air quality | EANET Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia

The 13th International Workshop on Atmospheric Modeling Research in East Asia

Posted on 2023/02/012023/02/02 by Aurélia Lemoine

1 February 2023 – Niigata, Japan

The Network Center for the EANET co-organized the 13th International Workshop on Atmospheric Modeling Research in East Asia with the community of MICS-Asia, on 22-23 December 2022. About 60 participants joined the virtual workshop.

Improving Air Quality Models: from Data to Policy

According to the United States Environment Protection Agency (EPA), air quality modeling is “a mathematical simulation of how air pollutants disperse and react in the atmosphere to affect ambient air quality.” Through these calculations, researchers and policymakers develop predicted scenarios and design strategies to reduce the adverse effects of air pollution.

Over the years, the EANET has maintained a close relationship with the community of Model Inter-Comparison Studies for Asia (MICS-Asia). The International Workshop on Atmospheric Modeling Research in East Asia is a regular workshop of MICS-Asia which has received support from the EANET throughout the previous Medium Term Plans and was part of the EANET Project Activities in 2022. Summaries of previous MICS-Asia workshops are available in the Reports of the Session of the Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) on the EANET.

Four working groups were established as part of the MICS-Asia Phase IV: the Air Quality Model working group, the Air Quality and Climate Model working group, the Emission Inventory working group, and the Observation working group. MICS-Asia Phase IV working groups focus on specific issues including the intercomparison of air quality models, the study of the influence of climate change on the status of air quality, the development of reliable emission inventories for model working groups, and the survey and collection of data to establish trends of concentrations of air pollutants in East Asia.

Among other sources, MICS-Asia experts referred to the results of the EANET’s 4^th Periodic Report on the State of Acid Deposition in East Asia (PRSAD4) and to the EANET monitoring data to conduct their research.

*Screenshot from some participants during the virtual 13th International Workshop on Atmospheric Modeling Research in East Asia*

Modeling and Impact Assessment Studies

During the workshop, international experts in modeling and impact assessment studies shared various presentations based on research activities in Asia and beyond.

Dr. Christian Hogrefe, from the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, introduced the Air Quality Modelling Evaluation International Initiative Phase 4 (AQMEII4) which applies detailed dry deposition diagnostics to a range of air quality models and their deposition schemes. Dr. Baozhu Ge, from the Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Science, shared a presentation on the enhanced wet deposition of nitrogen induced by a landfalling typhoon over East Asia. Dr. Natsumi Kawano, from the Center for Environmental Science, in Saitama, Japan, gave a presentation on the impact of future climate change on tropospheric ozone in Japan using the WRF-CMAQ modeling system and the RCP8.5 scenario. Dr. Syuichi Itahashi, from the Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry, Japan, shared a presentation on the changes in transboundary aerosol components due to the emission variations in East Asia. Dr. Xiao Tang, from the Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Science, gave a presentation on high-resolution aerosol data over China simulated by the NAQPMS modeling system and an inversed emission inventory. Dr. Naoyuki Yamashita, from the Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, Japan, shared a presentation on the critical load of soil acidification and surface water eutrophication in the EANET Participating Countries, and Dr. Baiyao Xu, from Nanjing University, China, gave a presentation on the impacts of meteorological factors and ozone variation on crop yields in China related to the carbon neutrality objectives in 2060 and based on RegCM-Chem-YIBs.

Results from the MICS-Asia Phase IV working groups’ research activities and collaboration with international experts will allow to improve the scientific understanding of air quality issues in the region, but also provide informed knowledge for policy-making in Asia.

Useful Resources

Summary of the 13th International Workshop on Atmospheric Modeling Research in East Asia
Agenda
Panelists’ presentations:
- AQMEII Phase 4: Diagnostic analysis of atmospheric deposition through grid and point model intercomparisons (presented by Dr. Christian Hogrefe)
- Enhanced wet deposition of nitrogen induced by a landfalling typhoon over East Asia (presented by Dr. Baozhu Ge)
- Changes in transboundary aerosol components due to the emission variations in East Asia (presented by Dr. Syuichi Itahashi)
- High-resolution aerosol data over China simulated by NAQPMS and an inverse emission inventory (presented by Dr. Xiao Tang)
- Critical load of soil acidification and surface water eutrophication in EANET participating countries (presented by Dr. Naoyuki Yamashita)
- Impacts of meteorological factors and ozone variation on crop yields in China concerning carbon neutrality objectives in 2060 based on RegCM-Chem-YIBs (presented by Dr. Beiyao Xu)

Workshop on National Air Quality Monitoring Systems and Methodologies with Related Partners – Join us on July 6th!

Posted on 2022/06/082022/07/14 by Aurélia Lemoine

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The registration is now closed.

1. Background

The EANET as an intergovernmental network in East Asia has achieved excellent progress in monitoring cooperation and had great progress in dealing with common concerned problems in the region. The EANET has been monitoring more than 18 atmospheric substances including ions at 64 monitoring sites in the EANET Participating Countries. EANET implements five monitoring items – wet deposition, dry deposition (air concentration), soil and vegetation, inland aquatic environment, and catchment-scale monitoring.

Depending on differentiated economic stages, industrial structures and meteorological conditions, Participating Countries face diversified environmental challenges and priorities, and even in the same region, the challenges differ from time to time. Therefore, in dealing with acid deposition and air pollution issues, it becomes critical to understand the latest atmospheric environment status in the EANET region firstly, and constantly keep up with the latest trend of air pollution measurements and state-of-the-art research methodology/technology, and fully utilize all aspects of resources to seek the solutions in improving air quality in EANET.

Through more than 20 years of activities, the EANET has established a comprehensive and integrated monitoring network, and EANET monitoring data has been used to evaluate and analyze the atmospheric environment in East Asia. The EANET has focused on the national level to promote cooperation among thirteen Participating Countries to address air pollution, including acid deposition issues, and has achieved significant progress in improving air quality in the East Asia region. However, considering the lifetime of air pollution substances, city-level air quality management is also important besides the national level. Furthermore, in terms of implementing management regulations and standards, along with initiatives from central governments, the local/city governments are also crucial in steadily carrying out various measurements.

To accelerate its further development, the Twenty-third Intergovernmental Meeting of the EANET reached an agreement to expand its scope and enable the EANET to conduct monitoring of more atmospheric environment-related substances. In response to this historical decision of scope expansion and steadily undertaking the necessary actions to adopt the changes of EANET, sharing the latest monitoring system and methodologies, discussing the most pressing challenges, and thinking together about possible solutions among the EANET Participating Countries with related partners are critical.

This workshop will gather different stakeholders (scientists and researchers, government officers, technicians including QA/QC managers, the representative of an international organization) together and invite them to discuss from different perspectives on how to overcome the challenges so as to improve the monitoring system in EANET.

This workshop will be divided into two sessions. The first session will briefly introduce the EANET monitoring activities and its function, followed by the case studies of Japan, R. of Korea, and China. In addition, the specific monitoring methodologies including QA/QC activities will be also introduced. In the second session, the panel discussion will take place involving different stakeholders to seek solutions for improving the EANET monitoring system.

2. Objectives and Participants

This workshop aims to provide an opportunity of sharing a wide range of national and international experiences in the field of atmospheric monitoring, discussing the current development and future challenge of monitoring systems and related methodologies in EANET.

Although this event is open to the public, the expected participants will be mainly Representative of Participating Countries of the EANET including:

Central and local government officials from monitoring and air quality management related departments or divisions
Scientists, researchers, and technicians (including QA/QC managers and technicians) in the related area
Participants from related stakeholders, including representatives from UNEP and other regional and international organizations
The Network Center for the EANET, the Secretariat for the EANET

3. Agenda

There will be two sessions based on the objectives of the workshop.

The first session aims to:

Provide an overview of the development of science and policy related to acid deposition in East Asia over 30 years.
Introduce the monitoring systems of Japan, R. of Korea, and China.
Discuss national monitoring system with QA/QC capacity for a wide range of monitoring stations, including mobile monitoring units, and introduce past experiences in order to expand possible opportunities in Participating Countries.

The second session aims to:

Provide discussion platform to various stakeholders to discuss the challenges the Participating Countries are facing, and seek possible or efficient solutions in improving monitoring system.
Provide useful and practical advice from scientific views in strengthening monitoring system from the SAC members of EANET.
Provide lesson learned and important insights for air quality monitoring management experiences towards resolving the related difficulties in the Participating Countries of the EANET.
Share Clean Air Asia (CAA)’s knowledge gained through the cooperation between cities that has been implemented over the years in strengthening and improving City’s air quality monitoring system.
Discuss opportunities of respective concerns or difficulties in further developing air quality monitoring systems in Participating Countries of the EANET involving different stakeholders.

In the second session following two guiding discussion points (tentative) will be provided.

Air pollution issue are deferred from country to country, and deferred from time to time. Taking the latest trend of your country into account, what do you think are the most significant challenge such as targeted substances and spatial coverage for the EANET in improving atmospheric environment in 5-10 years ahead?
International cooperation is critical from national to city-level in dealing with the regional air pollution issue. But, what is the pros and cons of the linkage between national-level and city-level cooperation, and what are the key points to optimize the co-benefit for the regional/city-level air quality in terms of monitoring system, its solutions and prioritized actions?

Access the full Programme here.

Download the Workshop’s presentations:

–Development and role of monitoring system in EANET and the case study of Japan

–Latest National and Local/City Monitoring System in the Republic of Korea

–Study on the Co-control of PM2.5 and Ozone Pollution in Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, and Surrounding Region of China

–Monitoring methodologies and QA/QC activities in the EANET

-Introduction to EANET Project Fund and Project Activities 2022-2023

For further inquiries, contact the Network Center for the EANET.

EANET Seminar on Expanding Monitoring Systems using Low-Cost Sensor (LCS) – Join us on July 21st!

Posted on 2022/06/162022/08/17 by Aurélia Lemoine

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The registration is now closed.

1. Background

Low-cost Sensor (LCS) technology to measure air quality has expanded remarkably in recent years, and it is now widely used by the private sector. It provides information on the atmospheric environment to citizens through data communication networks.

Noticing the cost-effectiveness of LCS, international organizations have started to promote the use of LCS in selected areas to strengthen the capacity of governments where official air monitoring networks are insufficient. However, various surveys conducted by US-EPA, the EU, and others, as well as some experiences in the Asian region reveal that some types of LCSs in the market have problems with accuracy and reliability, while some types are reliable. It is observed that some less reliable LCS and improper use of LCS, including wrong interpretation of measured data, sometimes cause problems including unnecessary social confusion.

Air quality monitoring authorities, such as US-EPA, recommend that LCS is to be used for providing supplementary information for non-regulatory purposes. They recently developed testing protocols to evaluate the accuracy and reliability of LCS.

In most areas in the Asian region, air quality monitoring capacities of the national and local governments are still limited and need to be developed to improve their air quality to achieve SDGs. Considering emerging sub-regional-scale and serious seasonal air pollution events, such as PM2.5, building a network of reliable and internationally comparable air quality data becomes more important.

Thus, it is necessary for practitioners to consider how they can wisely select and use reliable LCS with the network of reference-level sensors in an integrated manner for enhanced air quality monitoring.

The EANET has been developing an air quality monitoring network in the East Asia region with governments and scientists from its 13 Participating Countries and assisting them to develop domestic capacity. The EANET is expanding its scope and seeking collaboration with potential partners. The EANET is conducting this activity considering the best use of reliable LCS for capacity building among its Participating Countries.

2. Objectives and Participants

The EANET will proceed with technical studies and capacity building on methods for collecting reliable air quality data with a concept of Hybrid Air Quality Monitoring Network (HAQMN) where highly reliable LCS and existing reference-level monitoring equipment are used in an integrated manner.

This concept and relevant work provide opportunities for EANET: (1) to strengthen its monitoring network, especially in expanding spatial coverage of the motoring of PM2.5 and ozone with high time resolution; and (2) to assist the Participating Countries of the EANET in developing their air quality monitoring network.

With such overarching goals, the objectives of this Seminar are to provide venues for stakeholders in the EANET Participating Countries and other areas to learn the above-mentioned background, issues, and opportunities of LCS in detail from the experiences of the air pollution monitoring experts.

Although this event is open to the public, the expected participants will be mainly representatives, experts, and practitioners of air quality monitoring from the EANET Participating Countries, non-Participating Countries, academia, and monitoring related service providers.