4.8 Article

Increasing co-occurrence of fine particulate matter and ground-level ozone extremes in the western United States

Journal

SCIENCE ADVANCES
Volume 8, Issue 1, Pages -

Publisher

AMER ASSOC ADVANCEMENT SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abi9386

Keywords

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Funding

  1. Washington State University New Faculty Seed Grant
  2. Institute of the Environment and Sustainability at the University of California, Los Angeles
  3. Center for Climate and Weather Extremes at the National Center for Atmospheric Research
  4. Nature Conservancy of California
  5. NOAA
  6. CIRES [NA17OAR4320101]

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Wildfires and meteorological conditions have a significant impact on the co-occurrence of PM2.5 and ground-level ozone in the western US. The frequency and intensity of these co-occurrences have increased over the past two decades, leading to an increase in population exposure to harmful air pollutants. The extent of co-occurrence is linked to atmospheric ridging patterns and the extent of extreme heat and wildfires.
Wildfires and meteorological conditions influence the co-occurrence of multiple harmful air pollutants including fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and ground-level ozone. We examine the spatiotemporal characteristics of PM2.5/ozone co-occurrences and associated population exposure in the western United States (US). The frequency, spatial extent, and temporal persistence of extreme PM2.5/ozone co-occurrences have increased significantly between 2001 and 2020, increasing annual population exposure to multiple harmful air pollutants by similar to 25 million person-days/year. Using a clustering methodology to characterize daily weather patterns, we identify significant increases in atmospheric ridging patterns conducive to widespread PM2.5/ozone co-occurrences and population exposure. We further link the spatial extent of co-occurrence to the extent of extreme heat and wildfires. Our results suggest an increasing potential for co-occurring air pollution episodes in the western US with continued climate change.

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