Found 2229 publications. Showing page 26 of 223:
This report provides a summary of the quality analysis of the EU Member States’ submission under 18 (1) (b) of the Regulation on the Governance of the Energy Union and Climate Action (EU) 2018/1999 conducted in 2021. Under this obligation EU Member States have to submit updated GHG projections and related information biennially. The reported information undergoes several phases of QA/QC checks consisting of checks on timeliness, accuracy, completeness, consistency and comparability. Details on the underlying QA/QC procedure are described in ETC/CME Eionet Report 7/2021.
ETC/CME
2021
Potential use of CAMS modelling results in air quality mapping under ETC/ATNI
ir quality European-wide annual maps based on the Regression – Interpolation – Merging Mapping (RIMM) data fusion methodology have been regularly produced, using the Air Quality e-Reporting validated (E1a) monitoring data, the EMEP modelling data and other supplementary data. In this report, we examine the use of the preliminary (E2a) monitoring data as provided up-to-date (UTD) by many European countries and as also stored in the Air Quality e-Reporting database, together with the EMEP or the Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Service (CAMS) modelling data in two variants (i.e. CAMS Ensemble Interim Reanalysis and CAMS Ensemble Forecast) for potential preparing of preliminary spatial maps. With respect to the availability, the CAMS Ensemble Forecast is the most useful in the potential interim mapping. Such preliminary maps could be constructed approximately one year earlier than the validated maps. Even though we have demonstrated the feasibility, the mapping performance presented in the report is influenced by the lack of the E2a data in some areas.
Next to the evaluation of potential interim maps, regular RIMM maps based on the validated E1a measurement data using three different chemical transport model outputs have been compared, i.e. using the CAMS Ensemble Forecast, the CAMS Ensemble Interim Reanalysis and the EMEP model outputs. Based on the evaluation of the results presented, it is not possible to conclude that any of the three model datasets gives definitively better results compared to the others. The results do not provide strong reasons for a potential change of the model used in the regular mapping.
In addition, the RIMM mapping results have been compared with the CAMS Ensemble Forecast and the CAMS Ensemble Interim Reanalysis outputs. The comparison shows that the data fusion RIMM method gives better results, both in the rural and urban background areas, presumably because of the higher spatial resolution, introduction of additional ancillary data in the data fusion and not fully reduced bias in some data assimilation methods used in CAMS.
ETC/ATNI
2021
Long-term trends of air pollutants at national level 2005-2019
Trend calculations of air pollutants for the periods 2005-2019 have been applied. Sulphur dioxide shows the largest decrease of all pollutants with a reduction of the order of 60-70 %. The agreement between reported emission data and measured concentrations are quite good. For NO2, a mismatch between the trend in air concentrations and NOx emissions is found. While the overall NOx emissions are reported to be reduced by 45 %, the measured NO2 data indicate a decline of the order of 30 % although marked differences between the countries are found. This mismatch could not be explained by changes in meteorology as this is accounted for. Possible reasons for the mismatch could be the NO2/NOx ratio of the emissions, changes in baseline hemispheric ozone concentration and natural emissions. For PM data (PM10 and PM2.5) we find an opposite mismatch, meaning that the PM concentrations show stronger downward trends than the reported emissions. This is likely an effect of the importance of secondary aerosols which are mitigated by other activities than the direct PM emissions. An overall reduction in PM10 of the order of 30-38 % is found during 2005-2019 while the direct emissions give a reduction that is 5-10 percentage units smaller. Similar results are found for PM2.5, but these findings are uncertain due to the less amount of long-term data. For O3, our findings are in line with earlier studies noting that the annual mean ozone concentration has increased while the high peaks have been reduced. But the reduction of the peaks is now within only a few percent and non-significant, while for the 2000-2017 period it was significant and about 10%.
ETC/ATNI
2021
Development of Renewable Energy and its Impact on Air Quality. Co-benefits and Trade-Offs.
This study is an continuation of the work initiated in the European Topic Centre on Climate Change Mitigation and Energy (ETC/CME; report 2019/8) on the effect of the development of renewable energy sources (RES) since 2005 on emissions of anthropogenic air pollutants, which found that RES have led to an estimated increase of primary particulate matter emissions and a decrease of emissions of sulphur oxides and nitrogen oxides. The current study aims at evaluating the impact of these emission changes on air quality and human health by using the air quality model CHIMERE to understand the distribution of emissions. To this end, the emissions corresponding to a reference scenario and to different scenarios of development of renewable energy sources were spatialized over Europe based on the spatialization of emissions used within the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS). The CHIMERE model was applied to calculate, for the year 2016, the impact of the different scenarios on air quality. Finally, the possible impact on human health was assessed. We also include a specific section devoted to residential emission spatialization techniques to review the related uncertainties.
According to the simulation results using emissions based on official data, significant increases of particulate matter concentrations exceeding 1 μg/m3 were found for some countries, linked primarily to the increase in residential wood burning when comparing 2005 with 2016. Exceptions were Portugal and Greece (two countries that decreased their use of biomass for heating). At the scale of the EU27+UK, in 2016, the interplay between emission increases due to biomass use and emission decreases due to all other RES growth is estimated to be responsible for around 9 200 premature deaths and 97 000 years of life lost. As such, the increase in solid biomass heating alone, (due particularly by the high emissions of fine particulate matter from domestic stoves), is estimated to be responsible for an increase of around 10 700 premature deaths and 113 000 years of life lost in 2016. These premature deaths could have been prevented by promoting the development of other RES than solid biomass heating.
Similar results were found at the European scale with simulations using emissions based on expert estimates but with strong differences according to the country. The differences are mostly due to differences in emissions that may not account for semi-volatile organic compounds for some countries. Excluding heating with biomass, all other RES use appears to have led to small reductions of particulate matter concentrations across the Union, with air quality benefits estimated at 1 600 avoided premature deaths and 16 000 prevented years of life lost in 2016. This is because the deployment of RES other than heating from solid biomass from 2005 to 2016 only lead to small changes in emissions of pollutants. However, these sources represented only 13% of the heating and electricity production in 2016.
ETC/ATNI
2021
Environmental Contaminants in an Urban Fjord, 2020
This programme, “Environmental Contaminants in an Urban Fjord” has covered sampling and analyses of sediment and organisms in a marine food web of the Inner Oslofjord, in addition to samples of blood and eggs from herring gull. The programme also included inputs of pollutants via surface water (stormwater), and effluent water and sludge from a wastewater treatment plant. The bioaccumulation potential of the contaminants in the Oslo fjord food web was evaluated. The exposure to/accumulation of the contaminants was also assessed in birds. A vast number of chemical parameters have been quantified, in addition to some biological effect parameters in cod, and the report serves as a status description of the concentrations of these chemicals in different compartments of the Inner Oslofjord marine ecosystem.
Norsk institutt for vannforskning (NIVA)
2021
PAH measurements at Lista. January 2020 – December 2020.
On behalf of Aluminiumindustriens Miljøsekretariat (AMS) and Alcoa Lista, NILU – Norwegian institute for air research has
conducted a sampling campaign in the surroundings of the Alcoa Lista aluminium smelter in order to update the knowledge on PAH-concentrations around the smelter today. Samples were taken in the period January – December 2020 and
analysed for particle bound PAHs. As a consequence of reduced emissions compared to earlier measurements, the ambient
concentrations of benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) were reduced. BaP had an annual average concentration below the target value at
both sampling sites. At Huseby, the lower assessment threshold was exceeded. PAH-levels in the area were similar to those observed in Norwegian cities.
NILU
2021
Grenseområdene Norge-Russland. Luft- og nedbørkvalitet 2020.
Smelteverkene i nordvest-Russland slapp ut store mengder svoveldioksid (SO2) og tungmetaller. Utslippene påvirket luft- og nedbørkvalitet i grenseområdene. Miljøovervåkingen viser at grenseverdier for SO2 er overholdt i kalenderåret 2020, samt for vinter 2019/20. Smelteverket i Nikel stengte ned 23. desember 2020 og dette er ventet å gi stor nedgang i
forurensningen i grenseområdene. Målsettingsverdier for Ni, As og Cd er overholdt.
NILU
2021
Skogens helsetilstand i Norge. Resultater fra skogskadeovervåkingen i 2020.
Skogens helsetilstand påvirkes i stor grad av klima og værforhold, enten direkte ved tørke, frost og vind, eller indirekte ved at klimaet påvirker omfanget av soppsykdommer og insektangrep. Klimaendringene og den forventede økningen i klimarelaterte skogskader gir store utfordringer for forvaltningen av framtidas skogressurser. Det samme gjør invaderende skadegjørere, både allerede etablerte arter og nye som kan komme til Norge i nær framtid. I denne rapporten presenteres resultater fra skogskadeovervåkingen i Norge i 2020 og trender over tid.
I den landsrepresentative skogovervåkingen har kronetettheten hos gran og furu holdt seg stabil i 2020 sammenlignet med tidligere år. Det ble registrert lite misfarging hos bartrærne.
Skadenivået hos både bartrær, bjørk og andre løvtrær var lavere enn i 2019. Abiotiske faktorer med snø, vind og tørke som de viktigste årsakene dominerte skadebildet hos alle treslag.
Kjemiske analyser av luft og nedbør i den intensive skogovervåkingen viser at det fortsatt er høyest verdier av antropogene svovel- og nitrogenforbindelser på den sørligste overvåkingsflata i Birkenes grunnet langtransportert forurensing. Den høyeste konsentrasjonen av nitrogendioksid i luft ble målt på stasjonen i Hurdal i 2020, noe som skyldes utslipp fra veitrafikken i regionen. Det var lave nivåer av bakkenært ozon i Norge i 2020 og ingen overskridelser av UNECEs grenseverdi på 5000 ppb-timer for skog. Vegetasjonsanalysene fra Hurdal har påvist en endring i bunn-vegetasjonens artssammensetning grunnet økt lystilgang og mye barnålstrø. Både hogst utenfor overvåkingsflata og flere skrantende, råteangrepne og døde grantrær i flata har bidratt til økt lystilgang og til større strømengde på bakken. Mange grantrær på flata i Hurdal er sterkt preget av råte med lav kronetetthet og mye misfarging. Flere trær på flata har dødd de seinere årene som følge av råteskader, ofte i kombinasjon med andre faktorer som vindfelling og skader etter tørken i 2018 med påfølgende barkbilleangrep.
Overvåking av bjørkemålere har vist at fjellbjørkeskogen både i Nord-Norge og fjellregionene i sørlige halvdel av landet har vært utsatt for betydelige utbrudd av bjørkemålere i løpet av perioden 2012–2018. Overvåkingsdata fra 2019 og 2020 tyder imidlertid på at målerbestandene nå er lave eller i sterk tilbakegang i det meste av landet. I Troms har målerbestandene allerede nådd et bunnpunkt, og bestandene er nedadgående også i fjellet i Sør-Norge. Vi forventer derfor at skogen i mesteparten av Norge vil bli mindre utsatt for angrep av bjørkemålere de neste par årene.
De fleste fylkene hadde en økning i fangstverdiene i barkbilleovervåkingen i 2020-sesongen. Alle fangstverdiene var imidlertid under 10 000 biller per felle, mens de høyeste verdiene ved slutten av utbruddet på 1970-tallet var rundt 25 000 biller per felle. Fylkene rundt Oslofjorden hadde noen lokale tilfeller av tørke- og barkbilleskader. Det ble ikke funnet noen tydelig økning av fellefangstene i tiden for en annen generasjon, men modellberegninger viser at stor granbarkbille har nok døgngrader til å gjennomføre to generasjoner før overvintring.
I august 2020 ble soppen Diplodia sapinea funnet på sterkt skadet vrifuru i Ås kommune. Tidligere har det blitt gjort noen få funn av soppen på andre bartrearter i det samme området. D. sapinea er vanlig i varmere strøk på flere kontinenter, spesielt på furuarter. De pågående klima-endringene har trolig bidratt til at soppen har kunnet spre og etablere seg mot nord, men vi kan heller ikke utelukke innførsel av soppen via plantemateriale til bruk i grøntanlegg eller skog. D. sapinea er trolig bare i etableringsfasen i Norge, og har til dags dato gjort liten skade på våre stedegne bartrær.....
NIBIO
2021
Microplastic (MP) is of growing concern to environmental and human health. This study investigated three analytical approaches to measure MP in tissues of salmonids. The study aimed to 1) determine and demonstrate the sensitivity of current analytical methods for MP in salmon tissues for the three different quantitative methods, 2) compare the utility of the different methods in terms of cost, time and sensitivity 3) quantify MP in a relevant selection of tissues of farmed and wild salmon in order to establish likely indicator organs for future documentation purposes. We here present the results, compare the methods and discuss uncertainties and needs for further method development.
NORCE Norwegian Research Centre
2020