Nine-year trends of PM10 sources and oxidative potential in a rural background site in France

Long-term monitoring at sites with relatively low particulate pollution could provide an opportunity to identify changes in pollutant concentration and potential effects of current air quality policies. In this study, 9-year sampling of PM10 (particles with an aerodynamic diameter below 10 mu m) was performed in a rural background site in France (Observatoire Menne de l'Environnement or OPE) from 28 February 2012 to 22 December 2020. The positive matrix factorization (PMF) method was used to apportion sources of PME) based on quantified chemical constituents and specific chemical tracers analysed on collected filters. Oxidative potential (OP), an emerging health metric that measures PM capability to potentially cause anti-oxidant imbalance in the lung, was also measured using two acellular assays: dithiothreitol (DTT) and ascorbic acid (AA). The sources of OP were also estimated using multiple linear regression (MLR) analysis. In terms of mass contribution, the dominant sources are secondary aerosols (nitrate- and sulfate-rich) associated with long-range transport (LRT). However, in terms of OP contributions, the main drivers are traffic, mineral dust, and biomass burning factors. There is also some OP contribution apportioned to the sulfate- and nitrate-rich sources influenced by processes and ageing during LRT that could have encouraged mixing with other anthropogenic sources. The study indicates much lower OP values than in urban areas. A substantial decrease (58 % reduction from the year 2012 to 2020) in the mass contributions from the traffic factor was found, even though this is not clearly reflected in its OP contribution. Nevertheless, the findings in this long-term study at the OPE site could indicate effectiveness of implemented emission control policies, as also seen in other long-term studies conducted in Europe, mainly for urban areas.

Automated summary

Long-term monitoring at a rural background site in France showed that secondary aerosols associated with long-range transport are the dominant sources of particulate pollution, while traffic, mineral dust, and biomass burning contribute significantly to the oxidative potential. The findings suggest the effectiveness of emission control policies.