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Spatial variation of particulate air pollution in Hamilton and Taupo during winter 2008

TR 2009/03
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Report: TR 2009/03

Author: Jeff Smith, Gustavo Olivares (NIWA)

Abstract

The Air Quality National Environmental Standards (AQNES) include a requirement for Regional Councils to monitor PM10 in airsheds where the ambient standard for PM10 is likely to be exceeded. Regulation 15 of the AQNES also specifies that monitoring within airsheds must be conducted at locations where PM10 concentrations are likely to be greatest, or exceeded the greatest number of times. It is therefore important to understand the spatial variability of PM10 concentrations within particular airsheds.

A vehicle-based mobile monitoring system is available for measuring spatial patterns of PM10 and was used to assess spatial variation of pollution within the Hamilton and Taupo airsheds in the Waikato region. One objective was to evaluate the appropriateness of the locations of current air quality monitoring stations in these airsheds, in terms of complying with AQNES Regulation 15.

In Hamilton, monitoring included two relatively high pollution nights. The highest PM10 concentrations (~80 µg/m3) were consistently observed by mobile monitoring in neighbourhoods of Fairfield, Frankton, Hamilton East and Melville. Average PM10 concentrations were higher in these locations than at the Peachgrove Road monitoring site. This suggests that it would be valuable to install PM10 monitoring in some or all of these parts of the Hamilton airshed.

Data from two high pollution nights in Taupo showed that observations recorded at Gillies Ave were not representative of the maximum PM10 concentrations experienced in the Taupo airshed on those nights. The highest PM10 concentrations in Taupo (~350 µg/m3) were consistently observed by mobile monitoring in the central residential area of Taupo, northwest of the Gillies Ave monitoring site. This suggests that, along with the monitoring site at Gillies Ave, it would be valuable to install PM10 monitoring in the central residential region of the Taupo airshed.

Daily survey monitoring is recommended in these Hamilton and Taupo suburbs for at least one winter as a minimum.

Spatial variation of particulate air pollution in Hamilton and Taupo during winter 2008 [PDF, 1.4 MB]