Pacific Northwest Research Station

Title: Regional pollution potential in the northwestern United States.

Author: Ferguson, Sue A.; Rorig, Miriam L.

Date: 2003

Source: Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-590. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 26 p

Station ID: GTR-PNW-590

Description: The potential for air pollution from industrial sources to reach wilderness areas throughout the Northwestern United States is approximated from monthly mean emissions, along with wind speeds and directions. A simple index is derived to estimate downwind concentration. Maps of pollution potential were generated for each pollution component (particulates, sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, and ammonia), months representing each season (January, April, July, and October), and each of three vertical levels: surface, 850 mb, and 700 mb. Mixing heights for the last 40 years are used to help determine which trajectory levels best represent each month. Wind frequencies for the same period help show variability and inherent uncertainty in using mean monthly data for pollution-potential estimates.

Keywords: Pollution, pollution trajectory, mixing height, steering wind, Columbia River basin, industrial emissions

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Citation

Ferguson, Sue A.; Rorig, Miriam L.  2003.  Regional pollution potential in the northwestern United States..   Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-590. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 26 p