Topographic and spatial impacts of temperature inversions on air quality using mobile air pollution surveys

We investigated the spatial and topographic effects of temperature inversions on air quality in the industrial city of Hamilton, located at the western tip of Lake Ontario, Canada. The city is divided by a 90-m high topographic scarp, the Niagara Escarpment, and dissected by valleys which open towards Lake Ontario. Temperature inversions occur frequently in the cooler seasons, exacerbating the impact of emissions from industry and traffic. This study used pollution data gathered from mobile monitoring surveys conducted over a 3-year period, to investigate whether the effects of the inversions varied across the city. Temperature inversions were identified with vertical temperature data from a meteorological tower located within the study area. We divided the study area into an upper and lower zone separated by the Escarpment and further into six zones, based on location with respect to the Escarpment and industrial and residential areas, to explore variations across the city. The results identified clear differences in the responses of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) to temperature inversions, based on the topographic and spatial criteria. We found that pollution levels increased as the inversion strengthened, in the lower city. However, the results also suggested that temperature inversions identified in the lower city were not necessarily experienced in the upper city with the same intensity. Further, pollution levels in the upper city appeared to decrease as the inversion deepened in the lower city, probably because of an associated change in prevailing wind direction and lower wind speeds, leading to decreased long-range transport of pollutants. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.