wang, Peng; Wang, Yimin; Zou, Chao; Guo, Jixing

2017-04-01

The noise in the metro station is synthesized from a variety of different noise sources. Excessive noise exposure will bring serious impacts on humans' health. To alleviate the shortage of the urban land, most metro stations are planning to develop convenience stores and shopping malls. In order to evaluate the potential noise impact on humans' comfort in the metro stations, this study selected four representative stations of Guangzhou Metro Line 1 to carry out a preliminary questionnaire survey of 226 respondents for the perception and perform a noise measurement. Additionally, platform screen doors as a potential method for noise mitigation were examined. The results show that the noise caused by trains was dominant in the metro stations; however, the noise impact by public broadcast and passengers cannot be ignored. The noise levels of the transfer stations were obviously greater than the normal stations, especially during the peak hours. In addition, people in the metro stations have potential exposure to noise that the noise levels exceed the criteria limit of China, which would bring discomfort for humans; however, the normal activities of people would not be impacted. The platform screen doors should be further improved or relevant noise mitigation methods should be taken into account to reduce the noise level within the criteria limit.

Locations of Sampling Stations for Water Quality Monitoring in Water Distribution Networks.

PubMed

Rathi, Shweta; Gupta, Rajesh

2014-04-01

Water quality is required to be monitored in the water distribution networks (WDNs) at salient locations to assure the safe quality of water supplied to the consumers. Such monitoring stations (MSs) provide warning against any accidental contaminations. Various objectives like demand coverage, time for detection, volume of water contaminated before detection, extent of contamination, expected population affected prior to detection, detection likelihood and others, have been independently or jointly considered in determining optimal number and location of MSs in WDNs. "Demand coverage" defined as the percentage of network demand monitored by a particular monitoring station is a simple measure to locate MSs. Several methods based on formulation of coverage matrix using pre-specified coverage criteria and optimization have been suggested. Coverage criteria is defined as some minimum percentage of total flow received at the monitoring stations that passed through any upstream node included then as covered node of the monitoring station. Number of monitoring stations increases with the increase in the value of coverage criteria. Thus, the design of monitoring station becomes subjective. A simple methodology is proposed herein which priority wise iteratively selects MSs to achieve targeted demand coverage. The proposed methodology provided the same number and location of MSs for illustrative network as an optimization method did. Further, the proposed method is simple and avoids subjectivity that could arise from the consideration of coverage criteria. The application of methodology is also shown on a WDN of Dharampeth zone (Nagpur city WDN in Maharashtra, India) having 285 nodes and 367 pipes.

Temporal and spatial distribution of particulate carcinogens and mutagens in Bangkok, Thailand.

PubMed

Pongpiachan, Siwatt; Choochuay, C; Hattayanone, M; Kositanont, C

2013-01-01

To investigate the level of genotoxicity over Bangkok atmosphere, PM10 samples were collected at the Klongchan Housing Authority (KHA), Nonsree High School (NHS), Watsing High School (WHS), Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), Chokchai 4 Police Station (CPS), Dindaeng Housing Authority (DHA) and Badindecha High School (BHS). For all monitoring stations, each sample covered a period of 24 hours taken at a normal weekday every month from January-December 2006 forming a database of 84 individual air samples (i.e. 12?7=84). Atmospheric concentrations of low molecular weight PAHs (i.e. phenanthrene, anthracene, pyrene and fluoranthene) were measured in PM10 at seven observatory sites operated by the pollution control department of Thailand (PCD). The mutagenicity of extracts of the samples was compared in Salmonella according to standard Ames test method. The dependence of the effects on sampling time and on sampling location was investigated with the aid of a calculation of mutagenic index (MI). This MI was used to estimate the increase in mutagenicity above background levels (i.e. negative control) at the seven monitoring sites in urban area of Bangkok due to anthropogenic emissions within that area. Applications of the AMES method showed that the average MI of PM10 collected at all sampling sites were 1.37±0.10 (TA98; +S9), 1.24±0.08 (TA98; -S9), 1.45±0.10 (TA100; +S9) and 1.30±0.09 (TA100; -S9) with relatively less variations. Analytical results reconfirm that the particulate PAH concentrations measured at PCD air quality monitoring stations are moderately low in comparison with previous results observed in other countries. In addition, the concept of incremental lifetime particulate matter exposure (ILPE) was employed to investigate the potential risks of exposure to particulate PAHs in Bangkok atmosphere.

The impact of urban morphology and land cover on the sensible heat flux retrieved by satellite and in-situ observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gawuc, L.; Łobocki, L.; Kaminski, J. W.

2017-12-01

Land surface temperature (LST) is a key parameter in various applications for urban environments research. However, remotely-sensed radiative surface temperature is not equivalent to kinetic nor aerodynamic surface temperature (Becker and Li, 1995; Norman and Becker, 1995). Thermal satellite observations of urban areas are also prone to angular anisotropy which is directly connected with the urban structure and relative sun-satellite position (Hu et al., 2016). Sensible heat flux (Qh) is the main component of surface energy balance in urban areas. Retrieval of Qh, requires observations of, among others, a temperature gradient. The lower level of temperature measurement is commonly replaced by remotely-sensed radiative surface temperature (Chrysoulakis, 2003; Voogt and Grimmond, 2000; Xu et al., 2008). However, such replacement requires accounting for the differences between aerodynamic and radiative surface temperature (Chehbouni et al., 1996; Sun and Mahrt, 1995). Moreover, it is important to avoid micro-scale processes, which play a major role in the roughness sublayer. This is due to the fact that Monin-Obukhov similarity theory is valid only in dynamic sublayer. We will present results of the analyses of the impact of urban morphology and land cover on the seasonal changes of sensible heat flux (Qh). Qh will be retrieved by two approaches. First will be based on satellite observations of radiative surface temperature and second will be based on in-situ observations of kinetic road temperature. Both approaches will utilize wind velocity, and air temperature observed in-situ. We will utilize time series of MODIS LST observations for the period of 2005-2014 as well as simultaneous in-situ observations collected by road weather network (9 stations). Ground stations are located across the city of Warsaw, outside the city centre in low-rise urban structure. We will account for differences in urban morphology and land cover in the proximity of ground stations. We will utilize DEM and Urban Atlas LULC database and freely available visible aerial and satellite imagery. All the analyses will be conducted for single pixels, which will be closest to the locations of the ground stations (nearest neighbour approach). Appropriate figures showing the seasonal variability of Qh will be presented.

National Forest Health Monitoring Program, Monitoring Urban Forests in Indiana: Pilot Study 2002, Part 1: Analysis of Field Methods and Data Collection

Treesearch

US Forest Service, Northeastern Area, State and Private Forestry

2006-01-01

This report highlights findings from the first statewide urban forest health monitoring pilot study conducted in the State of Indiana in 2002. The report is in two parts. Part One summarizes analysis of the field methods and data collected on the urban nonforest plots of one panel in Indiana, and Part Two expands these data to statewide urban forest estimates with the...

National Forest Health Monitoring Program Monitoring Urban Forests in Indiana: Pilot Study 2002, Part 1: Analysis of Field Methods and Data Collection

Treesearch

Matt Lake; Philip Marshall; Manfred Mielke; Anne Buckelew Cumming; Daniel Twardus

2006-01-01

This report highlights findings from the first statewide urban forest health monitoring pilot study conducted in the State of Indiana in 2002. The report is in two parts: Part One summarizes analysis of the field methods and data collected on the urban nonforest plots of one panel in Indiana, and Part Two expands these data to statewide urban forest estimates with the...

Hydrologic monitoring of selected streams in coal fields of central and southern Utah; summary of data collected, August 1978-September 1984

USGS Publications Warehouse

Price, Don; Plantz, G.G.

1987-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey conducted a coal-hydrology monitoring program in coal-field areas of central and southern Utah during August 1978-September 1984 to determine possible hydrologic impacts of future mining and to provide a better understanding of the hydrologic systems of the coal resource areas monitored. Data were collected at 19 gaging stations--18 stations in the Price, San Rafael, and Dirty Devil River basins, and 1 in the Kanab Creek Basin. Streamflow data were collected continuously at 11 stations and seasonally at 5 stations. At the other three stations streamflow data were collected continuously during the 1979 water year and then seasonally for the rest of their periods of record. Types of data collected at each station included quantity and quality of streamflow; suspended sediment concentrations; and descriptions of stream bottom sediments, benthic invertebrate, and phytoplankton samples. Also, base flow measurements were made annually upstream from 12 of the gaging stations. Stream bottom sediment sampled at nearly all the monitoring sites contained small to moderate quantities of coal, which may be attributed chiefly to pre-monitoring mining. Streamflow sampled at several sites contained large concentrations of sulfate and dissolved solids. Also, concentrations of various trace elements at 10 stations, and phenols at 18 stations, exceeded the criteria of the EPA for drinking water. This may be attributed to contemporary (water years 1979-84) mine drainage activities. The data collected during the complete water years (1979-84) of monitoring do provide a better understanding of the hydrologic systems of the coal field areas monitored. The data also provide a definite base by which to evaluate hydrologic impacts of continued or increased coal mining in those areas. (Author 's abstract)

Development of a monitoring platform for slope instability and sliding prevention : preliminary results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Drakatos, G.; Paradissis, D.; Anastasiou, D.; Elias, P.; Marinou, A.; Chousianitis, K.; Papanikolaou, X.; Zacharis, V.; Argyrakis, P.; Papazisi, K.; Makropoulos, K.

2012-04-01

Land sliding, as a consequence of slope instability, constitutes a natural catastrophe resulting mainly from geological cause often followed by disastrous impact on both the natural and man-made environment. The reasons causing land slides can vary from purely geological factors, to other relevant or not natural catastrophes, urban or residential expansion, tourist growth in areas under inappropriate geological background, or even a combination of the aforementioned causes The respective consequences, also span a wide range of negative impacts, both for the man-made (e.g. destruction of transportation infrastructure, constructions and urban or sub-urban areas) and the natural environment. Unfortunately, prevention of land slides is still largely ineffective adding to an inefficient and inadequate addressing of the problem, mainly due to the lack of systematic monitoring of such regions and due to the fact that "treatment" overwhelms "prevention". Recent developments in Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), Satellite Geodesy and satellite differential interferometry (DinSAR), have established these fields as fully equipped, from a scientific and engineering perspective, to act --either as autonomous techniques or in conjunction-- as prevention and/or early warning systems. Such state-of-the-art technology was implemented, in a project undertaken by the Institute of Geodynamics Dionysos Satellite Observatory/Higher Geodesy Laboratory and the Institute for Space Applications and Remote Sensing, in order to evaluate the potential of monitoring slide stability and the assessment of hazard evaluation. Therefore, for the first time in Greece, an attempt was made to develop a monitoring platform for slope instability and sliding prevention at two of the most hazardous, regarding soil instabilities, regions of Peloponnese, namely Sellas and Chalkio (in Messinia and Korinthia respectively). GPS campaigns were carried through, cGPS stations were installed and a network of artificial corner reflectors was established, providing a combination of satellite data, which were in turn analyzed and integrated. In the current study, all relevant activities regarding data collection/acquisition and respective processing are presented, followed by the induced (still preliminary at this point) results.

Heavy metal transport in large river systems: heavy metal emissions and loads in the Rhine and Elbe river basins

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vink, Rona; Behrendt, Horst

2002-11-01

Pollutant transport and management in the Rhine and Elbe basins is still of international concern, since certain target levels set by the international committees for protection of both rivers have not been reached. The analysis of the chain of emissions of point and diffuse sources to river loads will provide policy makers with a tool for effective management of river basins. The analysis of large river basins such as the Elbe and Rhine requires information on the spatial and temporal characteristics of both emissions and physical information of the entire river basin. In this paper, an analysis has been made of heavy metal emissions from various point and diffuse sources in the Rhine and Elbe drainage areas. Different point and diffuse pathways are considered in the model, such as inputs from industry, wastewater treatment plants, urban areas, erosion, groundwater, atmospheric deposition, tile drainage, and runoff. In most cases the measured heavy metal loads at monitoring stations are lower than the sum of the heavy metal emissions. This behaviour in large river systems can largely be explained by retention processes (e.g. sedimentation) and is dependent on the specific runoff of a catchment. Independent of the method used to estimate emissions, the source apportionment analysis of observed loads was used to determine the share of point and diffuse sources in the heavy metal load at a monitoring station by establishing a discharge dependency. The results from both the emission analysis and the source apportionment analysis of observed loads were compared and gave similar results. Between 51% (for Hg) and 74% (for Pb) of the total transport in the Elbe basin is supplied by inputs from diffuse sources. In the Rhine basin diffuse source inputs dominate the total transport and deliver more than 70% of the total transport. The diffuse hydrological pathways with the highest share are erosion and urban areas.

Quality of surface water in Missouri, water year 2012

USGS Publications Warehouse

Barr, Miya N.

2014-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, designed and operates a series of monitoring stations on streams and springs throughout Missouri known as the Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network. During the 2012 water year (October 1, 2011, through September 30, 2012), data were collected at 81 stations—73 Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network stations, 6 alternate Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network stations, and 2 U.S. Geological Survey National Stream Quality Accounting Network stations. Dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, water temperature, suspended solids, suspended sediment, fecal coliform bacteria, Escherichia coli bacteria, dissolved nitrate plus nitrite as nitrogen, total phosphorus, dissolved and total recoverable lead and zinc, and select pesticide compound summaries are presented for 78 of these stations. The stations primarily have been classified into groups corresponding to the physiography of the State, primary land use, or unique station types. In addition, a summary of hydrologic conditions in the State including peak discharges, monthly mean discharges, and 7-day low flow is presented.

Reevaluation of air surveillance station siting

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Abbott, K.; Jannik, T.

2016-07-06

DOE Technical Standard HDBK-1216-2015 (DOE 2015) recommends evaluating air-monitoring station placement using the analytical method developed by Waite. The technique utilizes wind rose and population distribution data in order to determine a weighting factor for each directional sector surrounding a nuclear facility. Based on the available resources (number of stations) and a scaling factor, this weighting factor is used to determine the number of stations recommended to be placed in each sector considered. An assessment utilizing this method was performed in 2003 to evaluate the effectiveness of the existing SRS air-monitoring program. The resulting recommended distribution of air-monitoring stations wasmore » then compared to that of the existing site perimeter surveillance program. The assessment demonstrated that the distribution of air-monitoring stations at the time generally agreed with the results obtained using the Waite method; however, at the time new stations were established in Barnwell and in Williston in order to meet requirements of DOE guidance document EH-0173T.« less

Quality of surface water in Missouri, water year 2013

USGS Publications Warehouse

Barr, Miya N.; Schneider, Rachel E.

2014-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, designed and operates a series of monitoring stations on streams and springs throughout Missouri known as the Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network. During the 2013 water year (October 1, 2012, through September 30, 2013), data were collected at 79 stations—73 Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network stations, 4 alternate Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network stations, and 2 U.S. Geological Survey National Stream Quality Accounting Network stations. Dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, water temperature, suspended solids, suspended sediment, Escherichia coli bacteria, fecal coliform bacteria, dissolved nitrate plus nitrite as nitrogen, total phosphorus, dissolved and total recoverable lead and zinc, and select pesticide compound summaries are presented for 76 of these stations. The stations primarily have been classified into groups corresponding to the physiography of the State, primary land use, or unique station types. In addition, a summary of hydrologic conditions in the State including peak discharges, monthly mean discharges, and 7-day low flow is presented.

Lagtime relations for urban streams in Georgia

USGS Publications Warehouse

Inman, Ernest J.

2000-01-01

Urban flood hydrographs are needed for the design of many highway drainage structures, embankments, and entrances to detention ponds. The three components that are needed to simulate urban flood hydrographs at ungaged sites are the design flood, the dimensionless hydrograph, and lagtime. The design flood and the dimensionless hydrograph have been presented in earlier studies for urban streams in Georgia. The objective of this study was to develop equations for estimating lagtime for urban streams in Georgia. Lagtimes were computed for 329 floods at 69 urban gaging stations in 11 cities in Georgia. These data were used to compute an average lagtime for each gaging station. Multiple regression analysis was then used to define relations between lagtime and certain physical basin characteristics, of which drainage area, slope, and impervious area were found to be significant. A qualitative variable was used to account for a geographical bias in flood-frequency region 4, a small area of southwestern Georgia. Information from this report can be used to simulate a flood hydrograph using a dimensionless hydrograph, the design flood, and the lagtime obtained from regression equations for any urban site with less than a 25-square-mile drainage area in Georgia.

Web Information Systems for Monitoring and Control of Indoor Air Quality at Subway Stations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Choi, Gi Heung; Choi, Gi Sang; Jang, Joo Hyoung

In crowded subway stations indoor air quality (IAQ) is a key factor for ensuring the safety, health and comfort of passengers. In this study, a framework for web-based information system in VDN environment for monitoring and control of IAQ in subway stations is suggested. Since physical variables that describing IAQ need to be closely monitored and controlled in multiple locations in subway stations, concept of distributed monitoring and control network using wireless media needs to be implemented. Connecting remote wireless sensor network and device (LonWorks) networks to the IP network based on the concept of VDN can provide a powerful, integrated, distributed monitoring and control performance, making a web-based information system possible.

Weekend Commercial Children's Television, 1975. A Study of Programming and Advertising to Children on Five Boston Stations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barcus, F. Earle

Some 25-1/2 hours of Boston commercial television for children were monitored on a Saturday and Sunday in April 1975. The monitoring covered three network affiliated stations and two independent UHF stations. Monitoring, coding, and editing provided much statistical data, which was analyzed to yield findings in the areas of distribution of…

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fulle, D.J.; Bilello, M.A.; Armstrong, J.A.

The US Trade and Development Agency is partially funding the initial phase of an ambient air quality monitoring program for the Metropolitan Municipality of Istanbul in Turkey. The objectives of the monitoring program are fourfold: (1) to ascertain existing levels of air pollution within the urban area; (2) to identify locations where there may be health concerns associated with existing levels of air pollution; (3) to determine the portion of air pollution arising from specific anthropogenic sources within the urban area; and (4) to target the major sources for an emission-reduction program. This program is being carried out in phases.more » A feasibility study has recently been completed. This initial activity will be followed by three main program phases. Phase 1 will involve the installation of several air quality monitoring stations to collect area-wide background data within and surrounding the Municipality. Phase 2 will consist of taking detailed pollutant measurements near specific sources and in specific areas of high pollutant concentrations identified in Phase 1. Phase 3 would target the major sources for emission reductions to improve local air quality and would institute revisions to the existing air quality permitting program. The feasibility study included determining the pollutants of concern, specifying the equipment that should be utilized in Phase 1 for the collection of the data, recommending the number and location of sites where data should be collected, determining site preparation and security needs, and defining the data reduction and analysis techniques which should be employed. This paper describes the results of the feasibility study and outlines plans for the remaining phases of the program.« less

Urban 'Dry Island' in Moscow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lokoshchenko, Mikhail A.

2017-04-01

The urban 'dry island' (UDI) phenomenon over Moscow city has been studied and analyzed for the period since the end of the 19th century till recent years using the data of the ground meteorological network. It concludes into less values of relative humidity in a city in the comparison with surrounding rural zone. The reason of this phenomenon is, firstly, limited areas of forest zones and less number of other water vapor sources inside a city and, besides, indirect influence of the urban heat island (UHI), i.e. higher air temperature T inside a city. Mean-annual water vapor pressure E doesn't demonstrate systematic changes in Moscow during the last 146 years. The linear regression coefficient K of its course is equal to only 0.0015 [hPa/year], thus since 1870 the average water content in the ground air layer above Moscow increased on average only a little: by 0.2 hPa; such a small difference seems to be negligible and statistically non-significant. Unlike this parameter mean-annual relative humidity F demonstrates quick and systematic (steady in time) fall with the average rate of K = -0.06 [%/year] during the last 146 years; in other words, it decreased from 81 % in 1870s to nearly 72 % in recent years. Inside the city it is the result of general T increase due to both global warming and, besides, intensification of Moscow UHI. Long-term changes of the F spatial field in Moscow city have been studied in details for separate periods since 1890s till recent years. As a result the urban 'dry island' is found as a real physical phenomenon which is closely connected with UHI; the absolute value of its intensity as well as for the UHI is increasing in time: from -4 % at the end of the 19th century to -8 ÷-9 % now. During last two decades UDI as well as UHI became much stronger in Moscow than before. For instance, on average of five years from 2010 to 2014 the F value at 'Balchug' station at the city centre (close to Moscow Kremlin) is the lowest among all other stations in the region: 68.0 %; the mean F values in urban and rural areas by the data of 5 urban and 13 rural stations for the same period are 73.2 and 76.6 % accordingly. Hence the maximum intensity of UDI, i.e. a difference between values from central urban station and rural stations, is equal to -8.6 % whereas the spatial-averaged intensity that is a difference between average values from all urban and all rural stations is -3.4 %. Thus, the UDI in recent years is mapped by two isovapores: 70 and 75 %. The difference between values of E inside and outside the city is small. For example, on average of 7 years from 1991 to 1997 it was only 0.1 hPa so it is not statistically significant. Thus, unlike average dryness, average humidity does not demonstrate stable in time local effects such as urban island.

Comparison between air pollution concentrations measured at the nearest monitoring station to the delivery hospital and those measured at stations nearest the residential postal code regions of pregnant women in Fukuoka.

PubMed

Michikawa, Takehiro; Morokuma, Seiichi; Nitta, Hiroshi; Kato, Kiyoko; Yamazaki, Shin

2017-06-13

Numerous earlier studies examining the association of air pollution with maternal and foetal health estimated maternal exposure to air pollutants based on the women's residential addresses. However, residential addresses, which are personally identifiable information, are not always obtainable. Since a majority of pregnant women reside near their delivery hospitals, the concentrations of air pollutants at the respective delivery hospitals may be surrogate markers of pollutant exposure at home. We compared air pollutant concentrations measured at the nearest monitoring station to Kyushu University Hospital with those measured at the closest monitoring stations to the respective residential postal code regions of pregnant women in Fukuoka. Aggregated postal code data for the home addresses of pregnant women who delivered at Kyushu University Hospital in 2014 was obtained from Kyushu University Hospital. For each of the study's 695 women who resided in Fukuoka Prefecture, we assigned pollutant concentrations measured at the nearest monitoring station to Kyushu University Hospital and pollutant concentrations measured at the nearest monitoring station to their respective residential postal code regions. Among the 695 women, 584 (84.0%) resided in the proximity of the nearest monitoring station to hospital or one of the four other stations (as the nearest stations to their respective residential postal code region) in Fukuoka city. Pearson's correlation for daily mean concentrations among the monitoring stations in Fukuoka city was strong for fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ), suspended particulate matter (SPM), and photochemical oxidants (Ox) (coefficients ≥0.9), but moderate for coarse particulate matter (the result of subtracting the PM 2.5 from the SPM concentrations), nitrogen dioxide, and sulphur dioxide. Hospital-based and residence-based concentrations of PM 2.5 , SPM, and Ox were comparable. For PM 2.5 , SPM, and Ox, exposure estimation based on the delivery hospital is likely to approximate that based on the home of pregnant women.

Updated population metadata for United States historical climatology network stations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Owen, T.W.; Gallo, K.P.

2000-01-01

The United States Historical Climatology Network (HCN) serial temperature dataset is comprised of 1221 high-quality, long-term climate observing stations. The HCN dataset is available in several versions, one of which includes population-based temperature modifications to adjust urban temperatures for the "heat-island" effect. Unfortunately, the decennial population metadata file is not complete as missing values are present for 17.6% of the 12 210 population values associated with the 1221 individual stations during the 1900-90 interval. Retrospective grid-based populations. Within a fixed distance of an HCN station, were estimated through the use of a gridded population density dataset and historically available U.S. Census county data. The grid-based populations for the HCN stations provide values derived from a consistent methodology compared to the current HCN populations that can vary as definitions of the area associated with a city change over time. The use of grid-based populations may minimally be appropriate to augment populations for HCN climate stations that lack any population data, and are recommended when consistent and complete population data are required. The recommended urban temperature adjustments based on the HCN and grid-based methods of estimating station population can be significantly different for individual stations within the HCN dataset.

Compliance with the annual NO 2 air quality standard in Athens. Required NO x levels and expected health implications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chaloulakou, A.; Mavroidis, I.; Gavriil, I.

Recent risk assessment studies have shown that high outdoor NO 2 levels observed in residential areas contribute to increased respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and mortality. Detailed information on present NO 2 levels as well as predictions of NO 2 concentrations corresponding to reduced NO x levels in urban areas are very useful to decision and policy makers in order to protect the public health. In the present paper, monitoring stations of the Athens network are initially classified into two main groups, traffic affected and urban background, using effectively a criterion based on the ratio of annual mean NO:NO 2 concentrations. Two empirical methodologies are then considered and compared for assessing the effect of different NO x levels on the attainment of the annual NO 2 air quality standard at urban-background locations in the Athens area. An interesting finding is that these two methodologies, one more general and one both year and site dependent, give similar results for the specific study area and can be applied alternatively based on the length of available concentration time series. The results show that in order to meet the EU annual mean NO 2 objective at all the urban-background locations of the Athens area, annual NO x concentrations should be reduced to approximately 60 μg m -3, requiring NO x emission reductions of up to 30%. An analysis of the health implications of the currently observed NO 2 levels is conducted, based on a dose-response relationship, and is coupled with available health-related data for the Athens area. This analysis suggests that if NO 2 concentrations were reduced to the levels of the annual EU air quality standard, then a decrease of hospital admissions of up to 2.6% would be observed, depending on the levels of NO 2 measured at different monitoring sites of the Athens conurbation.

Study on the Association Between Ambient Temperature and Mortality Using Spatially Resolved Exposure Data

PubMed Central

Lee, Mihye; Shi, Liuhua; Zanobetti, Antonella; Schwartz, Joel D.

2016-01-01

There are many studies that have posited an association between extreme temperature and increased mortality. However, most studies use temperature at a single station per city as the reference point to analyze deaths. This leads to exposure misclassification and usually the exclusion of exurban, small town, and rural populations. In addition, few studies control for confounding by PM2.5, which is expected to induce upward bias. The high-resolution temperature and PM2.5 data at a resolution of 1 km2 were derived from satellite images and other land use sources. To capture the nonlinear association of temperature with mortality we fit a piecewise linear spline function for temperature, with a change in slope at −1 °C and 28 °C, the temperature threshold at which mortality in Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina increases due to cold and heat, respectively. We conducted stratified analyses by age group, sex, race, education, and urban vs nonurban, as well as sensitivity analyses of different temperature threshold and covariate sets. We found a 0.19% (95% CI = −0.98, 1.34%) increase in mortality for each 1 °C decrease in temperature below −1 °C and a 2.05% (95% CI = 0.87, 3.24%) increase in mortality for each 1°C increase in temperature above 28 °C, a 79.8% larger effect size for heat compared to the station-based metric. The effect estimates relying on the monitoring stations were 0.09% (95% CI = −0.79, 0.95%) and 1.14 % (95% CI = 0.08, 1.57%) for the equivalent temperature changes. The estimates were not confounded by PM2.5. Children under 15 years of age had the largest percentage increase per 1 °C increase in temperature (8.19%, 95% CI = −0.38 to 17.49%) followed by Blacks (4.35%, 95% CI = 2.22 to 6.53%). Higher education was a protective factor for the effect of extreme temperature on mortality. There was a suggestion that people in less urban areas were more susceptible to extreme temperature. The relationship between temperature and mortality was stronger when using exposure data with more spatial variability than using exposure data based on existing monitors alone. PMID:27611992

A computerized system to measure and predict air quality for emission control

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Crooks, G.; Ciccone, A.; Frattolillo, P.

1997-12-31

A Supplementary Emission Control (SEC) system has been developed on behalf of the Association Industrielle de l`Est de Montreal (AIEM). The objective of the SEC is to avoid exceedences of the Montreal Urban Community (MUC) 24 hour ambient Air Quality Standard (AQS) for sulphur dioxide in the industrial East Montreal area. The SEC system is comprised of: 3 continuous SO{sub 2} monitoring stations with data loggers and remote communications; a meteorological tower with data logger and modem for acquiring local meteorology; communications with Environment Canada to download meteorological forecast data; a polling PC for data retrieval; and Windows NT basedmore » software running on the AIEM computer server. The SEC software utilizes relational databases to store and maintain measured SO{sub 2} concentration data, emission data, as well as observed and forecast meteorological data. The SEC system automatically executes a numerical dispersion model to forecast SO{sub 2} concentrations up to six hours in the future. Based on measured SO{sub 2} concentrations at the monitoring stations and the six hour forecast concentrations, the system determines if local sources should reduce their emission levels to avoid potential exceedences of the AQS. The SEC system also includes a Graphical User Interface (GUI) for user access to the system. The SEC system and software are described, and the accuracy of the system at forecasting SO{sub 2} concentrations is examined.« less

One Hundred Years of New York City's "Urban Heat Island": Temperature Trends and Public Health Impacts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosenthal, J. E.; Knowlton, K. M.; Rosenzweig, C.; Goldberg, R.; Kinney, P. L.

2003-12-01

In this paper, we examine the relationship between the historical development of New York City and its effect on the urban climate. Urban "heat islands" (UHI) are created principally by man-made surfaces, including concrete, dark roofs, asphalt lots and roads, which absorb most of the sunlight falling on them and reradiate that energy as heat. Many urban streets have fewer trees and other vegetation to shade buildings, block solar radiation and cool the air by evapotranspiration. The historical development of the NYC heat island effect was assessed in terms of average temperature differences of the city center relative to its surrounding 31-county metropolitan region, comprised of parts of New York State, New Jersey, and Connecticut. Monthly maximum and minimum temperatures for 1900-1997 were obtained from NOAA's National Climatic Data Center, the NASA-Goddard Institute for Space Studies, and the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University for 24 weather stations within the region that are part of the U.S. Historical Climatology Network. Analysis of annual mean temperatures shows an increasing difference between NYC (Central Park weather station) and its surrounding region over the twentieth century. Analysis of the temperature differences over time between NY Central Park (NYCP) station and 23 regional weather stations classified according to distance and level of urbanization show a heat island effect existing in NYC, with mean temperatures in the NYCP Station generally higher than the surrounding stations, ranging from 1.20\\deg C to 3.02\\deg C. A difference of at least 1\\deg C already existed at the beginning of the 20th century between the mean temperature in NYC and its surrounding rural areas, and this difference increased over the twentieth century. There was a significant decrease in the monthly and seasonal variability of the UHI effect over the century. Temperature extremes and summertime heat can create heat stress and other health consequences for urban residents. Public health impacts are assessed as the proportion of heat-related regional mortality estimated to be attributable to New York City's heat island effect during an average 1990's summer. Concentration-response functions describing the temperature-mortality relationship in NYC derived from the epidemiological literature are used to estimate numbers of deaths in a typical 1990s summer and those attributable to the city's heat island effect. The techniques and potential public health benefits of a pilot project to mitigate the heat island effect in NYC will be discussed.

The AOTF-Based NO2 Camera

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dekemper, E.; Fussen, D.; Vanhellemont, F.; Vanhamel, J.; Pieroux, D.; Berkenbosch, S.

2017-12-01

In an urban environment, nitrogen dioxide is emitted by a multitude of static and moving point sources (cars, industry, power plants, heating systems,…). Air quality models generally rely on a limited number of monitoring stations which do not capture the whole pattern, neither allow for full validation. So far, there has been a lack of instrument capable of measuring NO2 fields with the necessary spatio-temporal resolution above major point sources (power plants), or more extended ones (cities). We have developed a new type of passive remote sensing instrument aiming at the measurement of 2-D distributions of NO2 slant column densities (SCDs) with a high spatial (meters) and temporal (minutes) resolution. The measurement principle has some similarities with the popular filter-based SO2 camera (used in volcanic and industrial sulfur emissions monitoring) as it relies on spectral images taken at wavelengths where the molecule absorption cross section is different. But contrary to the SO2 camera, the spectral selection is performed by an acousto-optical tunable filter (AOTF) capable of resolving the target molecule's spectral features. A first prototype was successfully tested with the plume of a coal-firing power plant in Romania, revealing the dynamics of the formation of NO2 in the early plume. A lighter version of the NO2 camera is now being tested on other targets, such as oil refineries and urban air masses.

Monitoring productivity with multiple mist-net stations

Treesearch

C. John Ralph; Kimberly Hollinger; Sherri L. Miller

2004-01-01

We evaluated data from 22 mist-net capture stations operated over 5 to 13 years in northern California and southern Oregon, to help develop sampling designs for monitoring using mist nets. In summer, 2.6% of individuals were recaptured at other stations within 1 km of the original banding station, and in fall, 1.4% were recaptured nearby. We recommend...

An overview of 2016 WISE Urban Summer Observation Campaign (WUSOC 2016) in the Seoul metropolitan area of South Korea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jung, Jae-Won; Kim, Sang-Woo; Shim, Jae-Kwan; Kwak, Kyung-Hwan

2017-04-01

The Weather Information Service Engine (WISE), launched project of the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA), aims to operate the urban meteorological observation network from 2012 to 2019 and to test and operate the application weather service (e.g., flash flood, road weather, city ecology, city microclimate, dispersion of hazardous substance etc.) in 2019 through the development of Advanced Storm-scale Analysis Prediction System(ASAPS) for the production of storm-scale hazard weather monitoring and prediction system. The WISE institute has completed construction of 31 urban meteorological observation cities in Seoul metropolitan area and has built a real-time test operation and verification system by improving the ASAPS that produces 1 km and 6 hour forecast information based on the 5 km forecast information of KMA. Field measurements of 2016 WISE Urban Summer Observation Campaign (WUSOC 2016) was conducted in the Seoul metropolitan area of South Korea from August 22 to October 14, 2016. Involving over 70 researchers from more than 12 environmental and atmospheric science research groups in South Korea, WUSOC2016 focused on special observations, severe rain storm observations using mobile observation car and radiosonde, wind profile observations using Wind Doppler Lidar and radiosonde, etc., around the Seoul metropolitan area. WUSOC2016 purpose at data quality control, accuracy verification, usability check, and quality improvement of ASAPS at observation stations constructed in WISE. In addition, we intend to contribute to the activation of urban fusion weather research and risk weather research through joint observation and data sharing.

24 CFR 3282.452 - Participation in monitoring.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

.... Where a State wishes to carry out monitoring activities it shall do so in coordination with the... 24 Housing and Urban Development 5 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Participation in monitoring. 3282... HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT MANUFACTURED HOME PROCEDURAL AND ENFORCEMENT REGULATIONS Monitoring of...

24 CFR 3282.452 - Participation in monitoring.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

.... Where a State wishes to carry out monitoring activities it shall do so in coordination with the... 24 Housing and Urban Development 5 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Participation in monitoring. 3282... HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT MANUFACTURED HOME PROCEDURAL AND ENFORCEMENT REGULATIONS Monitoring of...

24 CFR 3282.452 - Participation in monitoring.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

.... Where a State wishes to carry out monitoring activities it shall do so in coordination with the... 24 Housing and Urban Development 5 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Participation in monitoring. 3282... HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT MANUFACTURED HOME PROCEDURAL AND ENFORCEMENT REGULATIONS Monitoring of...

24 CFR 3282.452 - Participation in monitoring.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

.... Where a State wishes to carry out monitoring activities it shall do so in coordination with the... 24 Housing and Urban Development 5 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Participation in monitoring. 3282... HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT MANUFACTURED HOME PROCEDURAL AND ENFORCEMENT REGULATIONS Monitoring of...

24 CFR 3282.452 - Participation in monitoring.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

.... Where a State wishes to carry out monitoring activities it shall do so in coordination with the... 24 Housing and Urban Development 5 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Participation in monitoring. 3282... HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT MANUFACTURED HOME PROCEDURAL AND ENFORCEMENT REGULATIONS Monitoring of...

Boreal partners in flight: Working together to build a regional research and monitoring program

USGS Publications Warehouse

Handel, Colleen M.; Bonney, Rick; Pashley, David N.; Cooper, Robert J.; Niles, Larry

1999-01-01

Boreal regions of western North America regularly support breeding populations of 130 species of landbirds, including 68 Nearctic-Neotropical migrants. Primary conservation concerns within the region include increased timber harvesting, insect outbreaks, fire suppression, mining, impacts of military training activities, urbanization, and recreational activities. Under auspices of Partners in Flight, biologists, land and resource managers, and conservationists from Alaska and western Canada have combined efforts to develop a regional research and monitoring program for landbirds. An experimental monitoring program has been under way during the past four years to test the relative statistical power and cost-effectiveness of various monitoring methods in Alaska. Joint efforts currently include the Alaska Checklist Project on National Wildlife Refuges, 75 Breeding Bird Surveys along the road system, 122 Off-road Point Count routes, 27 Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship banding sites, and 8 migration banding stations. The ultimate goal is to design a comprehensive monitoring program that is sensitive to changes in population size, survival rates, and productivity, but robust enough to accommodate logistical constraints that arise when working in vast, roadless areas with limited funds and staff. Primary challenges that must be faced to assure the long-term future of such a program are obtaining long-term commitment from resource agencies in the region, integrating this program with other national and regional programs that address those species and habitats that are inadequately monitored by established techniques, and developing cooperative research, monitoring, and management programs at the landscape level.

Analysis of Land Use Change and Urbanization in the Kucukcekmece Water Basin (Istanbul, Turkey) with Temporal Satellite Data using Remote Sensing and GIS.

PubMed

Coskun, H Gonca; Alganci, Ugur; Usta, Gokce

2008-11-13

Accurate and timely information about land use and land cover (LULC) and its changes in urban areas are crucial for urban land management decision-making, ecosystem monitoring and urban planning. Also, monitoring and representation of urban sprawl and its effects on the LULC patterns and hydrological processes of an urbanized watershed is an essential part of water resource planning and management. This paper presents an image analysis study using multi temporal digital satellite imagery of LULC and changes in the Kucukcekmece Watershed (Metropolitan Istanbul, Turkey) from 1992 to 2006. The Kucukcekmece Basin includes portions of the Kucukcekmece District within the municipality of Istanbul so it faces a dramatic urbanization. An urban monitoring analysis approach was first used to implement a land cover classification. A change detection method controlled with ground truth information was then used to determine changes in land cover. During the study period, the variability and magnitude of hydrological components based on land-use patterns were cumulatively influenced by urban sprawl in the watershed. The proposed approach, which uses a combination of Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographical Information System (GIS) techniques, is an effective tool that enhances land-use monitoring, planning, and management of urbanized watersheds.

Analysis of Land Use Change and Urbanization in the Kucukcekmece Water Basin (Istanbul, Turkey) with Temporal Satellite Data using Remote Sensing and GIS

PubMed Central

Coskun, H. Gonca; Alganci, Ugur; Usta, Gokce

2008-01-01

Accurate and timely information about land use and land cover (LULC) and its changes in urban areas are crucial for urban land management decision-making, ecosystem monitoring and urban planning. Also, monitoring and representation of urban sprawl and its effects on the LULC patterns and hydrological processes of an urbanized watershed is an essential part of water resource planning and management. This paper presents an image analysis study using multi temporal digital satellite imagery of LULC and changes in the Kucukcekmece Watershed (Metropolitan Istanbul, Turkey) from 1992 to 2006. The Kucukcekmece Basin includes portions of the Kucukcekmece District within the municipality of Istanbul so it faces a dramatic urbanization. An urban monitoring analysis approach was first used to implement a land cover classification. A change detection method controlled with ground truth information was then used to determine changes in land cover. During the study period, the variability and magnitude of hydrological components based on land-use patterns were cumulatively influenced by urban sprawl in the watershed. The proposed approach, which uses a combination of Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographical Information System (GIS) techniques, is an effective tool that enhances land-use monitoring, planning, and management of urbanized watersheds. PMID:27873924

Key techniques and risk management for the application of the Pile-Beam-Arch (PBA) excavation method: a case study of the Zhongjie subway station.

PubMed

Guan, Yong-ping; Zhao, Wen; Li, Shen-gang; Zhang, Guo-bin

2014-01-01

The design and construction of shallow-buried tunnels in densely populated urban areas involve many challenges. The ground movements induced by tunneling effects pose potential risks to infrastructure such as surface buildings, pipelines, and roads. In this paper, a case study of the Zhongjie subway station located in Shenyang, China, is examined to investigate the key construction techniques and the influence of the Pile-Beam-Arch (PBA) excavation method on the surrounding environment. This case study discusses the primary risk factors affecting the environmental safety and summarizes the corresponding risk mitigation measures and key techniques for subway station construction using the PBA excavation method in a densely populated urban area.

Application of a photochemical grid model to milan metropolitan area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silibello, C.; Calori, G.; Brusasca, G.; Catenacci, G.; Finzi, G.

High ozone levels are regularly reached during summer period in South-European urban areas, calling for careful design of primary pollutants emission reduction strategies. In this perspective the CALGRID modelling system has been applied to Milan metropolitan area, located in the Po Valley, the most industrialised and populated area in Italy. For the first modelling exercise, a simulation domain of 100×100 km 2 has been considered and a summer period, characterised by high photochemical activity, has been selected. Hourly emissions have been derived by spatially and temporally disaggregating national inventories data, while standard upper-air and ground-based meteorological data have been used as input to the CALMET pre-processor. A careful analysis of simulation results versus local network monitoring data has revealed some critical points, related to both modelling assumptions and practical data availability. A satisfactory reproduction of daytime ozone behaviour has been, in fact, accomplished, both in urban and suburban sites, while nighttime primary pollutants accumulations and consequent ozone consumption simulated by the model have not found correspondence in the measurements. Nitrogen dioxide has been also successfully modelled, mostly in city surroundings, whereas higher discrepancies have been found in some urban stations. Possible explanations of these facts are discussed in the paper, giving an insight for further work.

Field data collection, analysis, and adaptive management of green infrastructure in the urban water cycle in Cleveland and Columbus, OH

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Darner, R.; Shuster, W.

2016-12-01

Expansion of the urban environment can alter the landscape and creates challenges for how cities deal with energy and water. Large volumes of stormwater in areas that have combined septic and stormwater systems present on challenge. Managing the water as near to the source as possible by creates an environment that allows more infiltration and evapotranspiration. Stormwater control measures (SCM) associated with this type of development, often called green infrastructure, include rain gardens, pervious or porous pavements, bioswales, green or blue roofs, and others. In this presentation, we examine the hydrology of green infrastructure in urban sewersheds in Cleveland and Columbus, OH. We present the need for data throughout the water cycle and challenges to collecting field data at a small scale (single rain garden instrumented to measure inflows, outflow, weather, soil moisture, and groundwater levels) and at a macro scale (a project including low-cost rain gardens, highly engineered rain gardens, groundwater wells, weather stations, soil moisture, and combined sewer flow monitoring). Results will include quantifying the effectiveness of SCMs in intercepting stormwater for different precipitation event sizes. Small scale deployment analysis will demonstrate the role of active adaptive management in the ongoing optimization over multiple years of data collection.

Transport pathway and source area for Artemisia pollen in Beijing, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qin, Xiaoxin; Li, Yiyin; Sun, Xu; Meng, Ling; Wang, Xiaoke

2017-12-01

Artemisia pollen is an important allergen responsible for allergic rhinitis in Beijing, China. To explore the transport pathways and source areas of Artemisia pollen, we used Burkard 7-day traps to monitor daily pollen concentrations in 2016 in an urban and suburban locality. Backward trajectories of 24- and 96-h and their cluster analysis were performed to identify transport pathways of Artemisia pollen using the HYSPLIT model on 0.5° × 0.5° GADS meteorological data. The potential source contribution function (PSCF) and concentration weighted trajectory (CWT) were calculated to further identify the major potential source areas at local, regional, and long-range scales. Our results showed significant differences in Artemisia pollen concentration between urban and suburban areas, attributed to differences in plant distribution and altitude of the sampling locality. Such differences arisen from both pollen emission and air mass movements, hence pollen dispersal. At local or regional scales, source area of northwestern parts of Beijing City, Hebei Province and northern and northwestern parts of Inner Mongolia influenced the major transport pathways of Artemisia pollen. Transport pathway at a long-range scale and its corresponding source area extended to northwestern parts of Mongolia. The regional-scale transport affected by wind and altitude is more profound for Artemisia pollen at the suburban than at the urban station.

Journal Article: the National Dioxin Air Monitoring Network ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

The U.S. EPA has established a National Dioxin Air Monitoring Network (NDAMN) to determine the temporal and geographical variability of atmospheric CDDs, CDFs and coplanar PCBs at rural and nonimpacted locations throughout the United States. Currently operating at 32 sampling stations, NDAMN has three primary purposes: (1) to determine the atmospheric levels and occurrences of dioxin-like compounds in rural and agricultural areas where livestock, poultry and animal feed crops are grown; (2) to provide measurements of atmospheric levels of dioxin-like compounds in different geographic regions of the U.S.; and (3) to provide information regarding the long-range transport of dioxin-like compounds in air over the U.S. Designed in 1997, NDAMN has been implemented in phases, with the first phase consisting of 9 monitoring stations. Previously EPA has reported on the preliminary results of monitoring at 9 rural locations from June1998 through June 19991. The one-year measurement at the 9 stations indicated an annual mean TEQDF–WHO98 air concentration of 12 fg m-3. Since this reporting, NDAMN has been extended to include additional stations. The following is intended to be an update to this national monitoring effort. We are reporting the air monitoring results of 22 NDAMN stations operational over 9 sampling moments from June 1998 to December 1999. Fifteen stations are in rural areas, and 6 are located in National Parks. One station is located in suburban Wa

Ensemble classification for identifying neighbourhood sources of fugitive dust and associations with observed PM10

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khuluse-Makhanya, Sibusisiwe; Stein, Alfred; Breytenbach, André; Gxumisa, Athi; Dudeni-Tlhone, Nontembeko; Debba, Pravesh

2017-10-01

In urban areas the deterioration of air quality as a result of fugitive dust receives less attention than the more prominent traffic and industrial emissions. We assessed whether fugitive dust emission sources in the neighbourhood of an air quality monitor are predictors of ambient PM10 concentrations on days characterized by strong local winds. An ensemble maximum likelihood method is developed for land cover mapping in the vicinity of an air quality station using SPOT 6 multi-spectral images. The ensemble maximum likelihood classifier is developed through multiple training iterations for improved accuracy of the bare soil class. Five primary land cover classes are considered, namely built-up areas, vegetation, bare soil, water and 'mixed bare soil' which denotes areas where soil is mixed with either vegetation or synthetic materials. Preliminary validation of the ensemble classifier for the bare soil class results in an accuracy range of 65-98%. Final validation of all classes results in an overall accuracy of 78%. Next, cluster analysis and a varying intercepts regression model are used to assess the statistical association between land cover, a fugitive dust emissions proxy and observed PM10. We found that land cover patterns in the neighbourhood of an air quality station are significant predictors of observed average PM10 concentrations on days when wind speeds are conducive for dust emissions. This study concludes that in the absence of an emissions inventory for ambient particulate matter, PM10 emitted from dust reservoirs can be statistically accounted for by land cover characteristics. This supports the use of land cover data for improved prediction of PM10 at locations without air quality monitoring stations.

Chloride in Groundwater and Surface Water in Areas Underlain by the Glacial Aquifer System, Northern United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mullaney, John R.; Lorenz, David L.; Arntson, Alan D.

2009-01-01

A study of chloride in groundwater and surface water was conducted for the glacial aquifer system of the northern United States in forested, agricultural, and urban areas by analyzing data collected for the National Water-Quality Assessment Program from 1991 to 2004. Groundwater-quality data from a sampling of 1,329 wells in 19 states were analyzed. Chloride concentrations were greater than the secondary maximum contaminant level established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency of 250 milligrams per liter in 2.5 percent of samples from 797 shallow monitoring wells and in 1.7 percent of samples from 532 drinking-water supply wells. Water samples from shallow monitoring wells in urban areas had the largest concentration of chloride, followed by water samples from agricultural and forested areas (medians of 46, 12, and 2.9 milligrams per liter, respectively). An analysis of chloride:bromide ratios, by mass, and chloride concentrations compared to binary mixing curves for dilute groundwater, halite, sewage and animal waste, potassium chloride fertilizer, basin brines, seawater, and landfill leachate in samples from monitoring wells indicated multiple sources of chloride in samples from wells in urban areas and agricultural areas. Water from shallow monitoring wells in urban areas had the largest chloride:bromide ratio, and samples with chloride:bromide ratios greater than 1,000 and chloride concentrations greater than 100 milligrams per liter were dominated by halite; however, the samples commonly contained mixtures that indicated input from sewage or animal waste. Chloride:bromide ratios were significantly larger in samples from public-supply drinking-water wells than from private drinking-water wells, and ratios were significantly larger in all drinking-water wells in eastern and central regions of the glacial aquifer system than in west-central and western regions of the glacial aquifer system. Surface-water-quality data collected regularly during varying time periods from 1991-2004 from 100 basins dominated by forested, agricultural, or urban land in 15 states were analyzed to determine maximum measured chloride concentrations. Samples from 15 sites in east, central, and west-central areas, collected primarily in winter, had chloride concentrations higher than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommended chronic criterion concentration for aquatic life of 230 milligrams per liter. Concentrations of chloride in base-flow samples were predictive of maximum measured chloride concentrations, indicating that inputs of chloride from groundwater and (or) point-source wastewater discharges increase the likelihood of samples exceeding the recommended chronic aquatic criterion. Multiple linear regression analyses showed that the density of major roads, potential evapotranspiration, and the percentage of annual runoff from saturated overland flow were significant factors in describing the range of maximum measured chloride concentrations in the basins studied. Chloride loads and yields were determined at 95 surface-water-monitoring stations in basins dominated by forested, agricultural, or urban land. Annual chloride yield was largest in the urban basins (median of 88 tons per square mile) and smallest in the forested basins (median of 6.4 tons per square mile). The median chloride yield in the agricultural basins was 15.4 tons per square mile. Multiple linear regression analyses showed that the density of highways (roads in U.S. highway system), the number of major wastewater discharges in the basin, potential evapotranspiration, and urban minus agricultural land area were significant factors in describing the range of average annual chloride yields. Upward trends in chloride loads were apparent in several urban basins for which additional long-term data were available. Increases in chloride loads over time may be related to a variety of factors, including increases in road area and consequent deicing, incr

Analysis of long-term water quality for effective river health monitoring in peri-urban landscapes--a case study of the Hawkesbury-Nepean river system in NSW, Australia.

PubMed

Pinto, U; Maheshwari, B L; Ollerton, R L

2013-06-01

The Hawkesbury-Nepean River (HNR) system in South-Eastern Australia is the main source of water supply for the Sydney Metropolitan area and is one of the more complex river systems due to the influence of urbanisation and other activities in the peri-urban landscape through which it flows. The long-term monitoring of river water quality is likely to suffer from data gaps due to funding cuts, changes in priority and related reasons. Nevertheless, we need to assess river health based on the available information. In this study, we demonstrated how the Factor Analysis (FA), Hierarchical Agglomerative Cluster Analysis (HACA) and Trend Analysis (TA) can be applied to evaluate long-term historic data sets. Six water quality parameters, viz., temperature, chlorophyll-a, dissolved oxygen, oxides of nitrogen, suspended solids and reactive silicates, measured at weekly intervals between 1985 and 2008 at 12 monitoring stations located along the 300 km length of the HNR system were evaluated to understand the human and natural influences on the river system in a peri-urban landscape. The application of FA extracted three latent factors which explained more than 70 % of the total variance of the data and related to the 'bio-geographical', 'natural' and 'nutrient pollutant' dimensions of the HNR system. The bio-geographical and nutrient pollution factors more likely related to the direct influence of changes and activities of peri-urban natures and accounted for approximately 50 % of variability in water quality. The application of HACA indicated two major clusters representing clean and polluted zones of the river. On the spatial scale, one cluster was represented by the upper and lower sections of the river (clean zone) and accounted for approximately 158 km of the river. The other cluster was represented by the middle section (polluted zone) with a length of approximately 98 km. Trend Analysis indicated how the point sources influence river water quality on spatio-temporal scales, taking into account the various effects of nutrient and other pollutant loads from sewerage effluents, agriculture and other point and non-point sources along the river and major tributaries of the HNR. Over the past 26 years, water temperature has significantly increased while suspended solids have significantly decreased (p < 0.05). The analysis of water quality data through FA, HACA and TA helped to characterise the key sections and cluster the key water quality variables of the HNR system. The insights gained from this study have the potential to improve the effectiveness of river health-monitoring programs in terms of cost, time and effort, particularly in a peri-urban context.

Child safety seat and safety belt use among urban travelers.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1984-01-01

During nine days in June 1977 and nine in June 1983, four major metropolitan areas of Virginia were surveyed to determine whether safety restraints were being used by urban travelers. Observers stationed at selected signalized intersections displayed...

Effects of urbanization on the magnitude and frequency of floods on small streams in Tennessee; basic data report no. 2

USGS Publications Warehouse

Robbins, Clarence H.

1982-01-01

Peak stages, discharges, and rainfall recorded at 22 gaging stations on streams draining small (less than 25 mi super 2) urbanized basins across Tennessee are presented. The gaged basins are in 17 different municipalities with populations ranging between 5,000 and 100,000. The report gives a description of each gaged site along with a data sheet on which peak stages, discharges, and corresponding rainfall are listed. The description gives the station location, type of gage, basin characteristics, and general remarks. (USGS)

Effect of urbanization activities towards the formation of urban heat island in Cameron Highlands, Malaysia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibrahim, M. H.; Latiff, N. A. A.; Ismail, K.; Isa, N. K. M.

2018-04-01

This study carried out to study the effect of urbanization activities towards the formation of Urban Heat Islands (UHI) in Cameron Highlands (CH).The aim of this study is to identify the formation of UHI in CH following the urbanization activities. This study also involved two main data that are primary through field survey and secondary data from collection data. In addition, this study was used qualitative and quantitative method. The data was taken two times a day, at a day and night between the hours of 12:00 to 14:00 and 19:00 to 21:00. Data in this study analyzed by using correlation analysis and analysis of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) which known as interpolation. Result found the formation of UHI in CH was concentrated at city centre namely in Pekan Tanah Rata. From the whole average value, city centre was recorded the highest reading of temperatures which is 30.5°C, while reading of temperature for subtown and suburban was recorded 28.6°C and 23.8°C. Average of humidity in CH during the day was recorded as highest reading in the suburban area namely Tringkap Bee Farm (station 11) which is 58.4%. Then, average of humidity in CH at night was recorded highest reading in the suburban area namely Habu Mini Market 91 (station 9) which the value is 83.2%. The reading of wind speed in CH during the day recorded the highest reading day at the suburban namely Tringkap Bee Farm (station 11) which the value is 2.3 m/s. While, following the reading of wind speed in CH at night, suburban namely Habu Mini Market 91(station 9) was recorded the highest reading which is 0.8 m/s. The Intensity of Urban Heat Island in CH during the day was recorded 2.8°C, while at night intensity of UHI was recorded 1.4°C. Overall, the urbanization activities in CH had caused the formation of UHI. Therefore, measures of legislation such as protect forest from development by control the urbanization activities need to be implemented so that the formation of UHI can be reduced and overcome.

Research on public participant urban infrastructure safety monitoring system using smartphone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Xuefeng; Wang, Niannian; Ou, Jinping; Yu, Yan; Li, Mingchu

2017-04-01

Currently more and more people concerned about the safety of major public security. Public participant urban infrastructure safety monitoring and investigation has become a trend in the era of big data. In this paper, public participant urban infrastructure safety protection system based on smart phones is proposed. The system makes it possible to public participant disaster data collection, monitoring and emergency evaluation in the field of disaster prevention and mitigation. Function of the system is to monitor the structural acceleration, angle and other vibration information, and extract structural deformation and implement disaster emergency communications based on smartphone without network. The monitoring data is uploaded to the website to create urban safety information database. Then the system supports big data analysis processing, the structure safety assessment and city safety early warning.

Forecasting PM10 in metropolitan areas: Efficacy of neural networks.

PubMed

Fernando, H J S; Mammarella, M C; Grandoni, G; Fedele, P; Di Marco, R; Dimitrova, R; Hyde, P

2012-04-01

Deterministic photochemical air quality models are commonly used for regulatory management and planning of urban airsheds. These models are complex, computer intensive, and hence are prohibitively expensive for routine air quality predictions. Stochastic methods are becoming increasingly popular as an alternative, which relegate decision making to artificial intelligence based on Neural Networks that are made of artificial neurons or 'nodes' capable of 'learning through training' via historic data. A Neural Network was used to predict particulate matter concentration at a regulatory monitoring site in Phoenix, Arizona; its development, efficacy as a predictive tool and performance vis-à-vis a commonly used regulatory photochemical model are described in this paper. It is concluded that Neural Networks are much easier, quicker and economical to implement without compromising the accuracy of predictions. Neural Networks can be used to develop rapid air quality warning systems based on a network of automated monitoring stations. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Aeroflex: A Bicycle for Mobile Air Quality Measurements

PubMed Central

Elen, Bart; Peters, Jan; Van Poppel, Martine; Bleux, Nico; Theunis, Jan; Reggente, Matteo; Standaert, Arnout

2013-01-01

Fixed air quality stations have limitations when used to assess people's real life exposure to air pollutants. Their spatial coverage is too limited to capture the spatial variability in, e.g., an urban or industrial environment. Complementary mobile air quality measurements can be used as an additional tool to fill this void. In this publication we present the Aeroflex, a bicycle for mobile air quality monitoring. The Aeroflex is equipped with compact air quality measurement devices to monitor ultrafine particle number counts, particulate mass and black carbon concentrations at a high resolution (up to 1 second). Each measurement is automatically linked to its geographical location and time of acquisition using GPS and Internet time. Furthermore, the Aeroflex is equipped with automated data transmission, data pre-processing and data visualization. The Aeroflex is designed with adaptability, reliability and user friendliness in mind. Over the past years, the Aeroflex has been successfully used for high resolution air quality mapping, exposure assessment and hot spot identification. PMID:23262484

The Aeroflex: a bicycle for mobile air quality measurements.

PubMed

Elen, Bart; Peters, Jan; Poppel, Martine Van; Bleux, Nico; Theunis, Jan; Reggente, Matteo; Standaert, Arnout

2012-12-24

Fixed air quality stations have limitations when used to assess people's real life exposure to air pollutants. Their spatial coverage is too limited to capture the spatial variability in, e.g., an urban or industrial environment. Complementary mobile air quality measurements can be used as an additional tool to fill this void. In this publication we present the Aeroflex, a bicycle for mobile air quality monitoring. The Aeroflex is equipped with compact air quality measurement devices to monitor ultrafine particle number counts, particulate mass and black carbon concentrations at a high resolution (up to 1 second). Each measurement is automatically linked to its geographical location and time of acquisition using GPS and Internet time. Furthermore, the Aeroflex is equipped with automated data transmission, data pre-processing and data visualization. The Aeroflex is designed with adaptability, reliability and user friendliness in mind. Over the past years, the Aeroflex has been successfully used for high resolution air quality mapping, exposure assessment and hot spot identification. 

47 CFR 73.69 - Antenna monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Antenna monitors. 73.69 Section 73.69... Broadcast Stations § 73.69 Antenna monitors. (a) Each station using a directional antenna must have in operation at the transmitter site an FCC authorized antenna monitor. (b) In the event that the antenna...

47 CFR 73.158 - Directional antenna monitoring points.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Directional antenna monitoring points. 73.158... RADIO BROADCAST SERVICES AM Broadcast Stations § 73.158 Directional antenna monitoring points. (a) When a licensee of a station using a directional antenna system finds that a field monitoring point, as...

47 CFR 73.158 - Directional antenna monitoring points.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Directional antenna monitoring points. 73.158... RADIO BROADCAST SERVICES AM Broadcast Stations § 73.158 Directional antenna monitoring points. (a) When a licensee of a station using a directional antenna system finds that a field monitoring point, as...

47 CFR 73.69 - Antenna monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Antenna monitors. 73.69 Section 73.69... Broadcast Stations § 73.69 Antenna monitors. (a) Each station using a directional antenna must have in operation at the transmitter site an FCC authorized antenna monitor. (b) In the event that the antenna...

47 CFR 73.69 - Antenna monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Antenna monitors. 73.69 Section 73.69... Broadcast Stations § 73.69 Antenna monitors. (a) Each station using a directional antenna must have in operation at the transmitter site an FCC authorized antenna monitor. (b) In the event that the antenna...

47 CFR 73.158 - Directional antenna monitoring points.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Directional antenna monitoring points. 73.158... RADIO BROADCAST SERVICES AM Broadcast Stations § 73.158 Directional antenna monitoring points. (a) When a licensee of a station using a directional antenna system finds that a field monitoring point, as...

47 CFR 73.158 - Directional antenna monitoring points.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Directional antenna monitoring points. 73.158... RADIO BROADCAST SERVICES AM Broadcast Stations § 73.158 Directional antenna monitoring points. (a) When a licensee of a station using a directional antenna system finds that a field monitoring point, as...

47 CFR 73.69 - Antenna monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Antenna monitors. 73.69 Section 73.69... Broadcast Stations § 73.69 Antenna monitors. (a) Each station using a directional antenna must have in operation at the transmitter site an FCC authorized antenna monitor. (b) In the event that the antenna...

47 CFR 73.69 - Antenna monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Antenna monitors. 73.69 Section 73.69... Broadcast Stations § 73.69 Antenna monitors. (a) Each station using a directional antenna must have in operation at the transmitter site an FCC authorized antenna monitor. (b) In the event that the antenna...

47 CFR 73.158 - Directional antenna monitoring points.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Directional antenna monitoring points. 73.158... RADIO BROADCAST SERVICES AM Broadcast Stations § 73.158 Directional antenna monitoring points. (a) When a licensee of a station using a directional antenna system finds that a field monitoring point, as...

Targeted versus standard bait station placement affects subterranean termite (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae) infestation rates.

PubMed

Jones, Susan C

2003-10-01

A major challenge to termite baiting in soil habitats is the prolonged time that it may take for subterranean termites (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae) to infest stations. The objective of this research study was to determine whether the location of food sources (Sentricon in-ground monitoring stations and wooden monitors) influences the likelihood of infestation by termites. In field trials conducted at 15 structures in central Ohio, standard placement of stations at 3-4.5 m intervals was compared with targeted placements based on evidence of termite activity indoors and outdoors as well as conducive moisture conditions. Termites infested significantly more targeted placements (70/374) than standard placements (35/372) around structures. At the targeted placement sites, termites infested more wooden monitors than Sentricon stations, but this was not statistically significant. This implies that placement, rather than cellulose composition, was the more important factor. Termites first infested stations/monitors an average of 38 d sooner at targeted sites than standard placement sites. This research indicates that evidence of termite activity indoors and outdoors should be a prime consideration when placing in-ground stations.

Rural-to-Urban Migrants' Experiences with Primary Care under Different Types of Medical Institutions in Guangzhou, China

PubMed Central

Zeng, Jiazhi; Shi, Leiyu; Zou, Xia; Chen, Wen; Ling, Li

2015-01-01

Objectives China is facing the unprecedented challenge of rapidly increasing rural-to-urban migration. Migrants are in a vulnerable state when they attempt to access to primary care services. This study was designed to explore rural-to-urban migrants’ experiences in primary care, comparing their quality of primary care experiences under different types of medical institutions in Guangzhou, China. Methods The study employed a cross-sectional survey of 736 rural-to-urban migrants in Guangzhou, China in 2014. A validated Chinese version of Primary Care Assessment Tool—Adult Short Version (PCAT-AS), representing 10 primary care domains was used to collect information on migrants’ quality of primary care experiences. These domains include first contact (utilization), first contact (accessibility), ongoing care, coordination (referrals), coordination (information systems), comprehensiveness (services available), comprehensiveness (services provided), family-centeredness, community orientation and culturally competent. These measures were used to assess the quality of primary care performance as reported from patients’ perspective. Analysis of covariance was conducted for comparison on PCAT scores among migrants accessing primary care in tertiary hospitals, municipal hospitals, community health centers/community health stations, and township health centers/rural health stations. Multiple linear regression models were used to explore factors associated with PCAT total scores. Results After adjustments were made, migrants accessing primary care in tertiary hospitals (25.49) reported the highest PCAT total scores, followed by municipal hospitals (25.02), community health centers/community health stations (24.24), and township health centers/rural health stations (24.18). Tertiary hospital users reported significantly better performance in first contact (utilization), first contact (accessibility), coordination (information system), comprehensiveness (service available), and cultural competence. Community health center/community health station users reported significantly better experience in the community orientation domain. Township health center/rural health station users expressed significantly better experience in the ongoing care domain. There were no statistically significant differences across settings in the ongoing care, comprehensiveness (services provided), and family-centeredness domains. Multiple linear regression models showed that factors positively associated with higher PCAT total scores also included insurance covering parts of healthcare payment (P<0.001). Conclusions This study highlights the need for improvement in primary care provided by primary care institutions for rural-to-urban migrants. Relevant policies related to medical insurance should be implemented for providing affordable healthcare services for migrants accessing primary care. PMID:26474161

24 CFR 91.230 - Monitoring.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Monitoring. 91.230 Section 91.230 Housing and Urban Development Office of the Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development CONSOLIDATED SUBMISSIONS FOR COMMUNITY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS Local Governments; Contents of...

24 CFR 91.230 - Monitoring.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Monitoring. 91.230 Section 91.230 Housing and Urban Development Office of the Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development CONSOLIDATED SUBMISSIONS FOR COMMUNITY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS Local Governments; Contents of...

24 CFR 91.230 - Monitoring.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Monitoring. 91.230 Section 91.230 Housing and Urban Development Office of the Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development CONSOLIDATED SUBMISSIONS FOR COMMUNITY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS Local Governments; Contents of...

24 CFR 91.230 - Monitoring.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Monitoring. 91.230 Section 91.230 Housing and Urban Development Office of the Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development CONSOLIDATED SUBMISSIONS FOR COMMUNITY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS Local Governments; Contents of...

24 CFR 91.230 - Monitoring.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Monitoring. 91.230 Section 91.230 Housing and Urban Development Office of the Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development CONSOLIDATED SUBMISSIONS FOR COMMUNITY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS Local Governments; Contents of...

24 CFR 1000.510 - What happens if tribal monitoring identifies compliance concerns?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false What happens if tribal monitoring... HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES Recipient Monitoring, Oversight and Accountability § 1000.510 What happens if tribal monitoring identifies compliance...

24 CFR 1000.510 - What happens if tribal monitoring identifies compliance concerns?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false What happens if tribal monitoring... HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES Recipient Monitoring, Oversight and Accountability § 1000.510 What happens if tribal monitoring identifies compliance...

24 CFR 1000.510 - What happens if tribal monitoring identifies compliance concerns?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false What happens if tribal monitoring... HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES Recipient Monitoring, Oversight and Accountability § 1000.510 What happens if tribal monitoring identifies compliance...

24 CFR 1000.503 - What is an appropriate extent of HUD monitoring?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES Recipient Monitoring, Oversight and Accountability § 1000.503 What is an appropriate extent of HUD monitoring? (a) Subject to any... HUD monitoring? 1000.503 Section 1000.503 Housing and Urban Development REGULATIONS RELATING TO...

24 CFR 1000.510 - What happens if tribal monitoring identifies compliance concerns?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false What happens if tribal monitoring... HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES Recipient Monitoring, Oversight and Accountability § 1000.510 What happens if tribal monitoring identifies compliance...

24 CFR 1000.510 - What happens if tribal monitoring identifies compliance concerns?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false What happens if tribal monitoring... HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES Recipient Monitoring, Oversight and Accountability § 1000.510 What happens if tribal monitoring identifies compliance...

24 CFR 1000.503 - What is an appropriate extent of HUD monitoring?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES Recipient Monitoring, Oversight and Accountability § 1000.503 What is an appropriate extent of HUD monitoring? (a) Subject to any... HUD monitoring? 1000.503 Section 1000.503 Housing and Urban Development REGULATIONS RELATING TO...

Assessing Paris megacity CO2 urban dome: first lessons from the CO2-Megaparis project (2009-2013)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xueref-Remy, I. C.; Dieudonné, E.; Ammoura, L.; Cellier, P.; Gibert, F.; Lac, C.; Lauvaux, T.; Lopez, M.; Pal, S.; Ampe, C.; Puygrenier, V.; Ramonet, M.; Schmidt, M.; Thiruchittampallam, B.; Vuillemin, C.

2013-05-01

About 80% of global CO2 emissions come from punctual sources such as megacities. Among those, Paris is the third megacity in Europe. However, the estimates of urban CO2 emissions are based on activity proxies and benchmarked emission factors, leading to uncertainties as high as several tenths of percents in some sectors of bottom-up CO2 emissions inventories. Since 2009, the CO2-Megaparis project aims to quantify CO2 emissions from Paris using a top-down approach based on a synergy between atmospheric observations and modeling. A mini-network of 3 stations was developed by LSCE in Paris agglomeration within the infrastructure of the air quality monitoring agency of Paris region, AIRPARIF, completing 2 other stations from the ICOS network leaded at LSCE. The mean CO2 concentration dome over Paris in the mid-afternoon over 1 year of data is about 2.2 ppm, and is strongly wind speed and direction dependent. Analysis of correlations between CO2, CO and 14C02 was carried out and a comparison to available inventories will be presented. Direct modeling of CO2 at a very fine resolution (2x2 km2, 1h) was performed by CNRM and matched well with observations. Results from inverse modeling will be presented. Furthermore, we conducted a campaign using lidar facilities showing that due to the effect of the urban heat island, the boundary layer height (a key parameter in assessing CO2 fluxes from the atmospheric approach) is 10 to 40% time higher in Paris than in surrounding rural areas. Also, a sonic anemometer and a 10 Hz CO2 analyzer were deployed to assess CO2 fluxes from observations, as well as CO2 flux analyzers on crops. Using the data from this instrumentation, a mass balance calculation was carried out and allowed the identification and quantification of Paris CO2 traffic plume to a rural region, about 100 km south of Paris, that matched well with inventories. Finally, an attempt of defining the strengths and weaknesses of the atmospheric approach to quantify urban CO2 emissions will be presented.

Quantifying Paris CO2 urban dome: a first synthesis of results from the CO2-Megaparis project (2009-2013)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xueref-Remy, Irène; Dieudonné, Elsa; Ammoura, Lamia; Cellier, Pierre; Gibert, Fabien; Lac, Christine; Lauvaux, Thomas; Lopez, Morgan; Pal, Sandip; Perrussel, Olivier; Puygrenier, Vincent; Ramonet, Michel; Schmidt, Martina; Thiruchittampalam, Balendra; Vuillemin, Cyrille

2013-04-01

About 80% of global CO2 emissions come from punctual sources such as megacities. Among those, Paris is the third megacity in Europe. However, the estimates of urban CO2 emissions are based on activity proxies and benchmarked emission factors, leading to uncertainties as high as several tenths of percents in some sectors of bottom-up CO2 emissions inventories. Since 2009, the CO2-Megaparis project aims to quantify CO2 emissions from Paris using a top-down approach based on a synergy between atmospheric observations and modeling. A mini-network of 3 stations was developed by LSCE in Paris agglomeration within the infrastructure of the air quality monitoring agency of Paris region, AIRPARIF, completing 2 other stations from the ICOS network leaded at LSCE. The mean CO2 concentration dome over Paris in the mid-afternoon over 1 year of data is about 2.2 ppm, and is strongly wind speed and direction dependent. Analysis of correlations between CO2, CO and 14C02 was carried out and a comparison to available inventories will be presented. Direct modeling of CO2 at a very fine resolution (2x2 km2, 1h) was performed by CNRM and matched well with observations. Results from inverse modeling will be presented. Furthermore, we conducted a campaign using lidar facilities showing that due to the effect of the urban heat island, the boundary layer height (a key parameter in assessing CO2 fluxes from the atmospheric approach) is 10 to 40% time higher in Paris than in surrounding rural areas. Also, a sonic anemometer and a 10 Hz CO2 analyzer were deployed to assess CO2 fluxes from observations, as well as CO2 flux analyzers on crops. Using the data from this instrumentation, a mass balance calculation was carried out and allowed the identification and quantification of Paris CO2 traffic plume to a rural region, about 100 km south of Paris, that matched well with inventories. Finally, an attempt of defining the strengths and weaknesses of the atmospheric approach to quantify urban CO2 emissions will be presented.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons at fire stations: firefighters' exposure monitoring and biomonitoring, and assessment of the contribution to total internal dose.

PubMed

Oliveira, Marta; Slezakova, Klara; Alves, Maria José; Fernandes, Adília; Teixeira, João Paulo; Delerue-Matos, Cristina; Pereira, Maria do Carmo; Morais, Simone

2017-02-05

This work characterizes levels of eighteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the breathing air zone of firefighters during their regular work shift at eight Portuguese fire stations, and the firefighters' total internal dose by six urinary monohydroxyl metabolites (OH-PAHs). Total PAHs (ΣPAHs) concentrations varied widely (46.4-428ng/m 3 ), mainly due to site specificity (urban/rural) and characteristics (age and layout) of buildings. Airborne PAHs with 2-3 rings were the most abundant (63.9-95.7% ΣPAHs). Similarly, urinary 1-hydroxynaphthalene and 1-hydroxyacenaphthene were the predominant metabolites (66-96% ΣOH-PAHs). Naphthalene contributed the most to carcinogenic ΣPAHs (39.4-78.1%) in majority of firehouses; benzo[a]pyrene, the marker of carcinogenic PAHs, accounted with 1.5-10%. Statistically positive significant correlations (r≥0.733, p≤0.025) were observed between ΣPAHs and urinary ΣOH-PAHs for firefighters of four fire stations suggesting that, at these sites, indoor air was their major exposure source of PAHs. Firefighter's personal exposure to PAHs at Portuguese fire stations were well below the existent occupational exposure limits. Also, the quantified concentrations of post-shift urinary 1-hydroxypyrene in all firefighters were clearly lower than the benchmark level (0.5μmol/mol) recommended by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Characterisation of an urban bus network for environmental purposes.

PubMed

André, Michel; Villanova, André

2004-12-01

Since pollutant emissions are closely related to the operating conditions of vehicles, their evaluation usually involves studying these operating conditions (through bus instrumentation and monitoring under actual operation), the design of representative driving or engine test cycles and the measurement of pollutant emissions. A preliminary characterisation of the routes on a bus network should make it possible to identify typical routes, the driving conditions and pollutant emissions of which are then studied. Two approaches are envisaged and applied to the Paris area, for which a wealth of information is available, which should be transferable to other bus networks. Both approaches are based on factorial analysis and automatic clustering, to allow optimum description and the identification of a pertinent typology of the bus routes in several classes. The first attempt at characterisation is based on statistics relating to bus operations: route characteristics (length, dedicated bus lanes, number of stops, location of stops: schools, tourist sites, hospitals, railways or underground stations), travel time, commercial speed, annual statistics (number of passengers, number of vehicles per hour, total kilometres), the irregularity of travel (variation of travel times, injuries, congestion.), as well as information on the problems encountered (congestion, distribution of the passenger load, junctions, bends). A second approach is based on the analysis of the "urban context" in which buses are driven. Population, employment, housing, road network, traffic and places that generate or disturb traffic (schools, railway stations, shopping areas, etc.) are calculated for the Ile de France region, by cells of 100 x 100 m, and collected in a geographical information system (GIS). Statistical analyses enable a typology of these urban cells to be established, the main parameters being density, type of housing, road types and traffic levels. The bus routes are then analysed according to their itineraries across these typical areas (distances travelled in each type of area) using a similar approach. A comparison of the typologies obtained from operational data and from urban data highlights the advantages and disadvantages of the two approaches. The first result from these typologies is the selection of routes which are representative of the different classes, in order to instrument buses and record driving patterns. This method should also make it possible to link driving conditions and urban characteristics, and then to allocate pollutant emission factors to given geographical situations, in particular, in the context of emission inventories or impact studies.

A smartphone-based platform to test the performance of wireless mobile networks and preliminary findings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geng, Xinli; Xu, Hao; Qin, Xiaowei

2016-10-01

During the last several years, the amount of wireless network traffic data increased fast and relative technologies evolved rapidly. In order to improve the performance and Quality of Experience (QoE) of wireless network services, the analysis of field network data and existing delivery mechanisms comes to be a promising research topic. In order to achieve this goal, a smartphone based platform named Monitor and Diagnosis of Mobile Applications (MDMA) was developed to collect field data. Based on this tool, the web browsing service of High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) network was tested. The top 200 popular websites in China were selected and loaded on smartphone for thousands times automatically. Communication packets between the smartphone and the cell station were captured for various scenarios (e.g. residential area, urban roads, bus station etc.) in the selected city. A cross-layer database was constructed to support the off-line analysis. Based on the results of client-side experiments and analysis, the usability of proposed portable tool was verified. The preliminary findings and results for existing web browsing service were also presented.

Occurrence of contaminants of emerging concern in mussels (Mytilus spp.) along the California coast and the influence of land use, storm water discharge, and treated wastewater effluent.

PubMed

Dodder, Nathan G; Maruya, Keith A; Lee Ferguson, P; Grace, Richard; Klosterhaus, Susan; La Guardia, Mark J; Lauenstein, Gunnar G; Ramirez, Juan

2014-04-30

Contaminants of emerging concern were measured in mussels collected along the California coast in 2009-2010. The seven classes were alkylphenols, pharmaceuticals and personal care products, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE), other flame retardants, current use pesticides, perfluorinated compounds (PFC), and single walled carbon nanotubes. At least one contaminant was detected at 67 of the 68 stations (98%), and 67 of the 167 analytes had at least one detect (40%). Alkylphenol, PBDE, and PFC concentrations increased with urbanization and proximity to storm water discharge; pesticides had higher concentrations at agricultural stations. These results suggest that certain compounds; for example, alkylphenols, lomefloxacin and PBDE, are appropriate for inclusion in future coastal bivalve monitoring efforts based on maximum concentrations >50 ng/g dry weight and detection frequencies >50%. Other compounds, for example PFC and hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD), may also be suggested for inclusion due to their >25% detection frequency and potential for biomagnification. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Virtual Vision

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Terzopoulos, Demetri; Qureshi, Faisal Z.

Computer vision and sensor networks researchers are increasingly motivated to investigate complex multi-camera sensing and control issues that arise in the automatic visual surveillance of extensive, highly populated public spaces such as airports and train stations. However, they often encounter serious impediments to deploying and experimenting with large-scale physical camera networks in such real-world environments. We propose an alternative approach called "Virtual Vision", which facilitates this type of research through the virtual reality simulation of populated urban spaces, camera sensor networks, and computer vision on commodity computers. We demonstrate the usefulness of our approach by developing two highly automated surveillance systems comprising passive and active pan/tilt/zoom cameras that are deployed in a virtual train station environment populated by autonomous, lifelike virtual pedestrians. The easily reconfigurable virtual cameras distributed in this environment generate synthetic video feeds that emulate those acquired by real surveillance cameras monitoring public spaces. The novel multi-camera control strategies that we describe enable the cameras to collaborate in persistently observing pedestrians of interest and in acquiring close-up videos of pedestrians in designated areas.

Airborne ultrafine particles in a naturally ventilated metro station: Dominant sources and mixing state determined by particle size distribution and volatility measurements.

PubMed

Mendes, Luís; Gini, Maria I; Biskos, George; Colbeck, Ian; Eleftheriadis, Konstantinos

2018-08-01

Ultrafine particle number concentrations and size distributions were measured on the platform of a metro station in Athens, Greece, and compared with those recorded at an urban background station. The volatility of the sampled particles was measured in parallel, providing further insights on the mixing state and composition of the sampled particles. Particle concentration exhibited a mean value of 1.2 × 10 4 # cm -3 and showed a weak correlation with train passage frequency, but exhibited a strong correlation with urban background particle concentrations. The size distribution appears to be strongly influenced by outdoor conditions, such as the morning traffic rush hour and new particle formation events observed at noon. The aerosol in the metro was externally mixed throughout the day, with particle populations being identified (1) as fully refractory particles being more dominant during the morning traffic rush hours, (2) as core-shell structure particles having a non-volatile core coated with volatile material, and (3) fully volatile particles. The evolution of particle volatility and size throughout the day provide additional support that most nanoparticles in the metro station originate from outdoor urban air. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Outdoor comfort study in Rio de Janeiro: site-related context effects on reported thermal sensation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krüger, E.; Drach, P.; Broede, P.

2017-03-01

Aimed at climate-responsive urban design for tropical areas, the paper attempts to answer the question whether the site-related context affects in some way the perceptual assessment of the microclimate by users of outdoor spaces. Our hypothesis was that visual cues resulting from urban design are important components of the outdoor thermal perception. Monitoring was carried out alongside the administration of standard comfort questionnaires throughout summer periods in 2012-2015 in pedestrian areas of downtown Rio de Janeiro (22° 54 10 S, 43° 12 27 W), Brazil. Campaigns took place at different points, pre-defined in respect of urban geometry attributes. For the measurements, a Davis Vantage Pro2 weather station was employed to which a gray globe thermometer was attached. Two thermal indices were used for assessing the overall meteorological conditions and comfort levels in the outdoor locations: physiological equivalent temperature (PET) and universal thermal climate index (UTCI). Our results suggest that thermal sensation in Rio depends to a large extent on the thermal environment as described by air temperature, PET, or UTCI, and that urban geometry (expressed by the sky-view factor (SVF)) may modify this relationship with increased building density associated to warmer sensation votes under moderate heat stress conditions. This relationship however reverses under strong heat stress with warmer sensations in less obstructed locations, and disappears completely under still higher heat stress, where meteorological conditions, and not the site's SVF, will drive thermal sensation.

Outdoor comfort study in Rio de Janeiro: site-related context effects on reported thermal sensation.

PubMed

Krüger, E; Drach, P; Broede, P

2017-03-01

Aimed at climate-responsive urban design for tropical areas, the paper attempts to answer the question whether the site-related context affects in some way the perceptual assessment of the microclimate by users of outdoor spaces. Our hypothesis was that visual cues resulting from urban design are important components of the outdoor thermal perception. Monitoring was carried out alongside the administration of standard comfort questionnaires throughout summer periods in 2012-2015 in pedestrian areas of downtown Rio de Janeiro (22° 54 10 S, 43° 12 27 W), Brazil. Campaigns took place at different points, pre-defined in respect of urban geometry attributes. For the measurements, a Davis Vantage Pro2 weather station was employed to which a gray globe thermometer was attached. Two thermal indices were used for assessing the overall meteorological conditions and comfort levels in the outdoor locations: physiological equivalent temperature (PET) and universal thermal climate index (UTCI). Our results suggest that thermal sensation in Rio depends to a large extent on the thermal environment as described by air temperature, PET, or UTCI, and that urban geometry (expressed by the sky-view factor (SVF)) may modify this relationship with increased building density associated to warmer sensation votes under moderate heat stress conditions. This relationship however reverses under strong heat stress with warmer sensations in less obstructed locations, and disappears completely under still higher heat stress, where meteorological conditions, and not the site's SVF, will drive thermal sensation.

Passenger flows in underground railway stations and platforms.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2015-05-01

Urban rail systems are designed to carry large volumes of people into and out of major activity centers. As a result, the stations : at these major activity centers are often crowded with boarding and alighting passengers, resulting in passenger inco...

National Forest Health Monitoring Program, Monitoring Urban Forests in Indiana: Pilot Study 2002, Part 2: Statewide Estimates Using the UFORE Model

Treesearch

David Nowak; Anne Buckelew Cumming; Daniel Twardus; Robert Hoehn; Manfred Mielke

2007-01-01

Trees in cities can improve environmental quality and human health. Unfortunately, little is known about the urban forest resource and what and how it contributes to local, regional, and national societies and economies. To better understand the urban forest resource and its value, the Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Health Monitoring Program...

Air quality monitor and acid rain networks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rudolph, H.

1980-01-01

The air quality monitor program which consists of two permanent air monitor stations (PAMS's) and four mobile shuttle pollutant air monitor stations (SPAMS's) is evaluated. The PAMS measures SO sub X, NO sub X particulates, CO, O3, and nonmethane hydrocarbons. The SPAMS measures O3, SO2, HCl, and particulates. The collection and analysis of data in the rain monitor program are discussed.

View southeast of computer controlled energy monitoring system. System replaced ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

View southeast of computer controlled energy monitoring system. System replaced strip chart recorders and other instruments under the direct observation of the load dispatcher. - Thirtieth Street Station, Load Dispatch Center, Thirtieth & Market Streets, Railroad Station, Amtrak (formerly Pennsylvania Railroad Station), Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, PA

Flood-frequency relations for urban streams in Georgia; 1994 update

USGS Publications Warehouse

Inman, Ernest J.

1995-01-01

A statewide study of flood magnitude and frequency in urban areas of Georgia was made to develop methods of estimating flood characteristics at ungaged urban sites. A knowledge of the magnitude and frequency of floods is needed for the design of highway drainage structures, establishing flood- insurance rates, and other uses by urban planners and engineers. A U.S. Geological Survey rainfall-runoff model was calibrated for 65 urban drainage basins ranging in size from 0.04 to 19.1 square miles in 10 urban areas of Georgia. Rainfall-runoff data were collected for a period of 5 to 7 years at each station beginning in 1973 in Metropolitan Atlanta and ending in 1993 in Thomasville, Ga. Calibrated models were used to synthesize long-term annual flood peak discharges for these basins from existing Long-term rainfall records. The 2- to 500-year flood-frequency estimates were developed for each basin by fitting a Pearson Type III frequency distribution curve to the logarithms of these annual peak discharges. Multiple-regression analyses were used to define relations between the station flood-frequency data and several physical basin characteristics, of which drainage area and total impervious area were the most statistically significant. Using theseregression equations and basin characteristics, the magnitude and frequency of floods at ungaged urban basins can be estimated throughout Georgia.

The use of LANDSAT data to monitor the urban growth of Sao Paulo Metropolitan area

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dejesusparada, N. (Principal Investigator); Niero, M.; Lombardo, M. A.; Foresti, C.

1982-01-01

Urban growth from 1977 to 1979 of the region between Billings and the Guarapiranga reservoir was mapped and the problematic urban areas identified using several LANDSAT products. Visual and automatic interpretation techniques were applied to the data. Computer compatible tapes of LANDSAT multispectral scanner data were analyzed through the maximum likelihood Gaussian algorithm. The feasibility of monitoring fast urban growth by remote sensing techniques for efficient urban planning and control is demonstrated.

Urban Climate Station Site Selection Through Combined Digital Surface Model and Sun Angle Calculations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kidd, Chris; Chapman, Lee

2012-01-01

Meteorological measurements within urban areas are becoming increasingly important due to the accentuating effects of climate change upon the Urban Heat Island (UHI). However, ensuring that such measurements are representative of the local area is often difficult due to the diversity of the urban environment. The evaluation of sites is important for both new sites and for the relocation of established sites to ensure that long term changes in the meteorological and climatological conditions continue to be faithfully recorded. Site selection is traditionally carried out in the field using both local knowledge and visual inspection. This paper exploits and assesses the use of lidar-derived digital surface models (DSMs) to quantitatively aid the site selection process. This is acheived by combining the DSM with a solar model, first to generate spatial maps of sky view factors and sun-hour potential and second, to generate site-specific views of the horizon. The results show that such a technique is a useful first-step approach to identify key sites that may be further evaluated for the location of meteorological stations within urban areas.

24 CFR 85.40 - Monitoring and reporting program performance.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Monitoring and reporting program performance. 85.40 Section 85.40 Housing and Urban Development Office of the Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS FOR GRANTS AND COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS TO STATE...

Key Techniques and Risk Management for the Application of the Pile-Beam-Arch (PBA) Excavation Method: A Case Study of the Zhongjie Subway Station

PubMed Central

Guan, Yong-ping; Zhao, Wen; Li, Shen-gang; Zhang, Guo-bin

2014-01-01

The design and construction of shallow-buried tunnels in densely populated urban areas involve many challenges. The ground movements induced by tunneling effects pose potential risks to infrastructure such as surface buildings, pipelines, and roads. In this paper, a case study of the Zhongjie subway station located in Shenyang, China, is examined to investigate the key construction techniques and the influence of the Pile-Beam-Arch (PBA) excavation method on the surrounding environment. This case study discusses the primary risk factors affecting the environmental safety and summarizes the corresponding risk mitigation measures and key techniques for subway station construction using the PBA excavation method in a densely populated urban area. PMID:25221783

24 CFR 1000.436 - How will HUD monitor the use of funds guaranteed under this subpart?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false How will HUD monitor the use of funds guaranteed under this subpart? 1000.436 Section 1000.436 Housing and Urban Development REGULATIONS RELATING TO HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT (CONTINUED) OFFICE OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR PUBLIC AND INDIAN HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN...

Site selection model for new metro stations based on land use

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Nan; Chen, Xuewu

2015-12-01

Since the construction of metro system generally lags behind the development of urban land use, sites of metro stations should adapt to their surrounding situations, which was rarely discussed by previous research on station layout. This paper proposes a new site selection model to find the best location for a metro station, establishing the indicator system based on land use and combining AHP with entropy weight method to obtain the schemes' ranking. The feasibility and efficiency of this model has been validated by evaluating Nanjing Shengtai Road station and other potential sites.

The impact of cost and network topology on urban mobility: a study of public bicycle usage in 2 U.S. cities.

PubMed

Jurdak, Raja

2013-01-01

Understanding the drivers of urban mobility is vital for epidemiology, urban planning, and communication networks. Human movements have so far been studied by observing people's positions in a given space and time, though most recent models only implicitly account for expected costs and returns for movements. This paper explores the explicit impact of cost and network topology on mobility dynamics, using data from 2 city-wide public bicycle share systems in the USA. User mobility is characterized through the distribution of trip durations, while network topology is characterized through the pairwise distances between stations and the popularity of stations and routes. Despite significant differences in station density and physical layout between the 2 cities, trip durations follow remarkably similar distributions that exhibit cost sensitive trends around pricing point boundaries, particularly with long-term users of the system. Based on the results, recommendations for dynamic pricing and incentive schemes are provided to positively influence mobility patterns and guide improved planning and management of public bicycle systems to increase uptake.

Enhance the Quality of Crowdsensing for Fine-Grained Urban Environment Monitoring via Data Correlation

PubMed Central

Kang, Xu; Liu, Liang; Ma, Huadong

2017-01-01

Monitoring the status of urban environments, which provides fundamental information for a city, yields crucial insights into various fields of urban research. Recently, with the popularity of smartphones and vehicles equipped with onboard sensors, a people-centric scheme, namely “crowdsensing”, for city-scale environment monitoring is emerging. This paper proposes a data correlation based crowdsensing approach for fine-grained urban environment monitoring. To demonstrate urban status, we generate sensing images via crowdsensing network, and then enhance the quality of sensing images via data correlation. Specifically, to achieve a higher quality of sensing images, we not only utilize temporal correlation of mobile sensing nodes but also fuse the sensory data with correlated environment data by introducing a collective tensor decomposition approach. Finally, we conduct a series of numerical simulations and a real dataset based case study. The results validate that our approach outperforms the traditional spatial interpolation-based method. PMID:28054968

LOCATING MONITORING STATIONS IN WATER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEMS

EPA Science Inventory

Water undergoes changes in quality between the time it leaves the treatment plant and the time it reaches the customer's tap, making it important to select monitoring stations that will adequately monitor these changers. But because there is no uniform schedule or framework for ...

Comparing apples with apples: Using spatially distributed time series of monitoring data for model evaluation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Solazzo, E.; Galmarini, S.

2015-07-01

A more sensible use of monitoring data for the evaluation and development of regional-scale atmospheric models is proposed. The motivation stems from observing current practices in this realm where the quality of monitoring data is seldom questioned and model-to-data deviation is uniquely attributed to model deficiency. Efforts are spent to quantify the uncertainty intrinsic to the measurement process, but aspects connected to model evaluation and development have recently emerged that remain obscure, such as the spatial representativeness and the homogeneity of signals subjects of our investigation. By using time series of hourly records of ozone for a whole year (2006) collected by the European AirBase network the area of representativeness is firstly analysed showing, for similar class of stations (urban, suburban, rural), large heterogeneity and high sensitivity to the density of the network and to the noise of the signal, suggesting the mere station classification to be not a suitable candidate to help select the pool of stations used in model evaluation. Therefore a novel, more robust technique is developed based on the spatial properties of the associativity of the spectral components of the ozone time series, in an attempt to determine the level of homogeneity. The spatial structure of the associativity among stations is informative of the spatial representativeness of that specific component and automatically tells about spatial anisotropy. Time series of ozone data from North American networks have also been analysed to support the methodology. We find that the low energy components (especially the intra-day signal) suffer from a too strong influence of country-level network set-up in Europe, and different networks in North America, showing spatial heterogeneity exactly at the administrative border that separates countries in Europe and at areas separating different networks in North America. For model evaluation purposes these elements should be treated as purely stochastic and discarded, while retaining the portion of the signal useful to the evaluation process. Trans-boundary discontinuity of the intra-day signal along with cross-network grouping has been found to be predominant. Skills of fifteen regional chemical-transport modelling systems have been assessed in light of this result, finding an improved accuracy of up to 5% when the intra-day signal is removed with respect to the case where all components are analysed.

Integrating local urban climate modelling and mobile sensor data for personal exposure assessments in the context of urban heat island effect

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ueberham, Maximilian; Hertel, Daniel; Schlink, Uwe

2017-04-01

Deeper knowledge about urban climate conditions is getting more important in the context of climate change, urban population growth, urban compaction and continued surface sealing. Especially the urban heat island effect (UHI) is one of the most significant human induced alterations of Earth's surface climate. According to this the appearance frequency of heat waves in cities will increase with deep impacts on personal thermal comfort, human health and local residential quality of citizens. UHI can be very heterogenic within a city and research needs to focus more on the neighborhood scale perspective to get further insights about the heat burden of individuals. However, up to now, few is known about local thermal environmental variances and personal exposure loads. To monitor these processes and the impact on individuals, improved monitoring approaches are crucial, complementing data recorded at conventional fixed stations. Therefore we emphasize the importance of micro-meteorological modelling and mobile measurements to shed new light on the nexus of urban human-climate interactions. Contributing to this research we jointly present the approaches of our two PhD-projects. Firstly we illustrate on the basis of an example site, how local thermal conditions in an urban district can be simulated and predicted by a micro-meteorological model. Secondly we highlight the potentials of personal exposure measurements based on an evaluation of mobile micro-sensing devices (MSDs) and analyze and explain differences between model predictions and mobile records. For the examination of local thermal conditions we calculated ENVI-met simulations within the "Bayerischer Bahnhof" quarter in Leipzig (Saxony, Germany; 51°20', 12°22'). To accomplish the maximum temperature contrasts within the diverse built-up structures we chose a hot summer day (25 Aug 2016) under autochthonous weather conditions. From these simulations we analyzed a UHI effect between the model core (urban area) and the surrounding nesting area (rural area). Preparing for the outdoor application of mobile MSDs we tested their accuracy and performance between several MSDs and reliable sophisticated devices under laboratory conditions. We found that variations mainly depend on the device design and technology (e.g. active/passive ventilation). The standard deviation of the temperature records was quite stable over the whole range of values and the MSDs proved to be applicable for the purpose of our study. In conclusion the benefit of integrating mobile data and micrometeorological predictions is manifold. Mobile data can be used for the investigation of personal exposure in the context of heat stress and for the verification and training of micrometeorological models. Otherwise, model predictions can identify local areas of special climate interest where additional mobile measurements would be beneficial to provide new information for mitigation and adaptation actions.

Long-range Transported African Dust in the Caribbean Region: Dust Concentrations and Water-soluble Ions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Santos-Figueroa, G.; Avilés-Piñeiro, G. M.; Mayol-Bracero, O. L.

2017-12-01

Long-range transported African dust (LRTAD) particles reach the Caribbean region every year during the summer months causing an increase in PM10 concentrations and by consequence degradation of air quality. During African dust (AD) incursions at the Caribbean region, PM10 concentration could exceeds the exposure limit of 50 µg/m³ 24-hour mean established by the World Health Organization (WHO). To have a better understanding of the impacts of AD particles to climate and public health at the Caribbean region it is necessary to study and determine the spatial and temporal distribution of dust particles. In order to address this, aerosols samples were collected during and absence of AD incursions during the summer of 2017 using a Hi-Volume (Hi-Vol) sampler for total suspended particles (TSP) at two sampling stations in Puerto Rico. The first station is a marine site located at Cabezas de San Juan (CSJ) Nature Reserve in Fajardo, and the second station is an urban site located at the Facundo Bueso (FB) building at the University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras. Aerosol samples were collected using Whatman 41 grade filters from which we determined the concentration of dust particles and the water-soluble ions (e.g., Na+, NH4+, Ca+2, Cl-, SO4-2) in the presence and absence of LRTAD particles. Saharan Air Layer (SAL) imagery, the results from the air mass backward trajectories calculated with the NOAA Hybrid Single Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory Model (HYSPLIT), and the spectral coefficients from measurements at CSJ were used to monitor and confirm the presence of air masses coming from North Africa. Average dust concentrations using the Stacked-Filter Units (SFUs) at CSJ are around 4 μg/m3. LRTAD concentrations and ionic speciation results using the Hi-Vol for the marine and urban sites will be presented at the conference.

Water Soluble Organic Nitrogen (WSON) in Ambient Fine Particles Over a Megacity in South China: Spatiotemporal Variations and Source Apportionment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Xu; Yu, Qingqing; Zhu, Ming; Tang, Mingjin; Li, Sheng; Yang, Weiqiang; Zhang, Yanli; Deng, Wei; Li, Guanghui; Yu, Yuegang; Huang, Zhonghui; Song, Wei; Ding, Xiang; Hu, Qihou; Li, Jun; Bi, Xinhui; Wang, Xinming

2017-12-01

Organic nitrogen aerosols are complex mixtures and important compositions in ambient fine particulate matters (PM2.5), yet their sources and spatiotemporal patterns are not well understood particularly in regions influenced by intensive human activities. In this study, filter-based ambient PM2.5 samples at four stations (one urban, two rural, plus one urban roadside) and PM samples from combustion sources (vehicle exhaust, ship emission, and biomass burning) were collected in the coastal megacity Guangzhou, south China, for determining water soluble organic nitrogen (WSON) along with other organic and inorganic species. The annual average WSON concentrations, as well as the ratios of WSON to water soluble total nitrogen, were all significantly higher at rural sites than urban sites. Average WSON concentrations at the four sites during the wet season were quite near each other, ranging from 0.41 to 0.49 μg/m3; however, they became 2 times higher at the rural sites than at the urban sites during the dry season. Five major sources for WSON were identified through positive matrix factorization analysis. Vehicle emission (29.3%), biomass burning (22.8%), and secondary formation (20.2%) were three dominant sources of WSON at the urban station, while vehicle emission (45.4%) and dust (28.6%) were two dominant sources at the urban roadside station. At the two rural sites biomass burning (51.1% and 34.1%, respectively) and secondary formation (17.8% and 30.5%, respectively) were dominant sources of WSON. Ship emission contributed 8-12% of WSON at the four sites. Natural vegetation seemed to have very minor contribution to WSON.

Merging of rain gauge and radar data for urban hydrological modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berndt, Christian; Haberlandt, Uwe

2015-04-01

Urban hydrological processes are generally characterised by short response times and therefore rainfall data with a high resolution in space and time are required for their modelling. In many smaller towns, no recordings of rainfall data exist within the urban catchment. Precipitation radar helps to provide extensive rainfall data with a temporal resolution of five minutes, but the rainfall amounts can be highly biased and hence the data should not be used directly as a model input. However, scientists proposed several methods for adjusting radar data to station measurements. This work tries to evaluate rainfall inputs for a hydrological model regarding the following two different applications: Dimensioning of urban drainage systems and analysis of single event flow. The input data used for this analysis can be divided into two groups: Methods, which rely on station data only (Nearest Neighbour Interpolation, Ordinary Kriging), and methods, which incorporate station as well as radar information (Conditional Merging, Bias correction of radar data based on quantile mapping with rain gauge recordings). Additionally, rainfall intensities that were directly obtained from radar reflectivities are used. A model of the urban catchment of the city of Brunswick (Lower Saxony, Germany) is utilised for the evaluation. First results show that radar data cannot help with the dimensioning task of sewer systems since rainfall amounts of convective events are often overestimated. Gauges in catchment proximity can provide more reliable rainfall extremes. Whether radar data can be helpful to simulate single event flow depends strongly on the data quality and thus on the selected event. Ordinary Kriging is often not suitable for the interpolation of rainfall data in urban hydrology. This technique induces a strong smoothing of rainfall fields and therefore a severe underestimation of rainfall intensities for convective events.

Regression equations for estimating flood flows for the 2-, 10-, 25-, 50-, 100-, and 500-Year recurrence intervals in Connecticut

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ahearn, Elizabeth A.

2004-01-01

Multiple linear-regression equations were developed to estimate the magnitudes of floods in Connecticut for recurrence intervals ranging from 2 to 500 years. The equations can be used for nonurban, unregulated stream sites in Connecticut with drainage areas ranging from about 2 to 715 square miles. Flood-frequency data and hydrologic characteristics from 70 streamflow-gaging stations and the upstream drainage basins were used to develop the equations. The hydrologic characteristics?drainage area, mean basin elevation, and 24-hour rainfall?are used in the equations to estimate the magnitude of floods. Average standard errors of prediction for the equations are 31.8, 32.7, 34.4, 35.9, 37.6 and 45.0 percent for the 2-, 10-, 25-, 50-, 100-, and 500-year recurrence intervals, respectively. Simplified equations using only one hydrologic characteristic?drainage area?also were developed. The regression analysis is based on generalized least-squares regression techniques. Observed flows (log-Pearson Type III analysis of the annual maximum flows) from five streamflow-gaging stations in urban basins in Connecticut were compared to flows estimated from national three-parameter and seven-parameter urban regression equations. The comparison shows that the three- and seven- parameter equations used in conjunction with the new statewide equations generally provide reasonable estimates of flood flows for urban sites in Connecticut, although a national urban flood-frequency study indicated that the three-parameter equations significantly underestimated flood flows in many regions of the country. Verification of the accuracy of the three-parameter or seven-parameter national regression equations using new data from Connecticut stations was beyond the scope of this study. A technique for calculating flood flows at streamflow-gaging stations using a weighted average also is described. Two estimates of flood flows?one estimate based on the log-Pearson Type III analyses of the annual maximum flows at the gaging station, and the other estimate from the regression equation?are weighted together based on the years of record at the gaging station and the equivalent years of record value determined from the regression. Weighted averages of flood flows for the 2-, 10-, 25-, 50-, 100-, and 500-year recurrence intervals are tabulated for the 70 streamflow-gaging stations used in the regression analysis. Generally, weighted averages give the most accurate estimate of flood flows at gaging stations. An evaluation of the Connecticut's streamflow-gaging network was performed to determine whether the spatial coverage and range of geographic and hydrologic conditions are adequately represented for transferring flood characteristics from gaged to ungaged sites. Fifty-one of 54 stations in the current (2004) network support one or more flood needs of federal, state, and local agencies. Twenty-five of 54 stations in the current network are considered high-priority stations by the U.S. Geological Survey because of their contribution to the longterm understanding of floods, and their application for regionalflood analysis. Enhancements to the network to improve overall effectiveness for regionalization can be made by increasing the spatial coverage of gaging stations, establishing stations in regions of the state that are not well-represented, and adding stations in basins with drainage area sizes not represented. Additionally, the usefulness of the network for characterizing floods can be maintained and improved by continuing operation at the current stations because flood flows can be more accurately estimated at stations with continuous, long-term record.

EXPOSURE MONITORING COMPONENT FOR DETROIT CHILDREN'S HEALTH STUDY ( DCHS )

EPA Science Inventory

Conventional, regulatory-based air monitoring is expensive and, thus, conducted at one or few locations in a city. This provides limited info on intra-urban variability and spatial distribution of air pollution. Research-oriented urban network monitoring has progressed with inc...

Vertical Ozone Concentration Profiles in the Middle East: WRF-Chem Predictions vs. Balloon Measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fountoukis, C.; Ayoub, M.; Ackermann, L.; Gladich, I.; Hoehn, R.

2017-12-01

The greater Middle Eastern area is made up by more than 20 countries with over 400 million inhabitants. Due to extensive land conversion, intense industrialization and rapid urban population growth in recent years, the region's air quality is changing. High ozone levels affected by free tropospheric subsidence, long range transport and local production in large metropolitan areas of the region are of major concern. In this study we analyze data from i) continuously (24/7) operated ground monitoring stations, and ii) an ozonesonde station, operated in Doha by the Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute coupled with simulations using a three-dimensional regional air quality model (WRF-Chem). Ozonesondes were launched at 1300 LT (1000 UTC) weekly during a summertime month (August 2015) representative of extremely hot and humid atmospheric conditions and a wintertime period (January/February 2016) of cool and dry conditions in the area. This is the first application of WRF-Chem in the Middle East focusing on vertical ozone concentrations on the lower troposphere (0 - 6 km) combined with high frequency vertical measurement (balloon) data. A triple nested model configuration has been selected with high spatial resolution over the domain of interest (2 × 2 km2). We examine different meteorological regimes and test the sensitivity of model predictions to planetary boundary layer parameterizations. Comparison of model predictions against observations show high correlation coefficients and encouragingly low biases in all meteorological variables. During wintertime, ozone is overall well predicted (Fractional Bias = -0.1) while the summertime comparison is more challenging. We suggest that the YSU scheme is more representative of the region and should be the scheme of choice in future WRF-Chem applications in the Middle East. Furthermore, we highlight the importance of revising the available anthropogenic emission inventory to account rapidly-changing urban environments of the Middle East. Results from the development of a new traffic-emissions inventory for urban environments will be discussed.

Mercury in Precipitation in Indiana, January 2004-December 2005

USGS Publications Warehouse

Risch, Martin R.; Fowler, Kathleen K.

2008-01-01

Mercury in precipitation was monitored during 2004-2005 at five locations in Indiana as part of the National Atmospheric Deposition Program-Mercury Deposition Network (NADP-MDN). Monitoring stations were operated at Roush Lake near Huntington, Clifty Falls State Park near Madison, Fort Harrison State Park near Indianapolis, Monroe County Regional Airport near Bloomington, and Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore near Porter. At these monitoring stations, precipitation amounts were measured continuously and weekly samples were collected for analysis of mercury by methods achieving detection limits as low as 0.05 ng/L (nanograms per liter). Wet deposition was computed as the product of mercury concentration and precipitation. The data were analyzed for seasonal patterns, temporal trends, and geographic differences. In the 2 years, 520 weekly samples were collected at the 5 monitoring stations and 448 of these samples had sufficient precipitation to compute mercury wet deposition. The 2-year mean mercury concentration at the five monitoring stations (normalized to the sample volume) was 10.6 ng/L. As a reference for comparison, the total mercury concentration in 41 percent of the samples analyzed was greater than the statewide Indiana water-quality standard for mercury (12 ng/L, protecting aquatic life) and 99 percent of the concentrations exceeded the most conservative Indiana water-quality criterion (1.3 ng/L, protecting wild mammals and birds). The normalized annual mercury concentration at Clifty Falls in 2004 was the fourth highest in the NADP-MDN in eastern North America that year. In 2005, the mercury concentrations at Clifty Falls and Indiana Dunes were the ninth highest in the NADP-MDN in eastern North America. At the five monitoring stations during the study period, the mean weekly total mercury deposition was 0.208 ug/m2 (micrograms per square meter) and mean annual total mercury deposition was 10.8 ug/m2. The annual mercury deposition at Clifty Falls in 2004 and 2005 was in the top 25 percent of the NADP-MDN stations in eastern North America. Mercury concentrations and deposition varied at the five monitoring stations during 2004-2005. Mercury concentrations in wet-deposition samples ranged from 1.2 to 116.6 ng/L and weekly mercury deposition ranged from 0.002 to 1.74 ug/m2. Data from weekly samples exhibited seasonal patterns. During April through September, total mercury concentrations and deposition were higher than the median for all samples. Annual precipitation at four of the five monitoring stations was within 10 percent of normal both years, with the exception of Indiana Dunes, where precipitation was 23 percent below normal in 2005. Episodes of high mercury deposition, which were the top 10 percent of weekly mercury deposition at the five monitoring stations, contributed 39 percent of all mercury deposition during 2004-2005. Mercury deposition more than 1.04 ug/m2 (5 times the mean weekly deposition) was recorded for 12 samples. These episodes of highest mercury deposition were recorded at all five monitoring stations, but the most (7 of 12) were at Clifty Falls and contributed 34.4 percent of the total deposition at that station during 2004-2005. Weekly samples with high mercury deposition may help to explain the differences in annual mercury deposition among the five monitoring stations in Indiana. A statistical evaluation of the monitoring data for 2001-2005 indicated several statistically significant temporal trends. A statewide (5-station) decrease (p = 0.007) in mercury deposition and a statewide decrease (p = 0.059) in mercury concentration were shown. Decreases in mercury deposition (p = 0.061 and p = 0.083) were observed at Roush Lake and Bloomington. A statistically significant trend was not observed for precipitation at the five monitoring stations during this 5-year period. A potential explanation for part of the statewide decrease in mercury concentration and mercury deposition was a 2

Field testing of a new flow-through directional passive air sampler applied to monitoring ambient nitrogen dioxide.

PubMed

Lin, Chun; McKenna, Paul; Timmis, Roger; Jones, Kevin C

2010-07-08

This paper reports the first field deployment and testing of a directional passive air sampler (DPAS) which can be used to cost-effectively identify and quantify air pollutants and their sources. The sampler was used for ambient nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)) over ten weeks from twelve directional sectors in an urban setting, and tested alongside an automatic chemiluminescent monitor. The time-integrated passive directional results were compared with the directional analysis of the active monitoring results using wind data recorded at a weather station. The DPAS discriminated air pollutant signals directionally. The attempts to derive quantitative data yielded reasonable results--usually within a factor of two of those obtained by the chemiluminescent analyser. Ultimately, whether DPAS approaches are adopted will depend on their reliability, added value and cost. It is argued that added value was obtained here from the DPAS approach applied in a routine monitoring situation, by identifying source sectors. Both the capital and running costs of DPAS were <5% of those for the automatic monitor. It is envisaged that different sorbents or sampling media will enable this rotatable DPAS design to be used for other airborne pollutants. In summary, there are reasons to be optimistic that directional passive air sampling, together with careful interpretation of results, will be of added value to air quality practitioners in future.

Monitoring the Urban Tree Cover for Urban Ecosystem Services - The Case of Leipzig, Germany

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Banzhaf, E.; Kollai, H.

2015-04-01

Urban dynamics such as (extreme) growth and shrinkage bring about fundamental challenges for urban land use and related changes. In order to achieve a sustainable urban development, it is crucial to monitor urban green infrastructure at microscale level as it provides various urban ecosystem services in neighbourhoods, supporting quality of life and environmental health. We monitor urban trees by means of a multiple data set to get a detailed knowledge on its distribution and change over a decade for the entire city. We have digital orthophotos, a digital elevation model and a digital surface model. The refined knowledge on the absolute height above ground helps to differentiate tree tops. Grounded on an object-based image analysis scheme a detailed mapping of trees in an urbanized environment is processed. Results show high accuracy of tree detection and avoidance of misclassification due to shadows. The study area is the City of Leipzig, Germany. One of the leading German cities, it is home to contiguous community allotments that characterize the configuration of the city. Leipzig has one of the most well-preserved floodplain forests in Europe.

Research the simulation model of the passenger travel behavior in urban rail platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Yujia; Yin, Xiangyong

2017-05-01

Based on the results of the research on the platform of the Beijing Chegongzhuang subway station in the line 2, the passenger travel behavior in urban rail platform is divided into 4 parts, which are the enter passenger walking, the passenger waiting distribution and queuing up before the door, passenger boarding and alighting and the alighting passengers walking, according to the social force model, simulation model was built based on Matlab software. Combined with the actual data of subway the Chegongzhuang subway station in the line 2, the simulation results show that the social force model is effective.

24 CFR 598.620 - Evaluation, monitoring, and enforcement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY FACILITIES URBAN EMPOWERMENT ZONES: ROUND TWO AND THREE DESIGNATIONS Empowerment Zone Grants § 598.620 Evaluation, monitoring, and enforcement. (a) Progress...

24 CFR 598.620 - Evaluation, monitoring, and enforcement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY FACILITIES URBAN EMPOWERMENT ZONES: ROUND TWO AND THREE DESIGNATIONS Empowerment Zone Grants § 598.620 Evaluation, monitoring, and enforcement. (a) Progress...

Support and Maintenance of the International Monitoring System network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pereira, Jose; Bazarragchaa, Sergelen; Kilgour, Owen; Pretorius, Jacques; Werzi, Robert; Beziat, Guillaume; Hamani, Wacel; Mohammad, Walid; Brely, Natalie

2014-05-01

The Monitoring Facilities Support Section of the Provisional Technical Secretariat (PTS) has as its main task to ensure optimal support and maintenance of an array of 321 monitoring stations and 16 radionuclide laboratories distributed worldwide. Raw seismic, infrasonic, hydroacoustic and radionuclide data from these facilities constitutes the basic product delivered by the International Monitoring System (IMS). In the process of maintaining such a wide array of stations of different technologies, the Support Section contributes to ensuring station mission capability. Mission capable data availability according to the IMS requirements should be at least 98% annually (no more than 7 days down time per year per waveform stations - 14 continuous for radionuclide stations) for continuous data sending stations. In this presentation, we will present our case regarding our intervention at stations to address equipment supportability and maintainability, as these are particularly large activities requiring the removal of a substantial part of the station equipment and installation of new equipment. The objective is always to plan these activities while minimizing downtime and continuing to meet all IMS requirements, including those of data availability mentioned above. We postulate that these objectives are better achieved by planning and making use of preventive maintenance, as opposed to "run-to-failure" with associated corrective maintenance. We use two recently upgraded Infrasound Stations (IS39 Palau and IS52 BIOT) as a case study and establish a comparison between these results and several other stations where corrective maintenance was performed, to demonstrate our hypothesis.

Monitoring of Air Quality in Passenger Cabins of the Athens Metro

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsairidi, Evangelia; Assimakopoulos, Vasiliki D.; Assimakopoulos, Margarita-Niki; Barbaresos, Nicolaos; Karagiannis, Athanassios

2013-04-01

The air pollution induced by various transportation means combines the emission of pollutants with the simultaneous presence of people. In this respect, the scientific community has focused its efforts in studying both the air quality within busy streets and inside cars, buses and the underground railway network in order to identify the pollutants' sources and levels as well as the human exposure. The impact of the air pollution on commuters of the underground may be more severe because it is a confined space, extended mostly under heavily trafficked urban streets, relies on mechanical ventilation for air renewal and gathers big numbers of passengers. The purpose of the present work is to monitor the air quality of the city of Athens Metro Network cabins and platforms during the unusually hot summer of 2012. For that cause particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5, PM1), carbon dioxide (CO2), the number of commuters along with temperature (T) and humidity (RH) were recorded inside the Athens Metro Blue Line trains (covering a route from the centre of Athens (Aigaleo) to the Athens International Airport) and on the platforms of a central (Syntagma) and a suburban-traffic (Doukissis Plakentias) station between June and August. The data collection included six different experiments that took place for 2 consecutive working days each, for a time period of 6 weeks from 6:30 am too 7:00 pm in order to account for different outdoor climatic conditions and for morning and evening rush hours respectively. Measurements were taken in the middle car of the moving trains and the platform end of the selected stations. The results show PM concentrations to be higher (approximately 2 to 5 times) inside the cabins and o the platforms of the underground network as compared to the outdoor levels monitored routinely by the Ministry of Environment. Moreover, PM1, PM2.5 and PM10 average concentrations recorded at the Syntagma Station Platform were almost constantly higher reaching 11 μg m-3 47 μg m-3 and 246 μg m-3 respectively on July 11th, as opposed to the ones at Doukissis Plakentias (4 μg m-3, 15 μg m-3and 97 μg m-3 respectively). Interestingly enough, inside the trains PM1, PM2.5 and PM10 average concentrations were significantly lower compared to the Syntagma Station Platform, reaching 8 μg m-3, 27 μg m-3 and 90 μg m-3 . It was also observed that particulate levels were higher over the extent of the central part of the train route. Finally, as expected CO2 levels where found to be higher inside the trains compared to the platforms and in some cases surpassed the 1,000 ppm limit during the hottest days of the experimental campaign. Temperature and humidity remained relatively stable on the platforms whereas measurements inside the cabin fluctuated depending on the trains track locations reaching 34.8° C at the central sector of the route. KEYWORDS: Particulate pollution, Athens underground, indoor air quality, urban pollution, transportation

Child safety seat and safety belt use among urban travelers : results of the 1985 survey.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1986-01-01

During nine days in June 1983, 1984, and 1985, four major metropolitan areas of Virginia were surveyed to determine the extent to which safety restraints were being used by urban travelers. Observers stationed at selected signalized intersections dis...

Child safety seat and safety belt use among urban travelers : results of the 1983-1986 surveys.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1986-01-01

The four major metropolitan areas of Virginia were surveyed to determine the extent to which safety restraints were being used by urban travelers. Observers were stationed at selected signalized intersections and displayed to stopped motorists a clip...

Child safety seat and safety belt use among urban travelers : results of the 1984 survey.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1985-01-01

During nine days in June 1983 and nine in June 1984, four major metropolitan areas of Virginia were surveyed to determine whether safety restraints were being used by urban travelers. Observers stationed at selected signalized intersections displayed...

High-Speed Rail and Local Land Development : Case Studies in London and Las Vegas

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2017-11-01

The efficacy of a high-speed rail system depends, in part, upon locating rail stations close to urban centers and integrating them into broader transportation networks and the urban realm. In addition, through economies of agglomeration, successful h...

Rainfall-runoff data from small watersheds in Colorado, October 1974 through September 1977

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cochran, Betty J.; Hodges, H.E.; Livingston, R.K.; Jarret, R.D.

1979-01-01

Rainfall-runoff data from small watersheds in Colorado are being collected and analyzed for the purpose of defining the flood characteristics of these and other similar areas. Data collected from October 1974 through September 1977 at a total of 18 urban stations, 10 Denver Federal Center stations, and 48 rural (or highway) stations are tabulated at 5-minute time intervals. Additional information presented includes station descriptions and methods of data collection and analysis. (Kosco-USGS)

Continuous turbidity monitoring in streams of northwestern California

Treesearch

Rand Eads; Jack Lewis

2002-01-01

Abstract - Redwood Sciences Laboratory, a field office of the USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station has developed and refined methods and instrumentation to monitor turbidity and suspended sediment in streams of northern California since 1996. Currently we operate 21 stations and have provided assistance in the installation of 6 gaging stations for...

47 CFR 74.1262 - Frequency monitors and measurements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... Translator Stations and FM Broadcast Booster Stations § 74.1262 Frequency monitors and measurements. (a) The... approved for use by an FM translator or booster. (b) In the event that a station authorized under this... translator or booster shall be made by a qualified person in accordance with § 74.1250(g). ...

47 CFR 74.1262 - Frequency monitors and measurements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... Translator Stations and FM Broadcast Booster Stations § 74.1262 Frequency monitors and measurements. (a) The... approved for use by an FM translator or booster. (b) In the event that a station authorized under this... translator or booster shall be made by a qualified person in accordance with § 74.1250(g). ...

47 CFR 74.1262 - Frequency monitors and measurements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... Translator Stations and FM Broadcast Booster Stations § 74.1262 Frequency monitors and measurements. (a) The... approved for use by an FM translator or booster. (b) In the event that a station authorized under this... translator or booster shall be made by a qualified person in accordance with § 74.1250(g). ...

47 CFR 74.1262 - Frequency monitors and measurements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... Translator Stations and FM Broadcast Booster Stations § 74.1262 Frequency monitors and measurements. (a) The... approved for use by an FM translator or booster. (b) In the event that a station authorized under this... translator or booster shall be made by a qualified person in accordance with § 74.1250(g). ...

47 CFR 74.1262 - Frequency monitors and measurements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... Translator Stations and FM Broadcast Booster Stations § 74.1262 Frequency monitors and measurements. (a) The... approved for use by an FM translator or booster. (b) In the event that a station authorized under this... translator or booster shall be made by a qualified person in accordance with § 74.1250(g). ...

Sensitivities Affecting Heat and Urban Heat Island Effect on Local Scale Projected to Neighborhood Scale in Baltimore, Maryland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sze, C.; Zaitchik, B. F.; Scott, A.

2015-12-01

Urban regions are often impacted more by heat than adjacent rural areas, which is a phenomenon known as the urban heat island (UHI) effect. Urban areas are also highly heterogeneous and notoriously difficult to monitor using standard meteorological protocols—the hottest microclimates within a city often occur in locations that lack open, representative installation sites that are an adequate distance from buildings and direct heat sources. To investigate the challenges of monitoring urban heat, this study examines the sensitivity of temperature and humidity sensors currently used in a Baltimore UHI monitoring network to differences in sun exposure, material on which the data collecting instrument is attached, and land cover class of the vicinity. Sensitivity to sun exposure and attachment site can be interpreted as sources of uncertainty for urban heat monitoring, while sensitivity to land cover may reflect a true source of local temperature and humidity variability. In this study, we present results from a test deployment designed to assess the sensitivity of heat measurements to each of these three factors. We then apply these results to interpret measurements taken across the entire Baltimore UHI monitoring network. These results can then be used to improve heat measurements and more accurately represent and quantify the UHI effect on a broader scale, such as in neighborhoods or urban centers.

An assessment of the risk of element contamination of urban and industrial areas using Taraxacum sect. Ruderalia as a bioindicator.

PubMed

Fröhlichová, Alena; Száková, Jiřina; Najmanová, Jana; Tlustoš, Pavel

2018-02-19

Central Bohemia (Czech Republic) has highly developed industry and a dense rail network. Here, we aimed to determine the content of risk elements in dandelion plants (Taraxacum sect. Ruderalia) growing near train stations, industrial enterprises, and in the city parks of 16 cities in the Central Bohemian region. The highest element contents in the soils were found in industrial areas affected by the historical mining and smelting activities; contemporary industry showed no substantial effect on the soil element contents. The median values of element contents (As, Be, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) at the railway station sites were the highest among the monitored sites, where the differences between park and station sites were significant for Be, Co, and Zn. Although the intensity of the traffic at the individual stations differed, we found that long-term regular traffic enhanced the element contents in the soils and, subsequently, in the plants. For Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Pb, V, and Zn, the highest median element contents were found in plant roots, regardless of the sampling site. For Cd and Zn, the contents in leaves were higher than in the inflorescences, and the opposite pattern was recorded for Co and Cu. As and Be were distributed equally among the plant parts. Among the sampling sites, the As, Be, Cd, Zn, and Pb contents in the plant roots tended to have higher median values at the station sites, confirming the results of our soil analyses. We detected a fairly good correlation between soil and plant content for cadmium, regardless of the sampling site, soil element content, or analyzed part of the plant. Thus, we propose that dandelion is a suitable bioindicator of cadmium pollution of soil.

Isotopic Recorders of Pollution in Heterogeneous Urban Areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pataki, D. E.; Cobley, L.; Smith, R. M.; Ehleringer, J. R.; Chritz, K.

2017-12-01

A significant difficulty in quantifying urban pollution lies in the extreme spatial and temporal heterogeneity of cities. Dense sources of both point and non-point source pollution as well as the dynamic role of human activities, which vary over very short time scales and small spatial scales, complicate efforts to establish long-term urban monitoring networks that are relevant at neighborhood, municipal, and regional scales. Fortunately, the natural abundance of isotopes of carbon, nitrogen, and other elements provides a wealth of information about the sources and fate of urban atmospheric pollution. In particular, soils and plant material integrate pollution sources and cycling over space and time, and have the potential to provide long-term records of pollution dynamics that extend back before atmospheric monitoring data are available. Similarly, sampling organic material at high spatial resolution can provide "isoscapes" that shed light on the spatial heterogeneity of pollutants in different urban parcels and neighborhoods, along roads of varying traffic density, and across neighborhoods of varying affluence and sociodemographic composition. We have compiled numerous datasets of the isotopic composition of urban organic matter that illustrate the potential for isotopic monitoring of urban areas as a means of understanding hot spots and hot moments in urban atmospheric biogeochemistry. Findings to date already reveal the critical role of affluence, economic activity, demographic change, and land management practices in influencing urban pollution sources and sinks, and suggest an important role of stable isotope and radioisotope measurements in urban atmospheric and biogeochemical monitoring.

Generating high-accuracy urban distribution map for short-term change monitoring based on convolutional neural network by utilizing SAR imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iino, Shota; Ito, Riho; Doi, Kento; Imaizumi, Tomoyuki; Hikosaka, Shuhei

2017-10-01

In the developing countries, urban areas are expanding rapidly. With the rapid developments, a short term monitoring of urban changes is important. A constant observation and creation of urban distribution map of high accuracy and without noise pollution are the key issues for the short term monitoring. SAR satellites are highly suitable for day or night and regardless of atmospheric weather condition observations for this type of study. The current study highlights the methodology of generating high-accuracy urban distribution maps derived from the SAR satellite imagery based on Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), which showed the outstanding results for image classification. Several improvements on SAR polarization combinations and dataset construction were performed for increasing the accuracy. As an additional data, Digital Surface Model (DSM), which are useful to classify land cover, were added to improve the accuracy. From the obtained result, high-accuracy urban distribution map satisfying the quality for short-term monitoring was generated. For the evaluation, urban changes were extracted by taking the difference of urban distribution maps. The change analysis with time series of imageries revealed the locations of urban change areas for short-term. Comparisons with optical satellites were performed for validating the results. Finally, analysis of the urban changes combining X-band, L-band and C-band SAR satellites was attempted to increase the opportunity of acquiring satellite imageries. Further analysis will be conducted as future work of the present study

Atmosphere and water quality monitoring on Space Station Freedom

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Niu, William

1990-01-01

In Space Station Freedom air and water will be supplied in closed loop systems. The monitoring of air and water qualities will ensure the crew health for the long mission duration. The Atmosphere Composition Monitor consists of the following major instruments: (1) a single focusing mass spectrometer to monitor major air constituents and control the oxygen/nitrogen addition for the Space Station; (2) a gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer to detect trace contaminants; (3) a non-dispersive infrared spectrometer to determine carbon monoxide concentration; and (4) a laser particle counter for measuring particulates in the air. An overview of the design and development concepts for the air and water quality monitors is presented.

Multi-scale modeling of urban air pollution: development and application of a Street-in-Grid model (v1.0) by coupling MUNICH (v1.0) and Polair3D (v1.8.1)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Youngseob; Wu, You; Seigneur, Christian; Roustan, Yelva

2018-02-01

A new multi-scale model of urban air pollution is presented. This model combines a chemistry-transport model (CTM) that includes a comprehensive treatment of atmospheric chemistry and transport on spatial scales down to 1 km and a street-network model that describes the atmospheric concentrations of pollutants in an urban street network. The street-network model is the Model of Urban Network of Intersecting Canyons and Highways (MUNICH), which consists of two main components: a street-canyon component and a street-intersection component. MUNICH is coupled to the Polair3D CTM of the Polyphemus air quality modeling platform to constitute the Street-in-Grid (SinG) model. MUNICH is used to simulate the concentrations of the chemical species in the urban canopy, which is located in the lowest layer of Polair3D, and the simulation of pollutant concentrations above rooftops is performed with Polair3D. Interactions between MUNICH and Polair3D occur at roof level and depend on a vertical mass transfer coefficient that is a function of atmospheric turbulence. SinG is used to simulate the concentrations of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and ozone (O3) in a Paris suburb. Simulated concentrations are compared to NOx concentrations measured at two monitoring stations within a street canyon. SinG shows better performance than MUNICH for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) concentrations. However, both SinG and MUNICH underestimate NOx. For the case study considered, the model performance for NOx concentrations is not sensitive to using a complex chemistry model in MUNICH and the Leighton NO-NO2-O3 set of reactions is sufficient.

Anthropogenic disruption of the night sky darkness in urban and rural areas.

PubMed

Bará, Salvador

2016-10-01

The growing emissions of artificial light to the atmosphere are producing, among other effects, a significant increase of the night sky brightness (NSB) above its expected natural values. A permanent sensor network has been deployed in Galicia (northwest of Iberian peninsula) to monitor the anthropogenic disruption of the night sky darkness in a countrywide area. The network is composed of 14 detectors integrated in automated weather stations of MeteoGalicia, the Galician public meteorological agency. Zenithal NSB readings are taken every minute and the results are openly available in real time for researchers, interested stakeholders and the public at large through a dedicated website. The measurements allow one to assess the extent of the loss of the natural night in urban, periurban, transition and dark rural sites, as well as its daily and monthly time courses. Two metrics are introduced here to characterize the disruption of the night darkness across the year: the significant magnitude ( m 1/3 ) and the moonlight modulation factor ( γ ). The significant magnitude shows that in clear and moonless nights the zenithal night sky in the analysed urban settings is typically 14-23 times brighter than expected from a nominal natural dark sky. This factor lies in the range 7-8 in periurban sites, 1.6-2.5 in transition regions and 0.8-1.6 in rural and mountain dark sky places. The presence of clouds in urban areas strongly enhances the amount of scattered light, easily reaching amplification factors in excess of 25, in comparison with the light scattered in the same places under clear sky conditions. The periodic NSB modulation due to the Moon, still clearly visible in transition and rural places, is barely notable at periurban locations and is practically lost at urban sites.

A study of impact of Asian dusts and their transport pathways to Hong Kong using multiple AERONET data, trajectory, and in-situ measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wong, Man Sing; Nichol, Janet Elizabeth; Lee, Kwon Ho

2010-10-01

Hong Kong, a commercial and financial city located in south-east China has suffered serious air pollution for the last decade due largely to rapid urban and industrial expansion of the cities of mainland China. However, the potential sources and pathways of aerosols transported to Hong Kong have not been well researched due to the lack of air quality monitoring stations in southern China. Here, an integrated method combining the AErosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET) data, trajectory and Potential Source Contribution Function (PSCF) modeling is used to identify the potential transport pathways and contribution of sources from four characteristic aerosol types. Four characteristic aerosol types were defined using a total of 730 AERONET data measurements between 2005 and 2008. They are coastal urban, polluted urban, dust (likely to be long distance desert dust), and heavy pollution. Results show that the sources of polluted urban and heavy pollution are associated with industrial emissions in southern China, whereas coastal urban aerosols have been affected both from natural marine aerosol and emissions. The PSCF map of dust shows a wide range of pathways followed by east- and south-eastwards trajectories from northwest China to Hong Kong. Although the contribution from dust sources is small compared to the anthropogenic aerosols, a serious recent dust outbreak has been observed in Hong Kong with an elevation of the Air Pollution Index to 500, compared with 50-100 on normal days. Therefore, the combined use of clustered AERONET data, trajectory and the PSCF models can help to resolve the longstanding issue about source regions and characteristics of pollutants carried to Hong Kong.

Anthropogenic disruption of the night sky darkness in urban and rural areas

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

The growing emissions of artificial light to the atmosphere are producing, among other effects, a significant increase of the night sky brightness (NSB) above its expected natural values. A permanent sensor network has been deployed in Galicia (northwest of Iberian peninsula) to monitor the anthropogenic disruption of the night sky darkness in a countrywide area. The network is composed of 14 detectors integrated in automated weather stations of MeteoGalicia, the Galician public meteorological agency. Zenithal NSB readings are taken every minute and the results are openly available in real time for researchers, interested stakeholders and the public at large through a dedicated website. The measurements allow one to assess the extent of the loss of the natural night in urban, periurban, transition and dark rural sites, as well as its daily and monthly time courses. Two metrics are introduced here to characterize the disruption of the night darkness across the year: the significant magnitude (m1/3) and the moonlight modulation factor (γ). The significant magnitude shows that in clear and moonless nights the zenithal night sky in the analysed urban settings is typically 14–23 times brighter than expected from a nominal natural dark sky. This factor lies in the range 7–8 in periurban sites, 1.6–2.5 in transition regions and 0.8–1.6 in rural and mountain dark sky places. The presence of clouds in urban areas strongly enhances the amount of scattered light, easily reaching amplification factors in excess of 25, in comparison with the light scattered in the same places under clear sky conditions. The periodic NSB modulation due to the Moon, still clearly visible in transition and rural places, is barely notable at periurban locations and is practically lost at urban sites. PMID:27853572

High Resolution Displacement Monitoring for Urban Environments in Seattle, Washington using Terrestrial Radar Interferometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lowry, B. W.; Schrock, G.; Werner, C. L.; Zhou, W.; Pugh, N.

2015-12-01

Displacement monitoring using Terrestrial Radar Interferometry (TRI) over an urban environment was conducted to monitor for potential movement of buildings, roadways, and urban infrastructure in Seattle, Washington for a 6 week deployment in March and April of 2015. A Gamma Portable Radar Interferometer was deployed on a the lower roof of the Smith Tower at an elevation of about 100 m, overlooking the historical district of Pioneer Square. Radar monitoring in this context provides wide area coverage, sub millimeter precision, near real time alarming, and reflectorless measurement. Image georectification was established using a previously collected airborne lidar scan which was used to map the radar image onto a 3D 1st return elevation model of downtown Seattle. Platform stability concerns were monitored using high rate GPS and a 3-axis accelerometer to monitor for building movement or platform instability. Displacements were imaged at 2 minute intervals and stacked into 2 hour averages to aid in noise characterization. Changes in coherence are characterized based on diurnal fluctuations of temperature, cultural noise, and target continuity. These informed atmospheric and image selection filters for optimizing interferogram generation and displacement measurement quality control. An urban monitoring workflow was established using point target interferometric analysis to create a monitoring set of approximately 100,000 stable monitoring points measured at 2 minute to 3 hour intervals over the 6 week deployment. Radar displacement measurements were verified using ongoing survey and GPS monitoring program and with corner reflector tests to verify look angle corrections to settlement motion. Insights from this monitoring program can be used to design TRI monitoring programs for underground tunneling, urban subsidence, and earthquake damage assessment applications.

Monitoring Urban Quality of Life: The Porto Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Santos, Luis Delfim; Martins, Isabel

2007-01-01

This paper describes the monitoring system of the urban quality of life developed by the Porto City Council, a new tool being used to support urban planning and management. The two components of this system--a quantitative approach based on statistical indicators and a qualitative analysis based on the citizens' perceptions of the conditions of…

Russian-Cuban Colocation Station for Radio Astronomical Observation and Monitoring of Near-Earth Space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ivanov, D. V.; Uratsuka, M.-R.; Ipatov, A. V.; Marshalov, D. A.; Shuygina, N. V.; Vasilyev, M. V.; Gayazov, I. S.; Ilyin, G. N.; Bondarenko, Yu. S.; Melnikov, A. E.; Suvorkin, V. V.

2018-04-01

The article presents the main possibilities of using the projected Russian-Cuban geodynamic colocation station on the basis of the Institute of Geophysics and Astronomy of the Ministry of Science, Technology and the Environment of the Republic of Cuba to carry out radio observations and monitoring the near-Earth space. Potential capabilities of the station are considered for providing various observational programs: astrophysical observations; observations by space geodesy methods using radio very long baselines interferometers, global navigation satellite systems, laser rangers, and various Doppler systems, as well as monitoring of artificial and natural bodies in the near-Earth and deep space, including the ranging of asteroids approaching the Earth. The results of modeling the observations on the planned station are compared with that obtained on the existing geodynamic stations. The efficiency of the projected Russian-Cuban station for solving astronomical tasks is considered.

Quality of surface water in Missouri, water year 2010

USGS Publications Warehouse

Barr, Miya N.

2011-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, designs and operates a series of monitoring stations on streams throughout Missouri known as the Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network. During the 2010 water year (October 1, 2009 through September 30, 2010), data were collected at 75 stations-72 Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network stations, 2 U.S. Geological Survey National Stream Quality Accounting Network stations, and 1 spring sampled in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service. Dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, water temperature, suspended solids, suspended sediment, fecal coliform bacteria, Escherichia coli bacteria, dissolved nitrate plus nitrite, total phosphorus, dissolved and total recoverable lead and zinc, and select pesticide compound summaries are presented for 72 of these stations. The stations primarily have been classified into groups corresponding to the physiography of the State, primary land use, or unique station types. In addition, a summary of hydrologic conditions in the State including peak discharges, monthly mean discharges, and 7-day low flow is presented.

Surface-water-quality assessment of the upper Illinois River Basin in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin; results of investigations through April 1992

USGS Publications Warehouse

Schmidt, Arthur R.; Blanchard, Stephen F.

1997-01-01

A water-quality assessment of the upper Illinois River Basin (10,949 square miles) was conducted during water years 1987-91. This assessment involved interpretation of available data; 4 years of intensive data collection, including monthly sample collection at eight fixed-monitoring stations in the basin; and synoptic studies of selected water-quality constituents at many sites. The number of exceedances of water-quality criteria for chromium, copper, lead, mercury, silver, and zinc in water was essentially the same at similar stations between 1978-86 and 1987-90. For water and sediment, a large signature for many trace inorganic constituents was observed from the Chicago metropolitan area, mainly from the Des Plaines River Basin and continuing down the Illinois River. Loads of trace inorganic constituents in water were 2-13 times greater from the Chicago metropolitan area than from rural areas in the upper Illinois River Basin. Concentrations of cadmium, mercury, nickel, selenium, and zinc appeared to be relatively enriched in biota in the upper Illinois River Basin compared to other river basins. Biota from some urban sites were enriched with respect to several elements. For example, relatively large concentrations of cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, and nickel were observed in biota from sites in the Chicago River in the metropolitan area and the Calumet River. Results of pesticide sampling in 1988 and 1989 identified the pesticides bromacil, diazinon, malathion, prometon, and simazine as urban related and alachlor, atrazine, cyanazine, metolachlor, and metribuzin as agricultural related. Phenol concentrations never exceeded general-use and secondary-contact water-quality standards of 100 and 300 micrograms per liter, respectively. Pentachlorophenol concentrations observed at the Illinois River at Marseilles, Ill., between 1981 and 1992 decreased beginning in 1987. A breakdown product of the organochlorine pesticide dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT), p,p'-DDE was the most commonly detected organic compound in biota in both 1989 and 1990. In the nine fish-fillet samples collected in 1989, exceedances of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) fish tissue concentrations were noted for p,p'-DDE in all nine fillets and for dieldrin in five of the nine fillets. Nutrient concentrations in water in the study area generally were larger than concentrations typically found in natural waters. The Des Plaines River Basin contributed approximately 41 percent of the total nitrogen load to the upper Illinois River Basin, whereas the Kankakee River and Iroquois River Basins contributed about 34 and 14 percent of the total load, respectively. Dissolved-oxygen concentrations measured during a 1988 synoptic sampling exceeded State water-quality standards at 76 percent of the sampled sites. Bacteria densities greater than water-quality standards were observed at all of the fixed-monitoring stations, but densities greater than water-quality criteria and standards were observed more often at stations in the Des Plaines River Basin. Results from the analysis of changes in water quality following changes in wastewater-treatment practices indicated that current monitoring programs, although sufficient for their intended purposes, are not suitable for this type of retrospective assessment in large-scale water-quality assessments. Changes were not indicated in fish-community structure and population following changes in wastewater-treatment practices. A strong relation between the quality of the fish community and overall water-quality conditions was observed, although USEPA acute criteria for the protection of freshwater aquatic life were rarely exceeded. Analyses of fish-community data clearly showed that water quality in the urbanized parts of the study area were degraded relative to those in agricultural areas. Total chromium in streambed sediments and total recoverable sodium in water were highly correlated

Research on station management in subway operation safety

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Yiman

2017-10-01

The management of subway station is an important part of the safe operation of urban subway. In order to ensure the safety of subway operation, it is necessary to study the relevant factors that affect station management. In the protection of subway safety operations on the basis of improving the quality of service, to promote the sustained and healthy development of subway stations. This paper discusses the influencing factors of subway operation accident and station management, and analyzes the specific contents of station management security for subway operation, and develops effective suppression measures. It is desirable to improve the operational quality and safety factor for subway operations.

47 CFR 73.68 - Sampling systems for antenna monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Sampling systems for antenna monitors. 73.68... RADIO BROADCAST SERVICES AM Broadcast Stations § 73.68 Sampling systems for antenna monitors. (a) Each AM station permittee authorized to construct a new directional antenna system which will be subject...

47 CFR 73.68 - Sampling systems for antenna monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Sampling systems for antenna monitors. 73.68... RADIO BROADCAST SERVICES AM Broadcast Stations § 73.68 Sampling systems for antenna monitors. (a) Each AM station permittee authorized to construct a new directional antenna system which will be subject...

47 CFR 73.68 - Sampling systems for antenna monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Sampling systems for antenna monitors. 73.68... RADIO BROADCAST SERVICES AM Broadcast Stations § 73.68 Sampling systems for antenna monitors. (a) Each AM station permittee authorized to construct a new directional antenna system which will be subject...

47 CFR 73.68 - Sampling systems for antenna monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Sampling systems for antenna monitors. 73.68... RADIO BROADCAST SERVICES AM Broadcast Stations § 73.68 Sampling systems for antenna monitors. (a) Each AM station permittee authorized to construct a new directional antenna system which will be subject...

47 CFR 73.68 - Sampling systems for antenna monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 4 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Sampling systems for antenna monitors. 73.68... RADIO BROADCAST SERVICES AM Broadcast Stations § 73.68 Sampling systems for antenna monitors. (a) Each AM station permittee authorized to construct a new directional antenna system which will be subject...

Quality of surface water in Missouri, water year 2009

USGS Publications Warehouse

Barr, Miya N.

2010-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, designs and operates a series of monitoring stations on streams throughout Missouri known as the Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network. During the 2009 water year (October 1, 2008, through September 30, 2009), data were collected at 75 stations-69 Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network stations, 2 U.S. Geological Survey National Stream Quality Accounting Network stations, 1 spring sampled in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service, and 3 stations sampled in cooperation with the Elk River Watershed Improvement Association. Dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, water temperature, suspended solids, suspended sediment, fecal coliform bacteria, Escherichia coli bacteria, dissolved nitrate plus nitrite, total phosphorus, dissolved and total recoverable lead and zinc, and select pesticide compound summaries are presented for 72 of these stations. The stations primarily have been classified into groups corresponding to the physiography of the State, primary land use, or unique station types. In addition, a summary of hydrologic conditions in the State including peak discharges, monthly mean discharges, and seven-day low flow is presented.

Common Traffic Violations of Bus Drivers in Urban China: An Observational Study.

PubMed

Wang, Qiqi; Zhang, Wei; Yang, Rendong; Huang, Yuanxiu; Zhang, Lin; Ning, Peishan; Cheng, Xunjie; Schwebel, David C; Hu, Guoqing; Yao, Hongyan

2015-01-01

To report common traffic violations in bus drivers and the factors that influence those violations in urban China. We conducted an observational study to record three types of traffic violations among bus drivers in Changsha City, China: illegal stopping at bus stations, violating traffic light signals, and distracted driving. The behaviors of bus drivers on 32 routes (20% of bus routes in the city) were observed. A two-level Poisson regression examined factors that predicted bus driver violations. The incidence of illegal stopping at bus stations was 20.2%. Illegal stopping was less frequent on weekends, sunny days, and at stations with cameras, with adjusted incidence rate ratios (IRRs) of 0.81, 0.65 and 0.89, respectively. The incidence of violating traffic light signals was 2.2%, and was lower on cloudy than sunny days (adjusted IRR: 0.60). The incidence of distracted driving was 3.3%. The incidence of distracted driving was less common on cloudy days, rainy or snowy days, and foggy/windy/dusty days compared to sunny days, with adjusted IRRs of 0.54, 0.55 and 0.07, respectively. Traffic violations are common in bus drivers in urban China and they are associated with the date, weather, and presence of traffic cameras at bus station. Further studies are recommended to understand the behavioral mechanisms that may explain bus driver violations and to develop feasible prevention measures.

Analyzing lead concentration in the sycamore tree species in high- and low-traffic areas of Rasht, Iran.

PubMed

Hashemi, Seyed Armin; Alinejad, Farzaneh; FallahChay, Mozaffar

2015-06-01

Important heavy metals such as lead and cadmium are part of the pollutants produced by cars and are spread in the urban environment by traffic flow. In order to study the amount of contamination in the trees along the streets and to determine the traffic parameters that affect the lead content in sycamore leaves in Rasht, four stations on the margins of the city streets were selected for this case study in terms of traffic volume (low or high). Traffic parameters including three high-traffic stations considering daily and monthly traffic volumes and one low-traffic station were selected. First, 32 sycamore bases were randomly chosen at the intervals of 10-15 m from the whole range of tree canopy in order to determine the absorption of lead; and then, 20 g of each sample were tested to determine the amount of lead absorption. The results of this study, on the amount of lead absorption by the sycamore tree species at three high-traffic and one control station, showed that Takhti station had the highest amount of lead absorption (37.19 ppm) compared with other three stations. Therefore, the sycamore tree species can be an appropriate one for the margins of urban streets. © The Author(s) 2013.

Observed surface wind speed declining induced by urbanization in East China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Zhengquan; Song, Lili; Ma, Hao; Xiao, Jingjing; Wang, Kuo; Chen, Lian

2018-02-01

Monthly wind data from 506 meteorological stations and ERA-Interim reanalysis during 1991-2015, are used to examine the surface wind trend over East China. Furthermore, combining the urbanization information derived from the DMSP/OLS nighttime light data during 1992-2013, the effects of urbanization on surface wind change are investigated by applying the observation minus reanalysis (OMR) method. The results show that the observed surface wind speed over East China is distinctly weakening with a rate of -0.16 m s-1 deca-1 during 1991-2015, while ERA-Interim wind speed does not have significant decreasing or increasing trend in the same period. The observed surface wind declining is mainly attributed to underlying surface changes of stations observational areas that were mostly induced by the urbanization in East China. Moreover, the wind declining intensity is closely related to the urbanization rhythms. The OMR annual surface wind speeds of Rhythm-VS, Rhythm-S, Rhythm-M, Rhythm-F and Rhythm-VF, have decreasing trends with the rates of -0.02 to -0.09, -0.16 to -0.26, -0.22 to -0.30, -0.26 to -0.36 and -0.33 to -0.51 m s-1 deca-1, respectively. The faster urbanization rhythm is, the stronger wind speed weakening presents. Additionally urban expansion is another factor resulted in the observed surface wind declining.

Weekend effect of O3, NO, NO2, CO and PM10 concentrations in the south of Spain during 2003-2008

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adame Carnero, Jose Antonio; Lozano, Antonio; Sorribas, Mar; Contreras, Juan; Ángel Hernández-Ceballos, Miguel; Godoy, Francisca; Fernández-León, Mercedes; Bolívar, Juan Pedro; de La Morena, Benito A.

2010-05-01

The weekly evolutions and the difference between labour and non-labour days for O3, NO, NO2, CO and PM10 concentrations have been analysed in the south of Spain (Andalusia). The hourly data have been collected in 70 stations (urban, suburban and rural) belong to the Air Quality Network of Andalusia. The data period used was 2003-2008. The study has been focused in order to identify the weekend effect for those pollutants. The weekly patterns has been evaluated using daily mean of O3 and CO and 90th percentile daily values of NO, NO2 and PM10. The mean daily ozone concentrations show similar values during the week days with a maximum increase of the concentrations during weekend days of 5 ?g m-3 in urban stations. The NO and NO2 levels present in general a decrease of 90th percentile daily values during weekend days. The maximum decrease observed was of 50 and 25 ?g m-3 for NO and NO2 respectively. The most of stations show similar concentrations for the mean daily CO levels during the week. In the event of PM10 while some stations present an increase of the concentrations during the weekdays others have similar values during all days with 90th percentile of 45 ?g m-3. The daily pollutants variation between week and weekend days has been evaluated from the hourly differences between weekend and week concentrations. The ozone daily evolution show negative differences from 00:00 to 5:00 local time (LT) while during the rest of the day the differences are positives. The maximum differences were registered early in the morning ranging between 4 ?g m-3 for rural stations to 14 ?g m-3 for urban stations. The NO and NO2 show positive differences between 00:00 to 7:00 (LT) with negative values within the next hours. The higher differences could reach 80 ?g m-3 for NO and 25 ?g m-3 for NO2, both in urban stations, with values lower than 10 ?g m-3and 5 ?g m-3 in suburban and rural stations respectively. The CO daily evolution show similar values in week and weekend days. The behaviour of the PM10 daily differences is similar to the observed for NO and NO2, with higher differences between 10:00 to 14:00 and values between 5 to 20 ?g m-3. The results obtained in this work point out a weak or absence for weekend effect of O3 and CO concentrations over the study area. Nevertheless, for NO, NO2 and PM10 concentrations present a decrease during the weekend. This phenomenon has been observed with more intensity over the metropolitan areas, mainly in urban stations. The results obtained in this study are being used to define the air quality plans in the south of Spain. These plans will start to apply during 2010 with the purpose to reduce the levels of these air pollutants in Andalusia.

24 CFR 1000.508 - If the recipient monitoring identifies programmatic concerns, what happens?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... concerns, what happens? If the recipient's monitoring activities identify areas of concerns, the recipient... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false If the recipient monitoring... INDIAN HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES Recipient...

24 CFR 1000.508 - If the recipient monitoring identifies programmatic concerns, what happens?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... concerns, what happens? If the recipient's monitoring activities identify areas of concerns, the recipient... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false If the recipient monitoring... INDIAN HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES Recipient...

24 CFR 1000.508 - If the recipient monitoring identifies programmatic concerns, what happens?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... concerns, what happens? If the recipient's monitoring activities identify areas of concerns, the recipient... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false If the recipient monitoring... INDIAN HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES Recipient...

24 CFR 1000.508 - If the recipient monitoring identifies programmatic concerns, what happens?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... concerns, what happens? If the recipient's monitoring activities identify areas of concerns, the recipient... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false If the recipient monitoring... INDIAN HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES Recipient...

24 CFR 1000.508 - If the recipient monitoring identifies programmatic concerns, what happens?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... concerns, what happens? If the recipient's monitoring activities identify areas of concerns, the recipient... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false If the recipient monitoring... INDIAN HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES Recipient...

GSFC contamination monitors for Space Station

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carosso, P. A.; Tveekrem, J. L.; Coopersmith, J. D.

1988-01-01

This paper describes the Work Package 3 activities in the area of neutral contamination monitoring for the Space Station. Goddard Space Flight Center's responsibilities include the development of the Attached Payload Accommodations Equipment (APAE), the Polar Orbiting Platform (POP), and the Flight Telerobotic Servicer (FTS). GSFC will also develop the Customer Servicing Facility (CSF) in Phase 2 of the Space Station.

47 CFR 73.1690 - Modification of transmission systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... antenna system. See § 73.45 and § 73.150. (5) Any decrease in the authorized power of an AM station or the... station is located in or near a radio quiet zone, radio coordination zone, or a Commission monitoring... Information Bureau in the case of a monitoring station, to increase effective radiated power PRIOR to...

47 CFR 73.1690 - Modification of transmission systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... antenna system. See § 73.45 and § 73.150. (5) Any decrease in the authorized power of an AM station or the... coordination zone, or a Commission monitoring station (see § 73.1030 and § 0.121(c)), the licensee or permittee... the Commission's Compliance and Information Bureau in the case of a monitoring station, to increase...

On the temporal and spatial variability of near-surface soil moisture for the identification of representative in situ soil moisture monitoring stations

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The high spatio-temporal variability of soil moisture complicates the validation of remotely sensed soil moisture products using in-situ monitoring stations. Therefore, a standard methodology for selecting the most repre- sentative stations for the purpose of validating satellites and land surface ...

Summary of surface-water hydrologic data for the Houston metropolitan area, Texas, water years 1964-89

USGS Publications Warehouse

Liscum, Fred; Brown, D.W.; Kasmarek, M.C.

1997-01-01

The study area, a metropolitan area in southeast Texas about 45 miles north of the Gulf of Mexico, has been undergoing extensive urban development since the 1950s. The Houston Urban Runoff Program was begun by the U.S. Geological Survey in water year 1964 to define the magnitude and frequency of flood peaks, to determine the impact of continuing urban development on surface-water hydrologic responses, and to determine variations in stream water quality for different flow conditions, seasons, and urban development. An extensive data base has been developed.During water years 1964-89, the Houston Urban Runoff Program collected information from a total of 54 U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations, 30 U.S. Geological Survey water-quality sampling sites, and 102 rain gages (operated by the U.S. Geological Survey, the National Weather Service, and local agencies). In addition, basin characteristics were developed to aid in understanding the effects of urban development on surface-water hydrologic responses.Surface-water hydrologic data on diskettes describe the 54 U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations, list annual peaks (and where available, peaks above an arbitrary base) for 50 streamflow sites, tabulate 1,125 storm hydrographs from 43 sites, and document 102 waterquality parameters determined from 3,242 available samples.

Remote sensing based approach for monitoring urban growth in Mexico city, Mexico: A case study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Obade, Vincent

The world is experiencing a rapid rate of urban expansion, largely contributed by the population growth. Other factors supporting urban growth include the improved efficiency in the transportation sector and increasing dependence on cars as a means of transport. The problems attributed to the urban growth include: depletion of energy resources, water and air pollution; loss of landscapes and wildlife, loss of agricultural land, inadequate social security and lack of employment or underemployment. Aerial photography is one of the popular techniques for analyzing, planning and minimizing urbanization related problems. However, with the advances in space technology, satellite remote sensing is increasingly being utilized in the analysis and planning of the urban environment. This article outlines the strengths and limitations of potential remote sensing techniques for monitoring urban growth. The selected methods include: Principal component analysis, Maximum likelihood classification and "decision tree". The results indicate that the "classification tree" approach is the most promising for monitoring urban change, given the improved accuracy and smooth transition between the various land cover classes

A remote drip infusion monitoring system employing Bluetooth.

PubMed

Amano, Hikaru; Ogawa, Hidekuni; Maki, Hiromichi; Tsukamoto, Sosuke; Yonezawa, Yoshiharu; Caldwell, W Morton

2012-01-01

We have developed a remote drip infusion monitoring system for use in hospitals. The system consists of several infusion monitoring devices and a central monitor. The infusion monitoring device employing a Bluetooth module can detect the drip infusion rate and an empty infusion solution bag, and then these data are sent to the central monitor placed at the nurses' station via the Bluetooth. The central monitor receives the data from several infusion monitoring devices and then displays graphically them. Therefore, the developed system can monitor intensively the drip infusion situation of the several patients at the nurses' station.

Infrared monitoring of the Space Station environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kostiuk, Theodor; Jennings, Donald E.; Mumma, Michael J.

1988-01-01

The measurement and monitoring of infrared emission in the environment of the Space Station has a twofold importance - for the study of the phenomena itself and as an aid in planning and interpreting Station based infrared experiments. Spectral measurements of the infrared component of the spacecraft glow will, along with measurements in other spectral regions, provide data necessary to fully understand and model the physical and chemical processes producing these emissions. The monitoring of the intensity of these emissions will provide background limits for Space Station based infrared experiments and permit the determination of optimum instrument placement and pointing direction. Continuous monitoring of temporal changes in the background radiation (glow) will also permit better interpretation of Station-based infrared earth sensing and astronomical observations. The primary processes producing infrared emissions in the Space Station environment are: (1) Gas phase excitations of Station generated molecules ( e.g., CO2, H2O, organics...) by collisions with the ambient flux of mainly O and N2. Molecular excitations and generation of new species by collisions of ambient molecules with Station surfaces. They provide a list of resulting species, transition energies, excitation cross sections and relevant time constants. The modeled spectrum of the excited species occurs primarily at wavelengths shorter than 8 micrometer. Emissions at longer wavelengths may become important during rocket firing or in the presence of dust.

The status and prospective of environmental radiation monitoring stations in Saudi Arabia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al-Kheliewi, Abdullah S.; Holzheimer, Clous

2014-09-01

The use of nuclear technology requires an environmental monitoring program to ensure the safety of the environment, and to protect people from the hazards of radioactive materials, and nuclear accidents. Nuclear accidents are unique, for they incur effects that surpass international frontiers, and can even have a long lasting impact on Earth. Such was the case of the Chernobyl accident in the Ukraine on April 6, 1986. For that purpose, international and national efforts come together to observe for any nuclear or radioactive accident. Many states, including Saudi Arabia which oversees the operation of the National Radiation, Environmental and Early Monitoring Stations, The Radiation Monitoring Stations(RMS's) are currently scattered across 35 cities in the country,. These locations are evaluated based on various technological criteria such as border cities, cities of high population density, wind direction, etc. For new nuclear power plants hovering around, it is strongly recommended to increase the number of radiation monitoring stations to warn against any threat that may arise from a nuclear leak or accident and to improve the performance of the existing RMS's. SARA (Spectroscopic Monitoring Station for air) should be implemented due to the high sensitivity to artificial radiation, automatic isotope identification, free of maintenance, and fully independent due to solar power supply (incl. battery backup) and wireless communication (GPRS).

Hydrologic Performance and Infiltration Dynamics of Bioinfiltration Systems

EPA Science Inventory

This presentation is being given to the Urban Field Station in NYC. The UFS invited us to give the presentation as a "brown bag" seminar fo the staff. UFS is a joint venture between the US Forest Service Northern Research Station and the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation.

Seat belt and shoulder strap use among urban travelers : a comparison of survey results from 1974, 1975, and 1976.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1977-01-01

During nine days in late January 1974, four major metropolitan areas of the state of Virginia were surveyed in an effort to determine seat belt use by urban travelers. Observer-data collectors were stationed at selected signalized intersections. Moto...

Seat belt and shoulder strap use among urban travelers : results of the summer 1977 survey : a report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1978-01-01

During nine days in June 1977, four major metropolitan areas of the state of Virginia were surveyed to determine seat belt use by summer urban travelers. Observer-data collectors were stationed at selected signalized intersections. Motorists in the l...

Seat belt and shoulder strap use among urban travelers : a comparison of results from 1974 and 1975 surveys : a report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1976-01-01

During nine consecutive days in late January 1974, four major metropolitan areas of the state of Virginia were surveyed in an effort to determine seat belt use by urban travelers. Observer data collectors were stationed at selected signalized interse...

Noise Assessment of the Chicago Transit Authority Rail Rapid Transit System

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1979-01-01

The report describes the noise on and near the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) urban rail transit lines. The CTA urban rail lines consist of approximately 86 miles of two-way revenue track (of which 9.6 miles are in subway) and 155 stations. Noise da...

Evaluation of outdoor human thermal sensation of local climate zones based on long-term database

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Unger, János; Skarbit, Nóra; Gál, Tamás

2018-02-01

This study gives a comprehensive picture on the diurnal and seasonal general outdoor human thermal sensation levels in different urban quarters based on long-term (almost 3 years) data series from urban and rural areas of Szeged, Hungary. It is supplemented with a case study dealing with an extreme heat wave period which is more and more frequent in the last decades in the study area. The intra-urban comparison is based on a thermal aspect classification of the surface, namely, the local climate zone (LCZ) system, on an urban meteorological station network and on the utilization of the physiologically equivalent temperature (PET) comfort index with categories calibrated to the local population. The selected stations represent sunlit areas well inside the LCZ areas. The results show that the seasonal and annual average magnitudes of the thermal load exerted by LCZs in the afternoon and evening follow their LCZ numbers. It is perfectly in line with the LCZ concept originally concentrating only on air temperature ( T air) differences between the zones. Our results justified the subdivision of urban areas into LCZs and give significant support to the application possibilities of the LCZ concept as a broader term covering different thermal phenomena.

The correlation of urban heat island in tropical middle-class housing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wazir, Zuber Angkasa

2017-11-01

A very limited number of green and sustainable construction studies have explored factors related to Urban Heat Island (UHI) in tropical middle-class housing. This paper aimed to investigate the correlation of Urban Heat Island in tropical middle-class housing in three urban housing for middle-class residents of Palembang, which were Taman Sari Kenten, TOP Jakabaring, and Talang Kelapa. Samples consisted of 125 Taman Sari Kenten housing, 27 Talang Kelapa housing, and 12 TOP Jakabaring housing. Independent variables were the resident density, socioeconomic status, house location, roof type, green area ratio, weather, time, air conditioner, pro-environment institution, and NEP scale. The Analytic method included correlation and regression. We identified that all housing had different UHI profiles where Taman Sari Kenten had the highest UHI (4.17 K), followed by Talang Kelapa (2.66 K) and TOP Jakabaring (0.66 K) against temperature in measuring station nearby, owned by BMKG (National Meteorological Station). UHI correlated with the resident density, roof type, green area ratio, weather, time, and air conditioner. The results should add to the design of ideal housing in the tropical climate for middle-class residents, focusing on its ability to mitigate Urban Heat Island.

Computer systems for automatic earthquake detection

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stewart, S.W.

1974-01-01

U.S Geological Survey seismologists in Menlo park, California, are utilizing the speed, reliability, and efficiency of minicomputers to monitor seismograph stations and to automatically detect earthquakes. An earthquake detection computer system, believed to be the only one of its kind in operation, automatically reports about 90 percent of all local earthquakes recorded by a network of over 100 central California seismograph stations. The system also monitors the stations for signs of malfunction or abnormal operation. Before the automatic system was put in operation, all of the earthquakes recorded had to be detected by manually searching the records, a time-consuming process. With the automatic detection system, the stations are efficiently monitored continuously. 

Verifying the operational set-up of a radionuclide air-monitoring station.

PubMed

Werzi, R; Padoani, F

2007-05-01

A worldwide radionuclide network of 80 stations, part of the International Monitoring System, was designed to monitor compliance with the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. After installation, the stations are certified to comply with the minimum requirements laid down by the Preparatory Commission of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization. Among the several certification tests carried out at each station, the verification of the radionuclide activity concentrations is a crucial one and is based on an independent testing of the airflow rate measurement system and of the gamma detector system, as well as on the assessment of the samples collected during parallel sampling and measured at radionuclide laboratories.

Temporal and spatial characteristics of the water pollutant concentration in Huaihe River Basin from 2003 to 2012, China.

PubMed

Dou, Ming; Zhang, Yan; Li, Guiqiu

2016-09-01

Based on the monitoring data of 78 monitoring stations from 2003 to 2012, five key water quality indexes (biochemical oxygen demand: BOD5, permanganate index: CODMn, dissolved oxygen: DO, ammonium nitrogen: NH3-N, and total phosphorus: TP) were selected to analyze their temporal and spatial characteristics in the highly disturbed Huaihe River Basin via Mann-Kendall trend analysis and boxplot analysis. The temporal and spatial variations of water pollutant concentrations in the Huaihe River Basin were investigated and analyzed to provide a scientific basis for water pollution control, water environment protection, and ecological restoration. The results indicated that the Yinghe River, Quanhe River, Honghe River, Guohe River, and Baohe River were the most seriously polluted rivers, followed by Hongze Lake, Luoma Lake, Yishuhe River, and Nansi Lake. BOD5, CODMn, and NH3-N were the major pollution indexes, for which the monitoring stations reported that more than 40 % of the water quality concentrations exceeded the class IV level. There were 21, 50, 36, and 21 monitoring stations that recorded significantly decreasing trends for BOD5, CODMn, NH3-N, and TP, respectively, and 39 monitoring stations showed a significantly increasing trend for DO. Moreover, the water quality concentrations had a certain concentricity and volatility according to boxplot analysis for the 20 monitoring stations. The majority of monitoring stations recorded a large fluctuation for the monitoring indexes in 2003 and 2004, which indicated that the water quality concentrations were unstable. According to the seasonal variations of the water quality concentrations in the mainstream of Huaihe River, the monthly variation trends of the BOD5, CODMn, DO, NH3-N, and TP concentrations were basically consistent among the seven monitoring stations. The BOD5, CODMn, NH3-N, and TP concentrations were affected by the change of the stream discharge; changes in DO and NH3-N concentrations were influenced by the regional environmental temperature, and the DO and NH3-N concentrations decreased when the water temperature increased.

National Stream Quality Accounting Network and National Monitoring Network Basin Boundary Geospatial Dataset, 2008–13

USGS Publications Warehouse

Baker, Nancy T.

2011-01-01

This report and the accompanying geospatial data were created to assist in analysis and interpretation of water-quality data provided by the U.S. Geological Survey's National Stream Quality Accounting Network (NASQAN) and by the U.S. Coastal Waters and Tributaries National Monitoring Network (NMN), which is a cooperative monitoring program of Federal, regional, and State agencies. The report describes the methods used to develop the geospatial data, which was primarily derived from the National Watershed Boundary Dataset. The geospatial data contains polygon shapefiles of basin boundaries for 33 NASQAN and 5 NMN streamflow and water-quality monitoring stations. In addition, 30 polygon shapefiles of the closed and noncontributing basins contained within the NASQAN or NMN boundaries are included. Also included is a point shapefile of the NASQAN and NMN monitoring stations and associated basin and station attributes. Geospatial data for basin delineations, associated closed and noncontributing basins, and monitoring station locations are available at http://water.usgs.gov/GIS/metadata/usgswrd/XML/ds641_nasqan_wbd12.xml.

Urban Expansion Modeling Approach Based on Multi-Agent System and Cellular Automata

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zeng, Y. N.; Yu, M. M.; Li, S. N.

2018-04-01

Urban expansion is a land-use change process that transforms non-urban land into urban land. This process results in the loss of natural vegetation and increase in impervious surfaces. Urban expansion also alters the hydrologic cycling, atmospheric circulation, and nutrient cycling processes and generates enormous environmental and social impacts. Urban expansion monitoring and modeling are crucial to understanding urban expansion process, mechanism, and its environmental impacts, and predicting urban expansion in future scenarios. Therefore, it is important to study urban expansion monitoring and modeling approaches. We proposed to simulate urban expansion by combining CA and MAS model. The proposed urban expansion model based on MSA and CA was applied to a case study area of Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan urban agglomeration, China. The results show that this model can capture urban expansion with good adaptability. The Kappa coefficient of the simulation results is 0.75, which indicated that the combination of MAS and CA offered the better simulation result.

Antenna systems for base station diversity in urban small and micro cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eggers, Patrick C. F.; Toftgard, Jorn; Oprea, Alex M.

1993-09-01

This paper describes cross-correlation properties for compact urban base station antenna configurations, nearly all resulting in very low envelope cross-correlation coefficients of about 0.1 to 0.3. A focus is set on polarization diversity systems for their potential in improving link quality when hand-held terminals are involved. An expression is given for the correlation function of compound space and polarization diversity systems. Dispersion and envelope dynamic statistics are presented for the measured environments. For microcell applications, it is found that systems such as GSM having a bandwidth of 200 MHz or less can use narrowband cross-correlation analysis directly.

View west of load dispatch model board; section covers substations ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

View west of load dispatch model board; section covers substations from edgerly (right) to thorndale and west yard (left). Instruments at bottom of center board section formerly monitored energy usage and were replaced by a computerized monitoring system. - Thirtieth Street Station, Load Dispatch Center, Thirtieth & Market Streets, Railroad Station, Amtrak (formerly Pennsylvania Railroad Station), Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, PA

Automating security monitoring and analysis for Space Station Freedom's electric power system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dolce, James L.; Sobajic, Dejan J.; Pao, Yoh-Han

1990-01-01

Operating a large, space power system requires classifying the system's status and analyzing its security. Conventional algorithms are used by terrestrial electric utilities to provide such information to their dispatchers, but their application aboard Space Station Freedom will consume too much processing time. A new approach for monitoring and analysis using adaptive pattern techniques is presented. This approach yields an on-line security monitoring and analysis algorithm that is accurate and fast; and thus, it can free the Space Station Freedom's power control computers for other tasks.

Automating security monitoring and analysis for Space Station Freedom's electric power system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dolce, James L.; Sobajic, Dejan J.; Pao, Yoh-Han

1990-01-01

Operating a large, space power system requires classifying the system's status and analyzing its security. Conventional algorithms are used by terrestrial electric utilities to provide such information to their dispatchers, but their application aboard Space Station Freedom will consume too much processing time. A novel approach for monitoring and analysis using adaptive pattern techniques is presented. This approach yields an on-line security monitoring and analysis algorithm that is accurate and fast; and thus, it can free the Space Station Freedom's power control computers for other tasks.

Monitoring urban tree cover using object-based image analysis and public domain remotely sensed data

Treesearch

L. Monika Moskal; Diane M. Styers; Meghan Halabisky

2011-01-01

Urban forest ecosystems provide a range of social and ecological services, but due to the heterogeneity of these canopies their spatial extent is difficult to quantify and monitor. Traditional per-pixel classification methods have been used to map urban canopies, however, such techniques are not generally appropriate for assessing these highly variable landscapes....

Carbon dioxide fluxes dynamics comparison in Moscow urban forest and adjacent urban areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yaroslavtsev, Alexis; Meshalkina, Joulia; Mazirov, Ilya; Vasenev, Ivan

2017-04-01

In the beginning of the 2014 in northern district of Moscow was installed eddy covariance tower on the edge of Timiryazevskiy urban forest and Timiryazevskiy district of Moscow. Tower 34m high was constructed inside the territory of LOD (Lesnaya Opytnaya Dacha) experimental station in the south-eastern part of the forest. Main tree species of urban forest and neighboring urban areas are Acer Plantanoides, Tilia cordata, Betula pendula, Quercus robur, Pinus sylvestris. Forest itself is mixed with some small plots dominated only by deciduous or coniferous species, whether trees in urban areas was mainly deciduous. Mean canopy height is about 30m. in both forest and urban areas. The soil cover of the studied sections is represented by sod-podzolic soils with different degree of development of the humus horizon. All soils have well-developed profile of sod-podzolic soil with low power litter (only in forest area) and developed humus-accumulative horizon with high humus content (3,24%) Carbon dioxide daily fluxes from investigated area was calculated for six months of 2014 (from April till October) utilizing eddy covariance method. Most (90%) of fluxes footprints was no longer than 500m for all wind directions during the time of monitoring. Forest in 500m radius around tower is a zone of active recreation with several roads and wide path network. On the other hand closest to tower urban area characterized by a low-rise buildings (in most cases no more than 5 floors) which are mainly administration ones and have wide green areas around them very few roads and low traffic. As a result difference in calculated fluxes was not so dramatic, as it was expected. Diurnal carbon dioxide fluxes dynamics was pretty the same for all months except August, due to long period without precipitation and higher soil moisture under the forest canopy. Estimated daily fluxes values was higher in forest areas for the whole period of investigation, except August, and ranged from -2 to 8 g C CO2 d-1 m-2 with mean about 2,5 g C CO2 d-1 m-2 .

Daily simulations of urban heat load in Vienna for 2011

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hollosi, Brigitta; Zuvela-Aloise, Maja; Koch, Roland

2014-05-01

In this study, the dynamical urban climate model MUKLIMO3 (horizontal resolution of 100 m) is uni-directionally coupled with the operational weather forecast model ALARO-ALADIN of the ZAMG (horizontal resolution of 4.8 km) to simulate the development of the urban heat island in Vienna on a daily basis. The aim is to evaluate the performance of the urban climate model applied for climatological studies in a weather prediction mode. The focus of the investigation is on assessment of the urban heat load during day-time. We used the archived daily forecast data for the summer period in 2011 (April - October) as input data for the urban climate model. The high resolution simulations were initialized with vertical profiles of temperature and relative humidity and prevailing wind speed and direction in the rural area near the city in the early morning hours. The model output for hourly temperature and relative humidity has been evaluated against the monitoring data at 9 weather stations in the area of the city. Additionally, spatial gradients in temperature were evaluated by comparing the grid point values with the data collected during a mobile measuring campaign taken on a multi-vehicle bicycle tour on the 7th of July, 2011. The results show a good agreement with observations on a district scale. Particular challenge in the modeling approach is achieving robust and numerically stable model solutions for different weather situation. Therefore, we analyzed modeled wind patterns for different atmospheric conditions in the summer period. We found that during the calm hot days, due to the inhomogeneous surface and complex terrain, the local-scale temperature gradients can induce strong anomalies, which in turn could affect the circulation on a larger scale. However, these results could not be validated due to the lack of observations. In the following years extreme hot conditions are very likely to occur more frequently and with higher intensity. Combining urban climate simulations with the operational meso-scale forecasting model may identify hot spots in urban areas and bring added value in excessive heat warning systems in the future.

Environmental Risk Factors influencing Bicycle Theft: A Spatial Analysis in London, UK.

PubMed

Mburu, Lucy Waruguru; Helbich, Marco

2016-01-01

Urban authorities are continuously drawing up policies to promote cycling among commuters. However, these initiatives are counterproductive for the targeted objectives because they increase opportunities for bicycle theft. This paper explores Inner London as a case study to address place-specific risk factors for bicycle theft at the street-segment level while controlling for seasonal variation. The presence of certain public amenities (e.g., bicycle stands, railway stations, pawnshops) was evaluated against locations of bicycle theft between 2013 and 2016 and risk effects were estimated using negative binomial regression models. Results showed that a greater level of risk stemmed from land-use facilities than from area-based socioeconomic status. The presence of facilities such as train stations, vacant houses, pawnbrokers and payday lenders increased bicycle theft, but no evidence was found that linked police stations with crime levels. The findings have significant implications for urban crime prevention with respect to non-residential land use.

Modeling the energy balance in Marseille: Sensitivity to roughness length parameterizations and thermal admittance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Demuzere, M.; De Ridder, K.; van Lipzig, N. P. M.

2008-08-01

During the ESCOMPTE campaign (Experience sur Site pour COntraindre les Modeles de Pollution atmospherique et de Transport d'Emissions), a 4-day intensive observation period was selected to evaluate the Advanced Regional Prediction System (ARPS), a nonhydrostatic meteorological mesoscale model that was optimized with a parameterization for thermal roughness length to better represent urban surfaces. The evaluation shows that the ARPS model is able to correctly reproduce temperature, wind speed, and direction for one urban and two rural measurements stations. Furthermore, simulated heat fluxes show good agreement compared to the observations, although simulated sensible heat fluxes were initially too low for the urban stations. In order to improve the latter, different roughness length parameterization schemes were tested, combined with various thermal admittance values. This sensitivity study showed that the Zilitinkevich scheme combined with and intermediate value of thermal admittance performs best.

Rainfall, Discharge, and Water-Quality Data During Stormwater Monitoring, July 1, 2007, to June 30, 2008; Halawa Stream Drainage Basin and the H-1 Storm Drain, Oahu, Hawaii

USGS Publications Warehouse

Presley, Todd K.; Jamison, Marcael T.J.; Young, Stacie T.M.

2008-01-01

Storm runoff water-quality samples were collected as part of the State of Hawaii Department of Transportation Stormwater Monitoring Program. The program is designed to assess the effects of highway runoff and urban runoff on Halawa Stream and to assess the effects from the H-1 storm drain on Manoa Stream. For this program, rainfall data were collected at three stations, continuous discharge data at four stations, and water-quality data at six stations, which include the four continuous discharge stations. This report summarizes rainfall, discharge, and water-quality data collected between July 1, 2007, and June 30, 2008. A total of 16 environmental samples were collected over two storms during July 1, 2007, to June 30, 2008, within the Halawa Stream drainage area. Samples were analyzed for total suspended solids, total dissolved solids, nutrients, chemical oxygen demand, and selected trace metals (cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, and zinc). Additionally, grab samples were analyzed for oil and grease, total petroleum hydrocarbons, fecal coliform, and biological oxygen demand. Some samples were analyzed for only a partial list of these analytes because an insufficient volume of sample was collected by the automatic samplers. Three additional quality-assurance/quality-control samples were collected concurrently with the storm samples. A total of 16 environmental samples were collected over four storms during July 1, 2007, to June 30, 2008 at the H-1 Storm Drain. All samples at this site were collected using an automatic sampler. Samples generally were analyzed for total suspended solids, nutrients, chemical oxygen demand, oil and grease, total petroleum hydrocarbons, and selected trace metals (cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, nickel, and zinc), although some samples were analyzed for only a partial list of these analytes. During the storm of January 29, 2008, 10 discrete samples were collected. Varying constituent concentrations were detected for the samples collected at different times during this storm event. Two quality-assurance/quality-control samples were collected concurrently with the storm samples. Three additional quality-assurance/quality-control samples were collected during routine sampler maintenance to check the effectiveness of equipment-cleaning procedures.

Classification of rainfall events for weather forecasting purposes in andean region of Colombia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suárez Hincapié, Joan Nathalie; Romo Melo, Liliana; Vélez Upegui, Jorge Julian; Chang, Philippe

2016-04-01

This work presents a comparative analysis of the results of applying different methodologies for the identification and classification of rainfall events of different duration in meteorological records of the Colombian Andean region. In this study the work area is the urban and rural area of Manizales that counts with a monitoring hydro-meteorological network. This network is composed of forty-five (45) strategically located stations, this network is composed of forty-five (45) strategically located stations where automatic weather stations record seven climate variables: air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and direction, rainfall, solar radiation and barometric pressure. All this information is sent wirelessly every five (5) minutes to a data warehouse located at the Institute of Environmental Studies-IDEA. With obtaining the series of rainfall recorded by the hydrometeorological station Palogrande operated by the National University of Colombia in Manizales (http://froac.manizales.unal.edu.co/bodegaIdea/); it is with this information that we proceed to perform behavior analysis of other meteorological variables, monitored at surface level and that influence the occurrence of such rainfall events. To classify rainfall events different methodologies were used: The first according to Monjo (2009) where the index n of the heavy rainfall was calculated through which various types of precipitation are defined according to the intensity variability. A second methodology that permitted to produce a classification in terms of a parameter β introduced by Rice and Holmberg (1973) and adapted by Llasat and Puigcerver, (1985, 1997) and the last one where a rainfall classification is performed according to the value of its intensity following the issues raised by Linsley (1977) where the rains can be considered light, moderate and strong fall rates to 2.5 mm / h; from 2.5 to 7.6 mm / h and above this value respectively for the previous classifications. The main contribution which is done with this research is the obtainment elements to optimize and to improve the spatial resolution of the results obtained with mesoscale models such as the Weather Research & Forecasting Model- WRF, used in Colombia for the purposes of weather forecasting and that in addition produces other tools used in current issues such as risk management.

Monitoring Method and Apparatus Using Asynchronous, One-Way Transmission from Sensor to Base Station

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drouant, George J. (Inventor); Jensen, Scott L. (Inventor)

2013-01-01

A monitoring system is disclosed, which includes a base station and at least one sensor unit that is separate from the base station. The at least one sensor unit resides in a dormant state until it is awakened by the triggering of a vibration-sensitive switch. Once awakened, the sensor may take a measurement, and then transmit to the base station the measurement. Once data is transmitted from the sensor to the base station, the sensor may return to its dormant state. There may be various sensors for each base station and the various sensors may optionally measure different quantities, such as current, voltage, single-axis and/or three-axis magnetic fields.

All chain Loran-C time synchronization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sherman, H. T.

1973-01-01

A program is in progress to implement coordinated universal time (UTC) synchronization on all Loran-C transmissions. The present capability is limited to five Loran-C chains in which the tolerance is twenty-five microseconds with respect to UTC. Upon completion of the program, the transmissions of all Loran-C chains will be maintained within five microseconds of UTC. The improvement plan consists of equipping selected Loran-C transmitting stations for greater precision of frequency standard adjustment and improved monitoring capability. External time monitor stations will utilize television time transfer techniques with nearby SATCOM terminals where practicable, thus providing the requisite traceability to the Naval Observatory. The monitor equipment groups and the interrelationships with the ground station equipment are discussed. After a brief review of control doctrine, forth-coming improvements to transmitting stations and how the time monitor and navigation equipments will complement each other resulting in improved service to all users of the Loran-C system are described.

How Cities Breathe: Ground-Referenced, Airborne Hyperspectral Imaging Precursor Measurements To Space-Based Monitoring

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leifer, Ira; Tratt, David; Quattrochi, Dale; Bovensmann, Heinrich; Gerilowski, Konstantin; Buchwitz, Michael; Burrows, John

2013-01-01

Methane's (CH4) large global warming potential (Shindell et al., 2012) and likely increasing future emissions due to global warming feedbacks emphasize its importance to anthropogenic greenhouse warming (IPCC, 2007). Furthermore, CH4 regulation has far greater near-term climate change mitigation potential versus carbon dioxide CO2, the other major anthropogenic Greenhouse Gas (GHG) (Shindell et al., 2009). Uncertainties in CH4 budgets arise from the poor state of knowledge of CH4 sources - in part from a lack of sufficiently accurate assessments of the temporal and spatial emissions and controlling factors of highly variable anthropogenic and natural CH4 surface fluxes (IPCC, 2007) and the lack of global-scale (satellite) data at sufficiently high spatial resolution to resolve sources. Many important methane (and other trace gases) sources arise from urban and mega-urban landscapes where anthropogenic activities are centered - most of humanity lives in urban areas. Studying these complex landscape tapestries is challenged by a wide and varied range of activities at small spatial scale, and difficulty in obtaining up-to-date landuse data in the developed world - a key desire of policy makers towards development of effective regulations. In the developing world, challenges are multiplied with additional political access challenges. As high spatial resolution satellite and airborne data has become available, activity mapping applications have blossomed - i.e., Google maps; however, tap a minute fraction of remote sensing capabilities due to limited (three band) spectral information. Next generation approaches that incorporate high spatial resolution hyperspectral and ultraspectral data will allow detangling of the highly heterogeneous usage megacity patterns by providing diagnostic identification of chemical composition from solids (refs) to gases (refs). To properly enable these next generation technologies for megacity include atmospheric radiative transfer modeling the complex and often aerosol laden, humid, urban microclimates, atmospheric transport and profile monitoring, spatial resolution, temporal cycles (diurnal and seasonal which involve interactions with the surrounding environment diurnal and seasonal cycles) and representative measurement approaches given traffic realities. Promising approaches incorporate contemporaneous airborne remote sensing and in situ measurements, nocturnal surface surveys, with ground station measurement

Refined Assessment of Human PM2.5 Exposure in Chinese city by Incorporating Time-activity Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, W.; Wang, H.

2015-12-01

Since urban residents tend to spend a majority of time indoors throughout a day, it has been widely discussed in recent years, whether fixed-site monitoring PM2.5 ambient concentration is feasible as a surrogate of human PM2.5 exposure. Comprehensive understanding of residents' daily time-activity patterns (TAP) and possible indoor behavior are urgently needed to perform a more accurate estimate of human PM2.5exposure, especially in China, where is experiencing rapid urbanization.Field surveys of TAP were carried out in a Chinese city of Suzhou from 2014 to 2015 to evaluate PM2.5 exposure in various micro-environments (ME, e.g., residence, outdoors and in-transit). We gathered and analyzed urban residents' seasonal time-activity data using 24h retrospective time-location diaries, as well as diversified exposure-related indoor information (e.g. ventilation, environment tobacco smoke and cooking). PM2.5exposure is calculated through the incorporation of ambient concentration data, modified indoor/outdoor empirical functions and TAP. The spatial distributions of TAP-based exposure and static-population based exposure are also compared.Residents in Suzhou urban area spend over 65% of time at home and 90% indoors. There are significant temporal (season, day type) and socioeconomic differences (gender, age, education, living alone, having children at home, employment status, etc.) of time-activity distributions, which makes the sum of PM2.5 ME exposure differs notably from static-population based ambient exposure. People prefer to spend more time at home both in winter (P<0.05) and on weekends (P<0.001), less time outdoors in winter but more on weekends (P<0.001). Gender, education and living alone are negative associated with time spent home, while age, children at home and employment status are positively related. On the other hand, due to lack of monitoring stations in unban Suzhou, the inverse distance squared weighting method is not ideally performed and may be less representative of the ambient PM2.5characteristics than satellite data.

Long-term results from an urban CO2 monitoring network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ehleringer, J.; Pataki, D. E.; Lai, C.; Schauer, A.

2009-12-01

High-precision atmospheric CO2 has been monitored in several locations through the Salt Lake Valley metropolitan region of northern Utah over the past nine years. Many parts of this semi-arid grassland have transitioned into dense urban forests, supported totally by extensive homeowner irrigation practices. Diurnal changes in fossil-fuel energy uses and photosynthesis-respiration processes have resulted in significant spatial and temporal variations in atmospheric CO2. Here we present an analysis of the long-term patterns and trends in midday and nighttime CO2 values for four sites: a midvalley residential neighborhood, a midvalley non-residential neighborhood, an undeveloped valley-edge area transitioning from agriculture, and a developed valley-edge neighborhood with mixed residential and commercial activities; the neighborhoods span an elevation gradient within the valley of ~100 m. Patterns in CO2 concentrations among neighborhoods were examined relative to each other and relative to the NOAA background station, a desert site in Wendover, Utah. Four specific analyses are considered. First, we present a statistical analysis of weekday versus weekend CO2 patterns in the winter, spring, summer, and fall seasons. Second, we present a statistical analysis of the influences of high-pressure systems on the elevation of atmospheric CO2 above background levels in the winter versus summer seasons. Third, we present an analysis of the nighttime CO2 values through the year, relating these patterns to observed changes in the carbon isotope ratios of atmospheric CO2. Lastly, we examine the rate of increase in midday urban CO2 over time relative to regional and global CO2 averages to determine if the amplification of urban energy use is statistically detectable from atmospheric trace gas measurements over the past decade. These results show two important patterns. First, there is a strong weekday-weekend effect of vehicle emissions in contrast to the temperature-dependent effect of home-heating emissions on diurnal/seasonal cycles. Second, there appears to be photosynthetic drawdown of atmospheric CO2 levels during the growing season, but at a cost of significant water expenditure. To the degree that atmospheric CO2 and particulate matter levels are correlated, these results have implications for both climate and health issues.

Quality of surface water in Missouri, water year 2015

USGS Publications Warehouse

Barr, Miya N.; Heimann, David C.

2016-11-14

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, designed and operates a series of monitoring stations on streams and springs throughout Missouri known as the Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network. During water year 2015 (October 1, 2014, through September 30, 2015), data were collected at 74 stations—72 Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network stations and 2 U.S. Geological Survey National Stream Quality Assessment Network stations. Dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, water temperature, suspended solids, suspended sediment, Escherichia coli bacteria, fecal coliform bacteria, dissolved nitrate plus nitrite as nitrogen, total phosphorus, dissolved and total recoverable lead and zinc, and select pesticide compound summaries are presented for 71 of these stations. The stations primarily have been classified into groups corresponding to the physiography of the State, primary land use, or unique station types. In addition, a summary of hydrologic conditions in the State including peak streamflows, monthly mean streamflows, and 7-day low flows is presented.

Quality of surface water in Missouri, water year 2011

USGS Publications Warehouse

Barr, Miya N.

2012-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, designed and operates a series of monitoring stations on streams throughout Missouri known as the Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network. During the 2011 water year (October 1, 2010, through September 30, 2011), data were collected at 75 stations—72 Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network stations, 2 U.S. Geological Survey National Stream Quality Accounting Network stations, and 1 spring sampled in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service. Dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, water temperature, suspended solids, suspended sediment, fecal coliform bacteria, Escherichia coli bacteria, dissolved nitrate plus nitrite, total phosphorus, dissolved and total recoverable lead and zinc, and select pesticide compound summaries are presented for 72 of these stations. The stations primarily have been classified into groups corresponding to the physiography of the State, primary land use, or unique station types. In addition, a summary of hydrologic conditions in the State including peak discharges, monthly mean discharges, and 7-day low flow is presented.

Quality of surface water in Missouri, water year 2014

USGS Publications Warehouse

Barr, Miya N.

2015-12-18

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, designed and operates a series of monitoring stations on streams and springs throughout Missouri known as the Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network. During the 2014 water year (October 1, 2013, through September 30, 2014), data were collected at 74 stations—72 Ambient Water-Quality Monitoring Network stations and 2 U.S. Geological Survey National Stream Quality Assessment Network stations. Dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, water temperature, suspended solids, suspended sediment, Escherichia coli bacteria, fecal coliform bacteria, dissolved nitrate plus nitrite as nitrogen, total phosphorus, dissolved and total recoverable lead and zinc, and select pesticide compound summaries are presented for 71 of these stations. The stations primarily have been classified into groups corresponding to the physiography of the State, primary land use, or unique station types. In addition, a summary of hydrologic conditions in the State including peak discharges, monthly mean discharges, and 7-day low flow is presented.

Common View Time Transfer Using Worldwide GPS and DMA Monitor Stations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Reid, Wilson G.; McCaskill, Thomas B.; Oaks, Orville J.; Buisson, James A.; Warren, Hugh E.

1996-01-01

Analysis of the on-orbit Navstar clocks and the Global Positioning System (GPS) monitor station reference clocks is performed by the Naval Research Laboratory using both broadcast and postprocessed precise ephemerides. The precise ephemerides are produced by the Defense Mapping Agency (DMA) for each of the GPS space vehicles from pseudo-range measurements collected at five GPS and at five DMA monitor stations spaced around the world. Recently, DMA established an additional site co-located with the US Naval Observatory precise time site. The time reference for the new DMA site is the DoD Master Clock. Now, for the first time, it is possible to transfer time every 15 minutes via common view from the DoD Master Clock to the 11 GPS and DMA monitor stations. The estimated precision of a single common-view time transfer measurement taken over a 15-minute interval was between 1.4 and 2.7 nanoseconds. Using the measurements from all Navstar space vehicles in common view during the 15-minute interval, typically 3-7 space vehicles, improved the estimate of the precision to between 0.65 and 1.13 nanoseconds. The mean phase error obtained from closure of the time transfer around the world using the 11 monitor stations and the 25 space vehicle clocks over a period of 4 months had a magnitude of 31 picoseconds. Analysis of the low noise time transfer from the DoD Master Clock to each of the monitor stations yields not only the bias in the time of the reference clock, but also focuses attention on structure in the behaviour of the reference clock not previously seen. Furthermore, the time transfer provides a a uniformly sampled database of 15-minute measurements that make possible, for the first time, the direct and exhaustive computation of the frequency stability of the monitor station reference clocks. To lend perspective to the analysis, a summary is given of the discontinuities in phase and frequency that occurred in the reference clock at the Master Control Station during the period covered by the analysis.

Photochemical Assessment Monitoring Stations (PAMS)

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Photochemical Assessment Monitoring Stations (PAMS). This file provides information on the numbers and distribution (latitude/longitude) of air monitoring sites which measure ozone precursors (approximately 60 volatile hydrocarbons and carbonyl), as required by the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments, in areas with persistently high ozone levels (mostly large metropolitan areas). In these areas, the States have established ambient air monitoring sites which collect and report detailed data for volatile organic compounds, nitrogen oxides, ozone and meteorological parameters. This file displays 199 monitoring sites reporting measurements for 2010. A wide range of related monitoring site attributes is also provided.

Radiation detection and situation management by distributed sensor networks

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jan, Frigo; Mielke, Angela; Cai, D Michael

Detection of radioactive materials in an urban environment usually requires large, portal-monitor-style radiation detectors. However, this may not be a practical solution in many transport scenarios. Alternatively, a distributed sensor network (DSN) could complement portal-style detection of radiological materials through the implementation of arrays of low cost, small heterogeneous sensors with the ability to detect the presence of radioactive materials in a moving vehicle over a specific region. In this paper, we report on the use of a heterogeneous, wireless, distributed sensor network for traffic monitoring in a field demonstration. Through wireless communications, the energy spectra from different radiation detectorsmore » are combined to improve the detection confidence. In addition, the DSN exploits other sensor technologies and algorithms to provide additional information about the vehicle, such as its speed, location, class (e.g. car, truck), and license plate number. The sensors are in-situ and data is processed in real-time at each node. Relevant information from each node is sent to a base station computer which is used to assess the movement of radioactive materials.« less

An urban observatory for quantifying phosphorus and suspended solid loads in combined natural and stormwater conveyances.

PubMed

Melcher, Anthony A; Horsburgh, Jeffery S

2017-06-01

Water quality in urban streams and stormwater systems is highly dynamic, both spatially and temporally, and can change drastically during storm events. Infrequent grab samples commonly collected for estimating pollutant loadings are insufficient to characterize water quality in many urban water systems. In situ water quality measurements are being used as surrogates for continuous pollutant load estimates; however, relatively few studies have tested the validity of surrogate indicators in urban stormwater conveyances. In this paper, we describe an observatory aimed at demonstrating the infrastructure required for surrogate monitoring in urban water systems and for capturing the dynamic behavior of stormwater-driven pollutant loads. We describe the instrumentation of multiple, autonomous water quality and quantity monitoring sites within an urban observatory. We also describe smart and adaptive sampling procedures implemented to improve data collection for developing surrogate relationships and for capturing the temporal and spatial variability of pollutant loading events in urban watersheds. Results show that the observatory is able to capture short-duration storm events within multiple catchments and, through inter-site communication, sampling efforts can be synchronized across multiple monitoring sites.

Detection of Lightning-produced NOx by Air Quality Monitoring Stations in Israel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yair, Y.; Shalev, S.; Saaroni, H.; Ziv, B.

2011-12-01

Lightning is the largest natural source for the production of nitrogen oxides (LtNOx) in the troposphere. Since NOx are greenhouse gases, it is important to know the global production rate of LtNOx for climate studies (present estimates range from 2 to 8 Tg per year) and to model its vertical distribution (Ott et al., 2010). One of the key factors for such an estimate is the yield of a single lightning flash, namely the number of molecules produced for each Joule of energy deposited along the lightning channel. We used lightning stroke data from the Israel Lightning Location System (ILLS) together with NOx data obtained from the national network of air quality monitoring stations operated by the Israeli Ministry of Environmental Protection. Looking for the fingerprints of LtNOx in the general ambient concentrations, usually most affected by pollution from urban sources, we looked only for CG strokes occurring within a radius of 3 km from the location of an air-quality monitoring station. This lowered the number of relevant cases from 605,413 strokes detected in the 2004/5 through 2009/10 seasons to 1,897 strokes. We applied a threshold of > 60kA reducing the number of events to 35. The results showed that there was no consistent rising trend in the NOx concentrations in the hour following the lightning (the lifetime near the ground is expected to be a few hours; Zhang et al., 2003). However, when considering only those events when the prevailing wind was in the direction from the stroke location toward the sensor (7 cases), a clear increase of few ppb following the stroke was observed in 5 cases [see Fig.]. This increase is well correlated with the wind speed, suggesting an effective transport from the stroke location to the sensor. Weaker winds allow dilution and result in smaller observed increases of LtNOx. Separate analysis of additional 17 cases in which the strokes were located < 500 m from the monitoring station (with any peak current above 7 kA) showed no consistent trend. When excluding the 7 events that occurred during rush hour traffic, we found 6 (of 10) cases with an average increase in NOx concentrations of 16 ppb in the hour following the lightning. These results suggest a contribution of CG lightning strokes to the ground level concentrations of NOx. L. E. Ott, K. E. Pickering, G. L. Stenchikov, D. J. Allen, A. J. DeCaria, B. Ridley, R.F. Lin, S. Lang, and W.K. Tao (2010), Production of lightning NOx and its vertical distribution calculated from three dimensional cloud scale chemical transport model simulations, J. Geophys. Res., 115, D04301, doi:10.1029/2009JD011880

Planning for complementarity : an examination of the role and opportunities of first-tier and second-tier cities along the high-speed rail network in California [research brief].

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-03-01

Californias High Speed Rail (HSR) offers opportunities for positive urban transformation in station cities, but the economic, urban design, real estate, and municipal behavior variables that may influence such change are understudied. This researc...

Managing urban and high-use recreation settings.

Treesearch

Paul H. Gobster

1993-01-01

Presents a selection of papers from the "Urban Forestry" and "Ethnic Minorities and the Environment" paper sessions of the 4th North American Symposium on Society and Resource Management. Nine paper sessions organized by the North Central Forest Experiment Station-Chicago brought together 51 authors in 34 talks, 23 papers of which are included here...

Suicide and Mass Urban Transit.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berman, Alan L., Ed.

1991-01-01

Presents case consultation in which consultants respond to issues of urban planning for mass transit (subway) system and how to maximize prevention of intentional injury within subway stations. Also asks what type of research study should be used and what type of data collected once system is operating. Case is discussed by Morton M. Silverman and…

Total dissolved gas and water temperature in the lower Columbia River, Oregon and Washington, water year 2014

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bragg, Heather M.; Johnston, Matthew W.

2015-01-01

All quality-assurance values exceed the criteria established by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers TDG monitoring plan. Criteria for data completeness (95 percent) were met at six of the eight monitoring stations. Deleted data at the John Day tailwater station and missed transmissions at the Camas station resulted in data completeness below criteria.

Assessing transfer property and reliability of urban bus network based on complex network theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Hui; Zhuge, Cheng-Xiang; Zhao, Xiang; Song, Wen-Bo

Transfer reliability has an important impact on the urban bus network. The proportion of zero and one transfer time is a key indicator to measure the connectivity of bus networks. However, it is hard to calculate the transfer time between nodes because of the complicated network structure. In this paper, the topological structures of urban bus network in Jinan are constructed by space L and space P. A method to calculate transfer times between stations has been proposed by reachable matrix under space P. The result shows that it is efficient to calculate the transfer time between nodes in large networks. In order to test the transfer reliability, a node failure process has been built according to degree, clustering coefficient and betweenness centrality under space L and space P. The results show that the deliberate attack by betweenness centrality under space P is more effective compared with other five attack modes. This research could provide a power tool to find hub stations in bus networks and give a help for traffic manager to guarantee the normal operation of urban bus systems.

Urban forest health monitoring: large-scale assessments in the United States

Treesearch

Anne Buckelew Cumming; Daniel B. Twardus; David J. Nowak

2008-01-01

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service (USFS), together with state partners, developed methods to monitor urban forest structure, function, and health at a large statewide scale. Pilot studies have been established in five states using protocols based on USFS Forest Inventory and Analysis and Forest Health Monitoring program data collection standards....

Determinants of Parental Monitoring and Preadolescent Sexual Risk Situations among African American Families Living in Urban Public Housing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baptiste, Donna R.; Tolou-Shams, Marina; Miller, Scott R.; Mcbride, Cami K.; Paikoff, Roberta L.

2007-01-01

We investigated determinants of parental monitoring and the association between parental monitoring and preadolescent sexual risk situations among low-income, African American families living in urban public housing. Preadolescents and their parents or caregivers who participated in a longitudinal study of familial and contextual influences on…

Establishment of Antakya Basin Strong Ground Motion Monitoring System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Durukal, E.; Özel, O.; Bikce, M.; Geneş, M. C.; Kacın, S.; Erdik, M.; Safak, E.; Över, S.

2009-04-01

Turkey is located in one of the most active earthquake zones of the world. The cities located along the North Anatolian Fault (NAF) and the East Anatolian Fault (EAF) are exposed to significant earthquake hazard. The Hatay province near the southern terminus of the EAF has always experienced a significant seismic activity, since it is on the intersection of the northernmost segment of Dead Sea Fault Zone coming from the south, with the Cyprean Arc approaching from south-west. Historical records extending over the last 2000 years indicate that Antakya, founded in the 3rd century B.C., is effected by intensity IX-X earthquakes every 150 years. In the region, the last destructive earthquake occurred in 1872. Destructive earthquakes should be expected in the region in the near future similar to the ones that occurred in the past. The strong response of sedimentary basins to seismic waves was largely responsible for the damage produced by the devastating earthquakes of 1985 Michoacan Earthquake which severely damaged parts of Mexico City, and the 1988 Spitak Earthquake which destroyed most of Leninakan, Armenia. Much of this devastating response was explained by the conversion of seismic body waves to surface waves at the sediment/rock contacts of sedimentary basins. "Antakya Basin Strong Ground Motion Monitoring System" is set up with the aim of monitoring the earthquake response of the Antakya Basin, contributing to our understanding of basin response, contributing to earthquake risk assessment of Antakya, monitoring of regional earthquakes and determining the effects of local and regional earthquakes on the urban environment of Antakya. The soil properties beneath the strong motion stations (S-Wave velocity structure and dominant soil frequency) are determined by array measurements that involve broad-band seismometers. The strong motion monitoring system consists of six instruments installed in small buildings. The stations form a straight line along the short axis of Antakya basin passing through the city center. They are equipped with acceleration sensors, GPS and communication units and operate in continuous recording mode. For on-line data transmission the EDGE mode of available GSM systems are employed. In the array measurements for the determination of soil properties beneath the stations two 4-seismometer sets have been utilized. The system is the first monitoring installment in Turkey dedicated to understanding basin effects. The records obtained will allow for the visualization of the propagation of long-period ground motion in the basin and show the refraction of surface waves at the basin edge. The records will also serve to enhance our capacity to realistically synthesize the strong ground motion in basin-type environments.

Urban-scale mapping of PM2.5 distribution via data fusion between high-density sensor network and MODIS Aerosol Optical Depth

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ba, Yu Tao; xian Liu, Bao; Sun, Feng; Wang, Li hua; Tang, Yu jia; Zhang, Da wei

2017-04-01

High-resolution mapping of PM2.5 is the prerequisite for precise analytics and subsequent anti-pollution interventions. Considering the large variances of particulate distribution, urban-scale mapping is challenging either with ground-based fixed stations, with satellites or via models. In this study, a dynamic fusion method between high-density sensor network and MODIS Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) was introduced. The sensor network was deployed in Beijing ( > 1000 fixed monitors across 16000 km2 area) to provide raw observations with high temporal resolution (sampling interval < 1 hour), high spatial resolution in flat areas ( < 1 km), and low spatial resolution in mountainous areas ( > 5 km). The MODIS AOD was calibrated to provide distribution map with low temporal resolution (daily) and moderate spatial resolution ( = 3 km). By encoding the data quality and defects (e.g. could, reflectance, abnormal), a hybrid interpolation procedure with cross-validation generated PM2.5 distribution with both high temporal and spatial resolution. Several no-pollutant and high-pollution periods were tested to validate the proposed fusion method for capturing the instantaneous patterns of PM2.5 emission.

Citizen Science Seismic Stations for Monitoring Regional and Local Events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zucca, J. J.; Myers, S.; Srikrishna, D.

2016-12-01

The earth has tens of thousands of seismometers installed on its surface or in boreholes that are operated by many organizations for many purposes including the study of earthquakes, volcanos, and nuclear explosions. Although global networks such as the Global Seismic Network and the International Monitoring System do an excellent job of monitoring nuclear test explosions and other seismic events, their thresholds could be lowered with the addition of more stations. In recent years there has been interest in citizen-science approaches to augment government-sponsored monitoring networks (see, for example, Stubbs and Drell, 2013). A modestly-priced seismic station that could be purchased by citizen scientists could enhance regional and local coverage of the GSN, IMS, and other networks if those stations are of high enough quality and distributed optimally. In this paper we present a minimum set of hardware and software specifications that a citizen seismograph station would need in order to add value to global networks. This work was performed under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under Contract DE-AC52-07NA27344.

The status and prospective of environmental radiation monitoring stations in Saudi Arabia

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Al-Kheliewi, Abdullah S.; Holzheimer, Clous

2014-09-30

The use of nuclear technology requires an environmental monitoring program to ensure the safety of the environment, and to protect people from the hazards of radioactive materials, and nuclear accidents. Nuclear accidents are unique, for they incur effects that surpass international frontiers, and can even have a long lasting impact on Earth. Such was the case of the Chernobyl accident in the Ukraine on April 6, 1986. For that purpose, international and national efforts come together to observe for any nuclear or radioactive accident. Many states, including Saudi Arabia which oversees the operation of the National Radiation, Environmental and Earlymore » Monitoring Stations, The Radiation Monitoring Stations(RMS’s) are currently scattered across 35 cities in the country,. These locations are evaluated based on various technological criteria such as border cities, cities of high population density, wind direction, etc. For new nuclear power plants hovering around, it is strongly recommended to increase the number of radiation monitoring stations to warn against any threat that may arise from a nuclear leak or accident and to improve the performance of the existing RMS’s. SARA (Spectroscopic Monitoring Station for air) should be implemented due to the high sensitivity to artificial radiation, automatic isotope identification, free of maintenance, and fully independent due to solar power supply (incl. battery backup) and wireless communication (GPRS)« less

Detecting Long-term Trend of Water Quality Indices of Dong-gang River, Taiwan Using Quantile Regression

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, D.; Shiau, J.

2013-12-01

ABSTRACT BODY: Abstract Surface water quality is an essential issue in water-supply for human uses and sustaining healthy ecosystem of rivers. However, water quality of rivers is easily influenced by anthropogenic activities such as urban development and wastewater disposal. Long-term monitoring of water quality can assess whether water quality of rivers deteriorates or not. Taiwan is a population-dense area and heavily depends on surface water for domestic, industrial, and agricultural uses. Dong-gang River is one of major resources in southern Taiwan for agricultural requirements. The water-quality data of four monitoring stations of the Dong-gang River for the period of 2000-2012 are selected for trend analysis. The parameters used to characterize water quality of rivers include biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), dissolved oxygen (DO), suspended solids (SS), and ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N). These four water-quality parameters are integrated into an index called river pollution index (RPI) to indicate the pollution level of rivers. Although widely used non-parametric Mann-Kendall test and linear regression exhibit computational efficiency to identify trends of water-quality indices, limitations of such approaches include sensitive to outliers and estimations of conditional mean only. Quantile regression, capable of identifying changes over time of any percentile values, is employed in this study to detect long-term trend of water-quality indices for the Dong-gang River located in southern Taiwan. The results show that Dong-gang River 4 stations from 2000 to 2012 monthly long-term trends in water quality.To analyze s Dong-gang River long-term water quality trends and pollution characteristics. The results showed that the bridge measuring ammonia Long-dong, BOD5 measure in that station on a downward trend, DO, and SS is on the rise, River Pollution Index (RPI) on a downward trend. The results form Chau-Jhou station also ahowed simialar trends .more and more near the upstrean Hing-she station raise vivestok Sing-She stations are that ammonia on a upward trend, BOD5 no significant change in trend, DO, and SS is on the rise, river pollution index (RPI) a slight downward trend. Dong-gang River Basin , but the progress of sewer construction in slow. To reduce pollation in this river effort shoul be made regulatory reform on livestock waste control and acceleration of sewer construction. Keywords: quantile regression analysis, BOD5, RPI

Space Station Environmental Health System water quality monitoring

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vincze, Johanna E.; Sauer, Richard L.

1990-01-01

One of the unique aspects of the Space Station is that it will be a totally encapsulated environment and the air and water supplies will be reclaimed for reuse. The Environmental Health System, a subsystem of CHeCS (Crew Health Care System), must monitor the air and water on board the Space Station Freedom to verify that the quality is adequate for crew safety. Specifically, the Water Quality Subsystem will analyze the potable and hygiene water supplies regularly for organic, inorganic, particulate, and microbial contamination. The equipment selected to perform these analyses will be commercially available instruments which will be converted for use on board the Space Station Freedom. Therefore, the commercial hardware will be analyzed to identify the gravity dependent functions and modified to eliminate them. The selection, analysis, and conversion of the off-the-shelf equipment for monitoring the Space Station reclaimed water creates a challenging project for the Water Quality engineers and scientists.

Single-station monitoring of volcanoes using seismic ambient noise

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

De Plaen, Raphael S. M.; Lecocq, Thomas; Caudron, Corentin; Ferrazzini, Valérie; Francis, Olivier

2016-08-01

Seismic ambient noise cross correlation is increasingly used to monitor volcanic activity. However, this method is usually limited to volcanoes equipped with large and dense networks of broadband stations. The single-station approach may provide a powerful and reliable alternative to the classical "cross-station" approach when measuring variation of seismic velocities. We implemented it on the Piton de la Fournaise in Reunion Island, a very active volcano with a remarkable multidisciplinary continuous monitoring. Over the past decade, this volcano has been increasingly studied using the traditional cross-correlation technique and therefore represents a unique laboratory to validate our approach. Our results, tested on stations located up to 3.5 km from the eruptive site, performed as well as the classical approach to detect the volcanic eruption in the 1-2 Hz frequency band. This opens new perspectives to successfully forecast volcanic activity at volcanoes equipped with a single three-component seismometer.

Variability of carbonaceous aerosols in remote, rural, urban and industrial environments in Spain: implications for air quality policy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Querol, X.; Alastuey, A.; Viana, M.; Moreno, T.; Reche, C.; Minguillón, M. C.; Ripoll, A.; Pandolfi, M.; Amato, F.; Karanasiou, A.; Pérez, N.; Pey, J.; Cusack, M.; Vázquez, R.; Plana, F.; Dall'Osto, M.; de la Rosa, J.; Sánchez de la Campa, A.; Fernández-Camacho, R.; Rodríguez, S.; Pio, C.; Alados-Arboledas, L.; Titos, G.; Artíñano, B.; Salvador, P.; García Dos Santos, S.; Fernández Patier, R.

2013-07-01

We interpret here the variability of levels of carbonaceous aerosols based on a 12 yr database from 78 monitoring stations across Spain specially compiled for this article. Data did not evidence any spatial trends of carbonaceous aerosols across the country. Conversely, results show marked differences in average concentrations from the cleanest, most remote sites (around 1 μg m-3 of non-mineral carbon (nmC), mostly made of organic carbon (OC) with very little elemental carbon (EC), around 0.1 μg m-3; OC / EC = 12-15), to the highly polluted major cities (8-10 μg m-3 of nmC; 3-4 μg m-3 of EC; 4-5 μg m-3 of OC; OC / EC = 1-2). Thus, urban (and very specific industrial) pollution was found to markedly increase levels of carbonaceous aerosols in Spain, with much lower impact of biomass burning and of biogenic emissions. Correlations between yearly averaged OC / EC and EC concentrations adjust very well to a potential equation (OC = 3.37 EC0.326, R2 = 0.8). A similar equation is obtained when including average concentrations obtained at other European sites (OC = 3.60EC0.491, R2 = 0.7). A clear seasonal variability in OC and EC concentrations was detected. Both OC and EC concentrations were higher during winter at the traffic and urban sites, but OC increased during the warmer months at the rural sites. Hourly equivalent black carbon (EBC) concentrations at urban sites accurately depict road traffic contributions, varying with distance from road, traffic volume and density, mixing-layer height and wind speed. Weekday urban rush-hour EBC peaks are mimicked by concentrations of primary gaseous emissions from road traffic, whereas a single midday peak is characteristic of remote and rural sites. Decreasing annual trends for carbonaceous aerosols were observed between 1999 and 2011 at a large number of stations, probably reflecting the impact of the EURO4 and EURO5 standards in reducing the diesel PM emissions. This has resulted in some cases in an increasing trend for NO2 / (OC + EC) ratios as these standards have been much less effective for the abatement of NOx exhaust emissions in passenger diesel cars. This study concludes that EC, EBC, and especially nmC and OC + EC are very good candidates for new air quality standards since they cover both emission impact and health-related issues.

Variability of carbonaceous aerosols in remote, rural, urban and industrial environments in Spain: implications for air quality policy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Querol, X.; Alastuey, A.; Viana, M.; Moreno, T.; Reche, C.; Minguillón, M. C.; Ripoll, A.; Pandolfi, M.; Amato, F.; Karanasiou, A.; Pérez, N.; Pey, J.; Cusack, M.; Vázquez, R.; Plana, F.; Dall'Osto, M.; de la Rosa, J.; de la Campa Sánchez, A.; Fernández-Camacho, R.; Rodríguez, S.; Pío, C.; Alados-Arboledas, L.; Titos, G.; Artíñano, B.; Salvador, P.; Dos Santos García, S.; Patier Fernández, R.

2013-03-01

We interpret here the variability of levels of carbonaceous aerosols based on a 12-yr database from 78 monitoring stations across Spain especially compiled for this article. Data did not evidence any spatial trends of carbonaceous aerosols across the country. Conversely, results show marked differences in average concentrations from the cleanest, most remote sites (around 1 μg m-3 of non-mineral carbon (nmC), mostly made of organic carbon (OC), with very little elemental carbon (EC) 0.1 μg m-3; OC/EC = 12-15), to the highly polluted major cities (8-10 μg m-3 of nmC; 3-4 μg m-3 of EC; 4-5 μg m-3 of OC; OC/EC = 1-2). Thus, urban (and very specific industrial) pollution was found to markedly increase levels of carbonaceous aerosols in Spain, with much lower impact of biomass burning. Correlations between yearly averaged OC/EC and EC concentrations adjust very well to a potential equation (OC/EC = 3.37 EC-0.67 R2 = 0.94). A similar equation is obtained when including average concentrations obtained at other European sites (y = 3.61x-0.5, R2 = 0.78). A clear seasonal variability in OC and EC concentrations was detected. Both OC and EC concentrations were higher during winter at the traffic and urban sites, but OC increased during the warmer months at the rural sites. Hourly equivalent black carbon (EBC) concentrations at urban sites accurately depict road traffic contributions, varying with distance to road, traffic volume and density, mixing layer height and wind speed. Weekday urban rush-hour EBC peaks are mimicked by concentrations of primary gaseous emissions from road traffic, whereas a single midday peak is characteristic of remote and rural sites. Decreasing annual trends for carbonaceous aerosols were observed between 1999 and 2011 at a large number of stations, probably reflecting the impact of the EURO4 and EURO5 standards in reducing the diesel PM emissions. This has resulted in some cases in an increasing trend of NO2/OC+EC ratios, because these standards have been much less effective for the abatement of NOx exhaust emissions in passenger diesel cars. This study concludes that EC, EBC, and especially nmC and OC+EC are very good candidates for new air quality standards since they cover both emission impact and health related issues.

Total Mercury and Methylmercury in Indiana Streams, August 2004-September 2006

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ulberg, Amanda L.; Risch, Martin R.

2008-01-01

Total mercury and methylmercury were determined by use of low (subnanogram per liter) level analytical methods in 225 representative water samples collected following ultraclean protocols at 25 Indiana monitoring stations in a statewide network, on a seasonal schedule, August 2004-September 2006. The highest unfiltered total mercury concentrations were at six monitoring stations - five that are downstream from urban and industrial wastewater discharges and that have upstream drainage areas more than 1,960 square miles and one that is downstream from active and abandoned mine lands and that has an upstream drainage area of 602 square miles. Total mercury concentrations in unfiltered samples ranged from 0.24 to 26.9 nanograms per liter (ng/L), with a median of 2.35 ng/L. The highest concentrations of total mercury, those in the 90th percentile and above, were more than 9.05 ng/L, and most were in samples collected during winter and spring 2006 during changing streamflow hydrograph conditions. Seasonal medians for unfiltered total mercury were highest during winter and spring. Instantaneous streamflow and turbidity at the time of sample collection also were highest in winter and spring and potentially indicate conditions for the most particulate mercury transport. Samples with the highest total mercury concentrations were from water that had the highest turbidity at the time of sample collection. Unfiltered total mercury concentrations were significantly lower in samples collected at five stations downstream from dams. Values for particulate total mercury and streamflow also were significantly lower at these five stations. Total mercury concentrations equaled or exceeded the 2007 Indiana chronic aquatic criterion of 12 ng/L in 5.8 percent of samples and at 10 monitoring stations. Most of the total mercury in these 13 samples was estimated to be particulate. Most of the samples with mercury concentrations that equaled or exceeded the 12 ng/L criterion were collected during winter and spring 2006 during changing streamflow hydrograph conditions and in streamflow that was high for 2004-2006. Methylmercury was detected in 83 percent of unfiltered samples; reported concentrations ranged from 0.04 to 0.57 ng/L, with a median of 0.09 ng/L. The highest concentrations of methylmercury, those in the 90th percentile and above, were more than 0.25 ng/L, and most were in samples collected during spring and summer. Methylation efficiency in most samples was less than 5.8 percent, but was as much as 24.6 percent. Seasonal medians for methylmercury were highest during spring and summer. Seasonal medians for water temperatures at the time of sample collection were highest during these seasons and potentially indicate conditions for the most formation of methylmercury. The low streamflow statistical category had the significantly highest methylation efficiency.

Use of Scented Sugar Bait Stations to Track Mosquito-Borne Arbovirus Transmission in California

PubMed Central

LOTHROP, HUGH D.; WHEELER, SARAH S.; FANG, YING; REISEN, WILLIAM K.

2012-01-01

Laboratory and field research was conducted to determine if Culex tarsalis Coquillett expectorated West Nile virus (WNV) during sugar feeding and if a lure or bait station could be developed to exploit this behavior for WNV surveillance. Experimentally infected Cx. tarsalis repeatedly expectorated WNV onto filter paper strips and into vials with wicks containing sucrose that was readily detectable by a quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction assay. Few females (33%, n = 27) became infected by imbibing sugar solutions spiked with high concentrations (107 plaque forming units/ml) of WNV, indicating sugar feeding stations probably would not be a source of WNV infection. In nature, sugar bait stations scented with the floral attractant phenyl acetaldehyde tracked WNV transmission activity in desert but not urban or agricultural landscapes in California. When deployed in areas of the Coachella Valley with WNV activity during the summer of 2011, 27 of 400 weekly sugar samples (6.8%) tested positive for WNV RNA by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. Prevalence of positives varied spatially, but positive sugar stations were detected before concurrent surveillance measures of infection (mosquito pools) or transmission (sentinel chicken seroconversions). In contrast, sugar bait stations deployed in urban settings in Los Angeles or agricultural habits near Bakersfield in Kern County supporting WNV activity produced 1 of 90 and 0 of 60 positive weekly sugar samples, respectively. These results with sugar bait stations will require additional research to enhance bait attractancy and to understand the relationship between positive sugar stations and standard metrics of arbovirus surveillance. PMID:23270177

Monitoring the transformation of Yogyakarta’s urban form using remote sensing and Geographic Information System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rozano, B.; Yan, W.

2018-04-01

Urban form transformation can be seen as the results of urbanization spatially, where the land changed into an urbanized one. Monitoring its changes, however, require many human and financial resources. Accordingly, this research aims to identify urban form transformation using GIS/remote sensing and its spatial implications to the peri-urban area. In order to analyze the land cover changes, this research uses multispectral images from 1990-2016 for built-up extraction using New Built Up Index (NBUI) analysis and population data 1996-2015 combined with primary data from the respondents and key informants. Based on the analysis, it is seen that the compacted Yogyakarta Urban Area scattered predominantly to the Northern part of its periphery with the increase of urban area from 21.19% in 1990 to 50.91% in 2017. While this urbanization is an on-going process, the population of urban core showed a de-concentration phenomenon in 2015, spreading to its periphery causing some negative implications to the peri-urban area.

Common Traffic Violations of Bus Drivers in Urban China: An Observational Study

PubMed Central

Yang, Rendong; Huang, Yuanxiu; Zhang, Lin; Ning, Peishan; Cheng, Xunjie; Schwebel, David C.

2015-01-01

Objective To report common traffic violations in bus drivers and the factors that influence those violations in urban China. Methods We conducted an observational study to record three types of traffic violations among bus drivers in Changsha City, China: illegal stopping at bus stations, violating traffic light signals, and distracted driving. The behaviors of bus drivers on 32 routes (20% of bus routes in the city) were observed. A two-level Poisson regression examined factors that predicted bus driver violations. Results The incidence of illegal stopping at bus stations was 20.2%. Illegal stopping was less frequent on weekends, sunny days, and at stations with cameras, with adjusted incidence rate ratios (IRRs) of 0.81, 0.65 and 0.89, respectively. The incidence of violating traffic light signals was 2.2%, and was lower on cloudy than sunny days (adjusted IRR: 0.60). The incidence of distracted driving was 3.3%. The incidence of distracted driving was less common on cloudy days, rainy or snowy days, and foggy/windy/dusty days compared to sunny days, with adjusted IRRs of 0.54, 0.55 and 0.07, respectively. Conclusion Traffic violations are common in bus drivers in urban China and they are associated with the date, weather, and presence of traffic cameras at bus station. Further studies are recommended to understand the behavioral mechanisms that may explain bus driver violations and to develop feasible prevention measures. PMID:26372105

Toxicity of sediments from a mangrove forest patch in an urban area in Pernambuco (Brazil).

PubMed

Oliveira, D D; Souza-Santos, L P; Silva, H K P; Macedo, S J

2014-06-01

Industrial and urban residues are discharged every day to the rivers and may arrive at the mangrove forest and prejudice the quality of the environment and the organisms present there. The mangrove forest patch studied is encircled by an urban area of the city of Recife (Brazil) that has approximate 1.5 million inhabitants and is one of the most industrialized centers in Northeast Brazil. The aim of this study was to assess the quality of the sediments of this mangrove patch in terms of metal contamination and ecotoxicology. Samples of surface sediment were collected in six stations for toxicological tests and trace metal determination (Cr, Zn, Mn, Fe, Cu, Pb, Co and Ni), in July and August, 2006 (rainy season); and in January and February 2007 (dry season). Toxicity tests with solid-phase sediments were carried out with the copepod Tisbe biminiensis in order to observe lethal and sub-lethal endpoints and correlate them with chemical data. In June, there were no observed lethal effect, but two stations presented sub-lethal effects. In January, lethal effect occurred in three stations and sub-lethal in one station. The levels for Zn and Cr were at higher levels than international proposed guidelines (NOAA). There was a negative significant correlation between the copepods׳ fecundity, and Zn and Cr concentrations. Therefore, the studied sediments can be considered to have potential toxic to benthos due to the high content of Zn and Cr. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Identifying atmospheric monitoring needs for Space Station Freedom

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Casserly, Dennis M.

1989-01-01

The atmospheric monitoring needs for Space Station Freedom were identified by examining the following from an industrial hygiene perspective: the experiences of past missions; ground based tests of proposed life support systems; the unique experimental and manufacturing facilities; the contaminant load model; metabolic production; and a fire. A target list of compounds to be monitored is presented and information is provided relative to the frequency of analysis, concentration ranges, and locations for monitoring probes.

Characterization (environmental Signature) and Function of the Main Instrumented (monitoring Water Quality Network in Real Time) Rivers Atoyac and Zahuapan in High Atoyac Basin; in Dry, Rain and Winter Season 2013-2014; Puebla-Tlaxcala Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tavera, E. M.; Rodriguez-Espinosa, P. F.; Morales-Garcia, S. S.; Muñoz-Sevilla, N. P.

2014-12-01

The Zahuapan and Atoyac rivers were characterized in the Upper Atoyac through the integration of physical and chemical parameters (environmental firm) determining the behavior and function of the basin as a tool for measuring and monitoring the quality and management of water resources of the water in one of the most polluted rivers in Mexico. For the determination of the environmental signature proceeded to characterize the water through 11 physicochemical parameters: temperature (T), potential hydrogen (pH), dissolved oxygen (DO), spectral absorption coefficient (SAC), the reduction of oxide potential (ORP), turbidity (Turb), conductivity (l), biochemical oxygen demand in 5 days (BOD5), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total suspended solids (TSS) and total dissolved solids (TDS ), which were evaluated in 49 sites in the dry season, 47 for the rainy season and 23 for the winter season in the basin and Atoyac Zahuapan Alto Atoyac, Puebla-Tlaxcala, Mexico river; finding a mathematical algorithm to assimilate and better represent the information obtained. The algorithm allows us to estimate correlation greater than 0.85. The results allow us to propose the algorithm used in the monitoring stations for purposes of processing information assimilated form.This measurement and monitoring of water quality supports the project, the monitoring network in real time and the actions to clean up Atoyac River, in the urban area of the city of Puebla.

Video surveillance captures student hand hygiene behavior, reactivity to observation, and peer influence in Kenyan primary schools.

PubMed

Pickering, Amy J; Blum, Annalise G; Breiman, Robert F; Ram, Pavani K; Davis, Jennifer

2014-01-01

In-person structured observation is considered the best approach for measuring hand hygiene behavior, yet is expensive, time consuming, and may alter behavior. Video surveillance could be a useful tool for objectively monitoring hand hygiene behavior if validated against current methods. Student hand cleaning behavior was monitored with video surveillance and in-person structured observation, both simultaneously and separately, at four primary schools in urban Kenya over a study period of 8 weeks. Video surveillance and in-person observation captured similar rates of hand cleaning (absolute difference <5%, p = 0.74). Video surveillance documented higher hand cleaning rates (71%) when at least one other person was present at the hand cleaning station, compared to when a student was alone (48%; rate ratio  = 1.14 [95% CI 1.01-1.28]). Students increased hand cleaning rates during simultaneous video and in-person monitoring as compared to single-method monitoring, suggesting reactivity to each method of monitoring. This trend was documented at schools receiving a handwashing with soap intervention, but not at schools receiving a sanitizer intervention. Video surveillance of hand hygiene behavior yields results comparable to in-person observation among schools in a resource-constrained setting. Video surveillance also has certain advantages over in-person observation, including rapid data processing and the capability to capture new behavioral insights. Peer influence can significantly improve student hand cleaning behavior and, when possible, should be exploited in the design and implementation of school hand hygiene programs.