You are here:
Air Quality Modeling in Support of the Near-road EXposures and effects of Urban air pollutants Study (NEXUS)
Citation:
Isakov, V., M. Snyder, J. Burke, K. Dionisio, D. Heist, S. Perry, S. Arunachalam, AND S. Batterman. Air Quality Modeling in Support of the Near-road EXposures and effects of Urban air pollutants Study (NEXUS). Presented at CMAS Conference, Chapel Hill, NC, October 28 - 30, 2013.
Impact/Purpose:
The National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL) Atmospheric Modeling and Analysis Division (AMAD) conducts research in support of EPA mission to protect human health and the environment. AMAD research program is engaged in developing and evaluating predictive atmospheric models on all spatial and temporal scales for forecasting the air quality and for assessing changes in air quality and air pollutant exposures, as affected by changes in ecosystem management and regulatory decisions. AMAD is responsible for providing a sound scientific and technical basis for regulatory policies based on air quality models to improve ambient air quality. The models developed by AMAD are being used by EPA, NOAA, and the air pollution community in understanding and forecasting not only the magnitude of the air pollution problem, but also in developing emission control policies and regulations for air quality improvements
Description:
The paper presents the results of the model applications to estimate exposure metrics in support of an epidemiologic study in Detroit, Michigan. The Near-road Exposures to Urban air pollutant Study (NEXUS) design includes determining if children in Detroit, MI with asthma living in close proximity to major roadways have greater health impacts associated with air pollutants than those living farther away, particularly for children living near roadways with high diesel traffic. Temporally and spatially-resolved pollutant concentrations, associated with local variations of emissions and meteorology, were estimated using a combination of AERMOD and RLINE dispersion models, local emission source information from the National Emissions Inventory, detailed road network locations and traffic activity, and meteorological data from the Detroit City Airport. Hourly pollutant concentrations for CO, NOx, PM2.5 and its components (EC and OC) were predicted at each study participant location. The exposure metrics were evaluated in their ability to characterize the spatial and temporal variations of multiple ambient air pollutants across the study area. This research will be used for improving exposure assessments in future air pollution epidemiology studies, and for informing future multipollutant exposure analyses