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Measurements of Atmospheric NH3, NOy/NOx, and NO2 and Deposition of Total Nitrogen at the Beaufort, NC CASTNET Site (BFT142)
Citation:
Baumgardner, R., C. Rogers, M. Puchalski, T. Lavery, K. Mishoe, G. Price, AND N. Hall. Measurements of Atmospheric NH3, NOy/NOx, and NO2 and Deposition of Total Nitrogen at the Beaufort, NC CASTNET Site (BFT142). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, EPA/600/R-14/182, 2014.
Impact/Purpose:
CASTNET has a 25-year record of weekly atmospheric nitrogen measurements collected at rural/remote sites in the United States. CASTNET initially featured approximately 50 sites mostly in the eastern United States but has grown to currently include over 90 sites across the contiguous United States and Alaska. The ambient nitrogen measurements taken at CASTNET sites are nitric acid (HNO3), particulate nitrate (NO- 3), and ammonia (NH+4). CASTNET also produces estimated dry deposition fluxes of these compounds. However, some key contributors to the atmospheric nitrogen budget have not been measured. For example, ammonia (NH3) and total reactive oxidized nitrogen (NOy) had not been measured routinely. To remedy this, many CASTNET sites began participating in the Ammonia Monitoring Network (AMoN) (Figure 2), which was initiated by the National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP) in 2007 to establish a nationwide network of passive NH3 monitors.
Description:
The Clean Air Status and Trends Network (CASTNET) is a long-term environmental monitoring program that measures trends in ambient air quality and atmospheric dry pollutant deposition across the United States. CASTNET has been operating since 1987 and currently consists of 89 monitoring stations nationwide (Figure 1). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) operates a majority of the CASTNET sites. The National Park Service (NPS) currently operates 24 stations in cooperation with EPA. Other federal and state agencies participate in network operation. For example, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) currently operates five CASTNET sites in Wyoming. For more information on CASTNET, see EPA’s CASTNET website: http://java.epa.gov/castnet/ (EPA, 2014).