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Linkages Between Climate and Air Quality
AMAD Research Programs
Climate & Air Quality
Air quality is determined both by emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and by meteorological conditions, including temperature, wind flow patterns, and the frequency of precipitation and stagnation events. For air quality management applications, regional-scale models are used to assess whether various emission control strategies will result in attainment of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). These modeling applications typically assume present meteorological conditions, which means that potential changes in climate are not included in the assessment. With emission controls that are implemented over several decades, however, future climate trends could impact the effectiveness of these controls.
The first phase of the CIRAQ pilot study on the effect of climate change on air quality has been completed. Future work is proceeding in three broad areas:
- Developing methods to generate a range of future regional-scale climate scenarios by downscaling outputs from global climate models.
- Developing alternative scenarios for future U.S. emissions of ozone precursors and species that form atmospheric particulate matter, taking into account population growth, technological change, and the impact of biofuels on mobile emissions, and analyzing the impact of these emission changes on air quality.
- Using the coupled WRF-CMAQ meteorology and chemistry model to investigate feedbacks of future emission scenarios on radiative budget.
Contacts: Chris Nolte, Alice Gilliland
Related Links of Interest:
U.S. Global Change Research Program (GCRP) 
U.S. Climate Change Science Program (CCSP)
CCSP Synthesis and Assessment Products
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change