Impact of lockdown on particulate matter concentrations in Colombia during the COVID-19 pandemic

Arregocés, Heli A.; Rojano, Roberto; Restrepo, Gloria

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.142874

Cited by 23 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Focusing on the AOD, a significant reduction (20-60%) was obtained in eastern China, while southeast Asia, eastern US and most European regions experienced a reduction reaching 40% [19,34,35]. However, in areas significantly impacted by seasonal biomass burning or dust aerosols, AODs may remain unaffected or even increase during the lockdown period [36,37]. Beyond gaseous pollutants and AOD, there are some studies analyzing the changes in BC concentrations during the lockdown period [26,[38][39][40][41][42], which reported significant reductions (30-70%), but with large variability among regions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of the COVID-19 Lockdown Effects on Spectral Aerosol Scattering and Absorption Properties in Athens, Greece

et al. 2021

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COVID-19 is evolving into one of the worst pandemics in recent history, claiming a death toll of over 1.5 million as of December 2020. In an attempt to limit the expansion of the pandemic in its initial phase, nearly all countries imposed restriction measures, which resulted in an unprecedented reduction of air pollution. This study aims to assess the impact of the lockdown effects due to COVID-19 on in situ measured aerosol properties, namely spectral-scattering (bsca) and absorption (babs) coefficients, black carbon (BC) concentrations, single-scattering albedo (SSA), scattering and absorption Ångström exponents (SAE, AAE) in Athens, Greece. Moreover, a comparison is performed with the regional background site of Finokalia, Crete, for a better assessment of the urban impact on observed differences. The study examines pre-lockdown (1–22 March 2020), lockdown (23 March–3 May 2020) and post-lockdown (4–31 May 2020) periods, while the aerosol properties are also compared with a 3–4 year preceding period (2016/2017–2019). Comparison of meteorological parameters in Athens, between the lockdown period and respective days in previous years, showed only marginal variation, which is not deemed sufficient in order to justify the notable changes in aerosol concentrations and optical properties. The largest reduction during the lockdown period was observed for babs compared to the pre-lockdown (−39%) and to the same period in previous years (−36%). This was intensified during the morning traffic hours (−60%), reflecting the large decrease in vehicular emissions. Furthermore, AAE increased during the lockdown period due to reduced emissions from fossil-fuel combustion, while a smaller (−21%) decrease was observed for bsca along with slight increases (6%) in SAE and SSA values, indicating that scattering aerosol properties were less affected by the decrease in vehicular emissions, as they are more dependent on regional sources and atmospheric processing. Nighttime BC emissions related to residential wood-burning were slightly increased during the lockdown period, with respect to previous-year means. On the contrary, aerosol and pollution changes during the lockdown period at Finokalia were low and highly sensitive to natural sources and processes.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of the COVID-19 Lockdown Effects on Spectral Aerosol Scattering and Absorption Properties in Athens, Greece

et al. 2021

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“…Kannur, India, reported decreased emissions (−62%), and a diurnal variation most pronounced during peak traffic hours was absent during the lockdown owing to the roads being deserted [70]. Figure 4 shows NO 2 emissions increased in the northern Colombian region due to events of long-range pollution transport, like regional biomass burning beginning at the end of March, during the lockdown, according to recent studies [33,34]; the air quality improvement shown in this period was partially annulled by the impact of these events.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 75%

“…The data show that mobility has dropped around the world as the spread of the virus has increased; public transportation systems were the most affected due to users refusing to use them in order to avoid social contact, and therefore the risk of contagion [32]. Other studies have shown an improvement in air quality in some Colombian cities due to mobility restrictions during the COVID-19 lockdown [33,34]. However, these studies did not look at the changes in atmospheric emissions associated with the observed air quality changes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emissions Reduction of Greenhouse Gases, Ozone Precursors, Aerosols and Acidifying Gases from Road Transportation during the COVID-19 Lockdown in Colombia

2021

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The aim of this work was to analyze the changes in the emissions from the transport sector during the COVID-19 lockdown in Colombia. We compared estimated emissions from road transportation of four groups of pollutants, namely, greenhouse gases (CO2, CH4, N2O), ozone precursor gases (CO, NMVOC, NOx), aerosols (BC, PM2.5, PM10), and acidifying gases (NH3, SO2), during the first half of 2020 with values obtained in the same period of 2018. The estimate of emissions from road transportation was determined using a standardized methodology consistent with the 2006 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories and the European Environment Agency/European Monitoring and Evaluation Program. We found a substantial reduction in GHG emissions for CH4, N2O, and CO2 by 17%, 21%, and 28%, respectively. The ozone precursors CO and NMVOC presented a decrease of 21% and 22%, respectively, while NOx emissions were reduced up to 15% for the study period. In addition, BC decreased 15%, and there was a reduction of 17% for both PM10 and PM2.5 emissions. Finally, acidifying gases presented negative variations of 19% for SO2 and 23% for NH3 emissions. Furthermore, these results were consistent with the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) satellite observations and measurements at air quality stations. Our results suggest that the largest decreases were due to the reduction in the burning of gasoline and diesel oil from the transport sector during the COVID-19 lockdown. These results can serve decision makers in adopting strategies to improve air quality related to the analyzed sector.

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“…Significant reductions of PM during the COVID-19 pandemic have been found in cities (Chauhan and Singh, 2020;Dumka et al, 2020;Singh et al, 2020) and industrial areas (Mandal and Pal, 2020;Ranjan et al, 2020;Selvam et al, 2020). Although traffic and PM emission activities have reduced, some studies report PM levels to increase (Arregocés et al, 2020;Broomandi et al, 2020). The increasing vehicle flow in urban and rural areas, industrial expansion, and dependence on the extraction of non-renewable resources expose Colombia to air pollution challenges (Casallas et al, 2020;Lopez-Restrepo et al, 2020).…”

Section: Accepted Manuscriptmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The results of their analysis reveal reductions of PM 2.5 and PM 10 by 40 and 44%, respectively. Arregocés et al (2020) considered variations in urban and industrial areas by limiting the data records of one monitoring station to be representative of a particular area. The authors found that there were reductions in PM2.5 of up to 86% in industrial zones during quarantine compared to days prior to quarantine.…”

Section: Accepted Manuscriptmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Lockdown due to the COVID-19 Pandemic on Air Quality at Latin America’s Largest Open-pit Coal Mine

Arregocés

Rojano

Restrepo

2021

Aerosol Air Qual. Res.

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Particulate Matter is the main pollutant produced in open-pit mining operations. Its emission into the atmosphere is strongly associated with adverse health effects in the surrounding communities. The objective of the study is to evaluate the impact of lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic on the particulate matter (PM) levels in the Northern, Central, and Southern Zones of the largest open-pit coal mine in Latin America. We analyzed and compared daily data on PM10 and PM2.5 before and during the emergency shutdown from the week of March 6 through April 13, 2020, while comparing daily values from the combined product of the Terra-Aqua/MODIS satellites to elucidate the effects of the closure. Unlike other sites monitored globally, we observed an increase in the average PM 10 concentrations in the Northern Zone (13-38%) and Southern Zone (4-7%) of the coal mine. Additionally, PM2.5 concentrations increased in the Southern Zone by up to 43% throughout the lockdown when compared to daily records prior to the commencement of mandatory isolation. PM10 concentrations in the Central Zone decreased (26-31%) in the course the lockdown. Further, higher aerosol optic depth (AOD) values (≥0.4) were evident over the Central and Southern study areas during the lockdown, as well as significant AOD loads upwind and downwind of the coal production pits. Wetter (up to 3.5%), warmer (up to 0.3 K), reduced planetary boundary layer height (up to 0.11 km), wind field variability, and biomass burning in rural areas determine the spatial-temporal behavior of PM. The reduction of emissions from PMmining activities was almost compensated by changes in meteorology and external sources. These results provide a baseline for regulators to establish future mitigation plans.

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Impact of lockdown on particulate matter concentrations in Colombia during the COVID-19 pandemic

Cited by 23 publications

References 39 publications

Assessment of the COVID-19 Lockdown Effects on Spectral Aerosol Scattering and Absorption Properties in Athens, Greece

Assessment of the COVID-19 Lockdown Effects on Spectral Aerosol Scattering and Absorption Properties in Athens, Greece

Emissions Reduction of Greenhouse Gases, Ozone Precursors, Aerosols and Acidifying Gases from Road Transportation during the COVID-19 Lockdown in Colombia

Effects of Lockdown due to the COVID-19 Pandemic on Air Quality at Latin America’s Largest Open-pit Coal Mine

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