Gå til innhold
  • Send

  • Kategori

  • Sorter etter

  • Antall per side

Fant 842 publikasjoner. Viser side 14 av 36:

Publikasjon  
År  
Kategori

Carbon and Greenhouse Gas Budgets of Europe: Trends, Interannual and Spatial Variability, and Their Drivers

Lauerwald, Ronny; Bastos, Ana; McGrath, Matthew J.; Petrescu, Ana Maria Roxana; Ritter, François; Andrew, Robbie; Berchet, Antoine; Broquet, Grégoire; Brunner, Dominik; Chevallier, Frédéric; Cescatti, Alessandro; Filipek, Sara; Fortems-Cheiney, Audrey; Forzieri, Giovanni; Friedlingstein, Pierre; Fuchs, Richard; Gerbig, Christoph; Houweling, Sanne; Ke, Piyu; Lerink, Bas J. W.; Li, Wanjing; Li, Wei; Li, Xiaojun; Luijkx, Ingrid; Monteil, Guillaume; Munassar, Saqr; Nabuurs, Gert-Jan; Patra, Prabir K.; Peylin, Philippe; Pongratz, Julia; Regnier, Pierre; Saunois, Marielle; Schelhaas, Mart-Jan; Scholze, Marko; Sitch, Stephen; Thompson, Rona Louise; Tian, Hanqin; Tsuruta, Aki; Wilson, Chris; Wigneron, Jean-Pierre; Yao, Yitong; Zaehle, Sönke; Ciais, Philippe

In the framework of the RECCAP2 initiative, we present the greenhouse gas (GHG) and carbon (C) budget of Europe. For the decade of the 2010s, we present a bottom-up (BU) estimate of GHG net-emissions of 3.9 Pg CO2-eq. yr−1 (using a global warming potential on a 100 years horizon), which are largely dominated by fossil fuel emissions. In this decade, terrestrial ecosystems acted as a net GHG sink of 0.9 Pg CO2-eq. yr−1, dominated by a CO2 sink that was partially counterbalanced by net emissions of CH4 and N2O. For CH4 and N2O, we find good agreement between BU and top-down (TD) estimates from atmospheric inversions. However, our BU land CO2 sink is significantly higher than the TD estimates. We further show that decadal averages of GHG net-emissions have declined by 1.2 Pg CO2-eq. yr−1 since the 1990s, mainly due to a reduction in fossil fuel emissions. In addition, based on both data driven BU and TD estimates, we also find that the land CO2 sink has weakened over the past two decades. A large part of the European CO2 and C sinks is located in Northern Europe. At the same time, we find a decreasing trend in sink strength in Scandinavia, which can be attributed to an increase in forest management intensity. These are partly offset by increasing CO2 sinks in parts of Eastern Europe and Northern Spain, attributed in part to land use change. Extensive regions of high CH4 and N2O emissions are mainly attributed to agricultural activities and are found in Belgium, the Netherlands and the southern UK. We further analyzed interannual variability in the GHG budgets. The drought year of 2003 shows the highest net-emissions of CO2 and of all GHGs combined.

2024

5 years of Sentinel-5P TROPOMI operational ozone profiling and geophysical validation using ozonesonde and lidar ground-based networks

Keppens, Arno; Pede, Serena Di; Hubert, Daan; Lambert, Jean-Christopher; Veefkind, Pepijn; Sneep, Maarten; Haan, Johan De; Linden, Mark Ter; Leblanc, Thierry; Compernolle, Steven; Verhoelst, Tijl; Granville, José; Nath, Oindrila; Fjæraa, Ann Mari; Boyd, Ian; Niemeijer, Sander; Malderen, Roeland Van; Smit, Herman G. J.; Duflot, Valentin; Godin-Beekmann, Sophie; Johnson, Bryan J.; Steinbrecht, Wolfgang; Tarasick, David W.; Kollonige, Debra E.; Stauffer, Ryan M.; Thompson, Anne M.; Dehn, Angelika; Zehner, Claus

The Sentinel-5 Precursor (S5P) satellite operated by the European Space Agency has carried the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) on a Sun-synchronous low-Earth orbit since 13 October 2017. The S5P mission has acquired more than 5 years of TROPOMI nadir ozone profile data retrieved from the level 0 to 1B processor version 2.0 and the level 1B to 2 optimal-estimation-based processor version 2.4.0. The latter is described in detail in this work, followed by the geophysical validation of the resulting ozone profiles for the period May 2018 to April 2023. Comparison of TROPOMI ozone profile data to co-located ozonesonde and lidar measurements used as references concludes to a median agreement better than 5 % to 10 % in the troposphere. The bias goes up to −15 % in the upper stratosphere (35–45 km) where it can exhibit vertical oscillations. The comparisons show a dispersion of about 30 % in the troposphere and 10 % to 20 % in the upper troposphere to lower stratosphere and in the middle stratosphere, which is close to mission requirements. Chi-square tests of the observed differences confirm on average the validity of the ex ante (prognostic) satellite and ground-based data uncertainty estimates in the middle stratosphere above about 20 km. Around the tropopause and below, the mean chi-square value increases up to about four, meaning that the ex ante TROPOMI uncertainty is underestimated. The information content of the ozone profile retrieval is characterised by about five to six vertical subcolumns of independent information and a vertical sensitivity (i.e. the fraction of the information that originates from the measurement) nearly equal to unity at altitudes from about 20 to 50 km, decreasing rapidly at altitudes above and below. The barycentre of the retrieved information is usually close to the nominal retrieval altitude in the 20–50 km altitude range, with positive and negative offsets of up to 10 km below and above this range, respectively. The effective vertical resolution of the profile retrieval usually ranges within 10–15 km, with a minimum close to 7 km in the middle stratosphere. Increased sensitivities and higher effective vertical resolutions are observed at higher solar zenith angles (above about 60°), as can be expected, and correlate with higher retrieved ozone concentrations. The vertical sensitivity of the TROPOMI tropospheric ozone retrieval is found to depend on the solar zenith angle, which translates into a seasonal and meridian dependence of the bias with respect to reference measurements. A similar although smaller effect can be seen for the viewing zenith angle. Additionally, the bias is negatively correlated with the surface albedo for the lowest three ozone subcolumns (0–18 km), despite the albedo's apparently slightly positive correlation with the retrieval degrees of freedom in the signal. For the 5 years of TROPOMI ozone profile data that are available now, an overall positive drift is detected for the same three subcolumns, while a negative drift is observed above (24–32 km), resulting in a negligible vertically integrated drift.

2024

Engagement of early career researchers in collaborative assessments of IPCC reports: achievements and insights

Moreno-Ibáñez, Marta; Casado, Mathieu; Gremion, Gwenaëlle; Rabanal, Valentina; Adojoh, Onema; Anoruo, Chukwuma; Arshad, Adnan; Bahar, Faten Attig; Bello, Cinthya; Bergstedt, Helena; Caccavo, Jilda Alicia; Champollion, Nicolas; Choy, Emily S.; Ríos, María Fernanda De Los; Detlef, Henrieka; Dey, Rahul; Gamal, Gamil; Guímaro, Hugo R.; Hancock, Susana; Hansen, Christel; Hare, Vincent; Höfer, Juan; Jabir, Thajudeen; Jain, Shipra; Jawak, Shridhar Digambar; Latonin, Mikhail; Martin, Joseph; Mojica, Jhon Fredy; O’Hara, Ryan; Onafeso, Olumide; Prasath, R. Arun; Alves, Eduardo Queiroz; Raez-Villanueva, Sergio; Rosenbaum, Paul; Ruiz-Pereira, Sebastián; Savaglia, Valentina; Soest, Maud van; Vural, Deniz

The participation of a diverse –in terms of geography, discipline and gender– group of Early Career Researchers (ECRs) in the peer review process can help alleviate the workload of senior researchers and counteract the perceptual biases that the latter tend to show. Moreover, ECRs can benefit from developing skills that are often not included in educational programs. From 2018 to 2021, the Association of Polar Early Career Scientists, in collaboration with other associations, organized six group reviews of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports by a total of more than 600 ECRs from over 70 different countries. This study aims to evaluate this group review in terms of its contribution to the production of scientific knowledge, and as a career development opportunity for ECRs. The data analyzed consists of application forms, review comments, and feedback surveys that were collected during each review process. The results of this study show that, overall, the group reviews were a success in terms of the experience of ECRs and their contribution to the peer review of the IPCC reports. Most survey respondents considered the general organization of the group reviews satisfactory and expressed interest in participating in future group reviews. However, most participants did not engage in discussions with their peers, which constitutes a missed opportunity to engage in active learning and the shared production of knowledge. ECRs made a significant contribution to the review of the IPCC reports by producing an average of 2,422 ± 532 comments per group review, 36% of which were substantive. PhD students were shown to be as proficient reviewers as postdoctoral researchers and faculty reviewers. More importantly, the diversity of reviewers in terms of geography and discipline, together with the fact that they are ECRs, can help produce more balanced scientific reports since they bring new perspectives, thus counteracting the biases that senior researchers have. These group reviews could be improved by providing more comprehensive training and facilitating communication among reviewers so that they can engage in meaningful exchanges. We conclude that the IPCC should formalize the inclusion of ECRs in future reviews of the IPCC reports.

2024

Comparison of particle number size distribution trends in ground measurements and climate models

Leinonen, Ville; Kokkola, Harri; Yli-Juuti, Taina; Mielonen, Tero; Kühn, Thomas; Nieminen, Tuomo; Heikkinen, Simo; Miinalainen, Tuuli; Bergman, Tommi; Carslaw, Ken; Decesari, Stefano; Fiebig, Markus; Hussein, Tareq; Kivekäs, Niku; Krejci, Radovan; Kulmala, Markku; Leskinen, Ari; Massling, Andreas; Mihalopoulos, Nikos; Mulcahy, Jane P.; Noe, Steffen M.; Noije, Twan Van; O'connor, Fiona M.; O'dowd, Colin; Oliviè, Dirk Jan Leo; Pernov, Jakob B.; Petäjä, Tuukka; Seland, Øyvind; Schulz, Michael; Scott, Catherine E.; Skov, Henrik; Swietlicki, Erik; Tuch, Thomas; Wiedensohler, Alfred; Virtanen, Annele; Mikkonen, Santtu

Despite a large number of studies, out of all drivers of radiative forcing, the effect of aerosols has the largest uncertainty in global climate model radiative forcing estimates. There have been studies of aerosol optical properties in climate models, but the effects of particle number size distribution need a more thorough inspection. We investigated the trends and seasonality of particle number concentrations in nucleation, Aitken, and accumulation modes at 21 measurement sites in Europe and the Arctic. For 13 of those sites, with longer measurement time series, we compared the field observations with the results from five climate models, namely EC-Earth3, ECHAM-M7, ECHAM-SALSA, NorESM1.2, and UKESM1. This is the first extensive comparison of detailed aerosol size distribution trends between in situ observations from Europe and five earth system models (ESMs). We found that the trends of particle number concentrations were mostly consistent and decreasing in both measurements and models. However, for many sites, climate models showed weaker decreasing trends than the measurements. Seasonal variability in measured number concentrations, quantified by the ratio between maximum and minimum monthly number concentration, was typically stronger at northern measurement sites compared to other locations. Models had large differences in their seasonal representation, and they can be roughly divided into two categories: for EC-Earth and NorESM, the seasonal cycle was relatively similar for all sites, and for other models the pattern of seasonality varied between northern and southern sites. In addition, the variability in concentrations across sites varied between models, some having relatively similar concentrations for all sites, whereas others showed clear differences in concentrations between remote and urban sites. To conclude, although all of the model simulations had identical input data to describe anthropogenic mass emissions, trends in differently sized particles vary among the models due to assumptions in emission sizes and differences in how models treat size-dependent aerosol processes. The inter-model variability was largest in the accumulation mode, i.e. sizes which have implications for aerosol–cloud interactions. Our analysis also indicates that between models there is a large variation in efficiency of long-range transportation of aerosols to remote locations. The differences in model results are most likely due to the more complex effect of different processes instead of one specific feature (e.g. the representation of aerosol or emission size distributions). Hence, a more detailed characterization of microphysical processes and deposition processes affecting the long-range transport is needed to understand the model variability.

2022

Using elemental analyses and multivariate statistics to identify the off-site dispersion from informal e-waste processing

Mudge, Stephen Michael; Pfaffhuber, Katrine Aspmo; Fobil, Julis N.; Bouman, Evert; Uggerud, Hilde Thelle; Thorne, Rebecca Jayne

Electronic waste (e-waste) is informally processed and recycled in Agbogbloshie in Accra (Ghana), which may be the largest such site in West Africa. This industry can lead to significant environmental contamination. In this study, surface dust samples were collected at a range of sites within Accra to establish the offsite consequences of such activities. Fifty-one samples were collected and analysed for 69 elements by ICP-mass spectrometry after nitric acid digestion. The data indicated a significant enrichment in metals associated with solder and copper wire at the site itself and a downwind dispersion of this source material to a distance of approximately 2.0 km. Chlorine and bromine were also elevated at this site as residues from polyvinyl chloride combustion and flame retardants respectively. The elemental composition indicated that only low technology electrical equipment was being treated this way. Multivariate statistical analyses by principal components analysis and polytopic vector analysis identified three sources contributing to the system; (i) burn site residue dispersing within 2 km from the source site, (ii) marine matter on the beaches alone and (iii) the baseline soil conditions of the city of Accra. Risk ratios and hazard quotients developed from the measured concentrations indicated that copper was providing the greatest risk to inhabitants in most cases although nickel, vanadium, chromium and zinc also contributed.

2019

Air Pollution Monitoring for Health Research and Patient Care. An Official American Thoracic Society Workshop Report

Cromar, Kevin R.; Duncan, Bryan N.; Bartonova, Alena; Benedict, Kristen; Brauer, Michael; Habre, Rima; Hagler, Gayle S. W.; Haynes, John A.; Khan, Sean; Kilaru, Vasu; Liu, Yang; Pawson, Steven; Peden, David B.; Quint, Jennifer K.; Rice, Mary B.; Sasser, Erika N.; Seto, Edmund; Stone, Susan L.; Thurston, George D.; Volckens, John

2019

Simulated and projected relationship between the East Asian winter monsoon and winter Arctic Oscillation in CMIP5 models

Li, Shuo; He, Shengping; Li, Fei; Wang, Huijun

Interdecadal change in the relationship between the East Asian winter monsoon (EAWM) and the Arctic Oscillation (AO) has been documented by many studies. This study, utilizing the model outputs from phase 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5), evaluates the ability of the coupled models in CMIP5 to capture the intensified relationship between the EAWM and winter AO since the 1980s, and further projects the evolution of the EAWM–AO relationship during the 21st century. It is found that the observed evolution of the EAWM–AO relationship can be reproduced well by some coupled models (e.g., GFDL-ESM2M, GISS-E2-H, and MPI-ESM-MR). The coupled models’ simulations indicate that the impact of winter AO on the EAWM-related circulation and East Asian winter temperature has strengthened since the 1980s. Such interdecadal change in the EAWM–AO relationship is attributed to the intensified propagation of stationary planetary waves associated with winter AO. Projections under the RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios suggest that the EAWM–AO relationship is significant before the 2030s and after the early 2070s, and insignificant during the 2060s, but uncertain from the 2030s to the 2050s.

2018

Evaluation of climate model aerosol trends with ground-based observations over the last 2 decades – an AeroCom and CMIP6 analysis

Mortier, Augustin; Gliss, Jonas; Schulz, Michael; Aas, Wenche; Andrews, Elisabeth; Bian, Huisheng; Chin, Mian; Ginoux, Paul; Hand, Jenny; Holben, Brent; Zhang, Hua; Kipling, Zak; Kirkevåg, Alf; Laj, Paolo; Lurton, Thibault; Myhre, Gunnar; Neubauer, David; Oliviè, Dirk Jan Leo; Salzen, Knut von; Skeie, Ragnhild Bieltvedt; Takemura, Toshihiko; Tilmes, Simone

This study presents a multiparameter analysis of aerosol trends over the last 2 decades at regional and global scales. Regional time series have been computed for a set of nine optical, chemical-composition and mass aerosol properties by using the observations from several ground-based networks. From these regional time series the aerosol trends have been derived for the different regions of the world. Most of the properties related to aerosol loading exhibit negative trends, both at the surface and in the total atmospheric column. Significant decreases in aerosol optical depth (AOD) are found in Europe, North America, South America, North Africa and Asia, ranging from −1.2 % yr−1 to −3.1 % yr−1. An error and representativity analysis of the spatially and temporally limited observational data has been performed using model data subsets in order to investigate how much the observed trends represent the actual trends happening in the regions over the full study period from 2000 to 2014. This analysis reveals that significant uncertainty is associated with some of the regional trends due to time and space sampling deficiencies. The set of observed regional trends has then been used for the evaluation of 10 models (6 AeroCom phase III models and 4 CMIP6 models) and the CAMS reanalysis dataset and of their skills in reproducing the aerosol trends. Model performance is found to vary depending on the parameters and the regions of the world. The models tend to capture trends in AOD, the column Ångström exponent, sulfate and particulate matter well (except in North Africa), but they show larger discrepancies for coarse-mode AOD. The rather good agreement of the trends, across different aerosol parameters between models and observations, when co-locating them in time and space, implies that global model trends, including those in poorly monitored regions, are likely correct. The models can help to provide a global picture of the aerosol trends by filling the gaps in regions not covered by observations. The calculation of aerosol trends at a global scale reveals a different picture from that depicted by solely relying on ground-based observations. Using a model with complete diagnostics (NorESM2), we find a global increase in AOD of about 0.2 % yr−1 between 2000 and 2014, primarily caused by an increase in the loads of organic aerosols, sulfate and black carbon.

2020

Potato plant disease detection: leveraging hybrid deep learning models

Sinamenye, Jackson Herbert; Chatterjee, Ayan; Shrestha, Raju

Agriculture, a crucial sector for global economic development and sustainable food production, faces significant challenges in detecting and managing crop diseases. These diseases can greatly impact yield and productivity, making early and accurate detection vital, especially in staple crops like potatoes. Traditional manual methods, as well as some existing machine learning and deep learning techniques, often lack accuracy and generalizability due to factors such as variability in real-world conditions. This study proposes a novel approach to improve potato plant disease detection and identification using a hybrid deep-learning model, EfficientNetV2B3+ViT. This model combines the strengths of a Convolutional Neural Network - EfficientNetV2B3 and a Vision Transformer (ViT). It has been trained on a diverse potato leaf image dataset, the “Potato Leaf Disease Dataset”, which reflects real-world agricultural conditions. The proposed model achieved an accuracy of 85.06, representing an 11.43 improvement over the results of the previous study. These results highlight the effectiveness of the hybrid model in complex agricultural settings and its potential to improve potato plant disease detection and identification.

2025

Hazard assessment of nanomaterials: how to meet the requirements for (next generation) risk assessment

Longhin, Eleonora Marta; Mondragon, Ivan Rios; Mariussen, Espen; Zheng, Congying; Puntes, Victor Franco; Hofshagen, Ole-Bendik; Cimpan, Mihaela-Roxana; Shaposhnikov, Sergey; Dusinska, Maria; Rundén-Pran, Elise

Background

Hazard and risk assessment of nanomaterials (NMs) face challenges due to, among others, the numerous existing nanoforms, discordant data and conflicting results found in the literature, and specific challenges in the application of strategies such as grouping and read-across, emphasizing the need for New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) to support Next Generation Risk Assessment (NGRA). Here these challenges are addressed in a study that couples physico-chemical characterization with in vitro investigations and in silico similarity analyses for nine nanoforms, having different chemical composition, sizes, aggregation states and shapes. For cytotoxicity assessment, three methods (Alamar Blue, Colony Forming Efficiency, and Electric Cell-Substrate Impedance Sensing) are applied in a cross-validation approach to support NAMs implementation into NGRA.

Results

The results highlight the role of physico-chemical properties in eliciting biological responses. Uptake studies reveal distinct cellular morphological changes. The cytotoxicity assessment shows varying responses among NMs, consistent among the three methods used, while only one nanoform gave a positive response in the genotoxicity assessment performed by comet assay.

Conclusions

The study highlights the potential of in silico models to effectively identify biologically active nanoforms based on their physico-chemical properties, reinforcing previous knowledge on the relevance of certain properties, such as aspect ratio. The potential of implementing in vitro methods into NGRA is underlined, cross-validating three cytotoxicity assessment methods, and showcasing their strength in terms of sensitivity and suitability for the testing of NMs.

2024

Microplastics in the atmosphere and cryosphere in the circumpolar North: a case for multicompartment monitoring

Hamilton, Bonnie M.; Jantunen, Liisa; Bergmann, Melanie; Vorkamp, Katrin; Aherne, Julian; Magnusson, Kerstin; Herzke, Dorte; Granberg, Maria; Hallanger, Ingeborg G.; Gomiero, Alessio; Peeken, Ilka

The atmosphere and cryosphere have recently garnered considerable attention due to their role in transporting microplastics to and within the Arctic, and between freshwater, marine, and terrestrial environments. While investigating either in isolation provides valuable insight on the fate of microplastics in the Arctic, monitoring both provides a more holistic view. Nonetheless, despite the recent scientific interest, fundamental knowledge on microplastic abundance and consistent monitoring efforts are lacking for these compartments. Here, we build upon the work of the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme's Monitoring Guidelines for Litter and Microplastic to provide a roadmap for multicompartment monitoring of the atmosphere and cryosphere to support our understanding of the sources, pathways, and sinks of plastic pollution across the Arctic. Overall, we recommend the use of existing standard techniques for ice and atmospheric sampling and to build upon existing monitoring efforts in the Arctic to obtain a more comprehensive pan-Arctic view of microplastic pollution in these two compartments.

2022

A case study of anisotropic airborne pollen transport in Northern Patagonia using a Lagrangian particle dispersion model

Pérez, Claudio Fabian; Bianchi, María Martha; Gassmann, María Isabel; Tonti, Natalia; Pisso, Ignacio

2018

Hemispheric-scale heavy metal pollution from South American and Australian mining and metallurgy during the Common Era

McConnell, Joseph R.; Chellman, Nathan J.; Wensman, Sophia M.; Plach, Andreas; Stanish, Charles; Santibáñez, Pamela A.; Brugger, Sandra O.; Eckhardt, Sabine; Freitag, Johannes; Kipfstuhl, Sepp; Stohl, Andreas

2024

Sources and fate of atmospheric microplastics revealed from inverse and dispersion modelling: From global emissions to deposition

Evangeliou, Nikolaos; Tichý, Ondřej; Eckhardt, Sabine; Zwaaftink, Christine Groot; Brahney, Janice

We combine observations from Western USA and inverse modelling to constrain global atmospheric emissions of microplastics (MPs) and microfibers (MFs). The latter are used further to model their global atmospheric dynamics. Global annual MP emissions were calculated as 9.6 ± 3.6 Tg and MF emissions as 6.5 ± 2.9 Tg. Global average monthly MP concentrations were 47 ng m-3 and 33 ng m-3 for MFs, at maximum. The largest deposition of agricultural MPs occurred close to the world’s largest agricultural regions. Road MPs mostly deposited in the East Coast of USA, Central Europe, and Southeastern Asia; MPs resuspended with mineral dust near Sahara and Middle East. Only 1.8% of the emitted mass of oceanic MPs was transferred to land, and 1.4% of land MPs to ocean; the rest were deposited in the same environment. Previous studies reported that 0.74–1.9 Tg y-1 of land-based atmospheric MPs/MFs (

2022

Developing human biomonitoring as a 21st century toolbox within the European exposure science strategy 2020–2030

Jeddi, Maryam Zare; Hopf, Nancy B.; Louro, Henriqueta; Viegas, Susana; Galea, Karen S.; Pasanen-Kase, Robert; Santonen, Tiina; Mustieles, Vicente; Fernandez, Mariana F.; Verhagen, Hans; Bopp, Stephanie K.; Antignac, Jean Philippe; David, Arthur; Mol, Hans; Barouki, Robert; Audouze, Karine; Duca, Radu-Corneliu; Fantke, Peter; Scheepers, Paul; Ghosh, Manosij; Nieuwenhuyse, An Van; Vicente, Joana Lobo; Trier, Xenia; Rambaud, Loïc; Fillol, Clémence; Denys, Sebastien; Conrad, André; Kolossa-Gehring, Marike; Paini, Alicia; Arnot, Jon; Schulze, Florian; Jones, Kate; Sepai, Ovnair; Ali, Imran; Brennan, Lorraine; Benfenati, Emilio; Cubadda, Francesco; Mantovani, Alberto; Bartonova, Alena; Connolly, Alison; Slobodnik, Jaroslav; Bruin, Yuri Bruinen de; Klaveren, Jacob van; Palmen, Nicole; Dirven, Hubert; Husøy, Trine; Thomsen, Cathrine; Virgolino, Ana; Röösli, Martin; Gant, Tim; Goetz, Natalie von; Bessems, Jos

Human biomonitoring (HBM) is a crucial approach for exposure assessment, as emphasised in the European Commission’s Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability (CSS). HBM can help to improve chemical policies in five major key areas: (1) assessing internal and aggregate exposure in different target populations; 2) assessing exposure to chemicals across life stages; (3) assessing combined exposure to multiple chemicals (mixtures); (4) bridging regulatory silos on aggregate exposure; and (5) enhancing the effectiveness of risk management measures.

In this strategy paper we propose a vision and a strategy for the use of HBM in chemical regulations and public health policy in Europe and beyond. We outline six strategic objectives and a roadmap to further strengthen HBM approaches and increase their implementation in the regulatory risk assessment of chemicals to enhance our understanding of exposure and health impacts, enabling timely and targeted policy interventions and risk management. These strategic objectives are: 1) further development of sampling strategies and sample preparation; 2) further development of chemical-analytical HBM methods; 3) improving harmonisation throughout the HBM research life cycle; 4) further development of quality control / quality assurance throughout the HBM research life cycle; 5) obtain sustained funding and reinforcement by legislation; and 6) extend target-specific communication with scientists, policymakers, citizens and other stakeholders.

HBM approaches are essential in risk assessment to address scientific, regulatory and societal challenges. HBM requires full and strong support from the scientific and regulatory domain to reach its full potential in public and occupational health assessment and in regulatory decision-making.

2022

SAMIRA-SAtellite Based Monitoring Initiative for Regional Air Quality

Stebel, Kerstin; Stachlewska, Iwona S.; Nemuc, Anca; Horálek, Jan; Schneider, Philipp; Ajtai, Nicolae; Diamandi, Andrei; Benesova, Nina; Boldeanu, M.; Botezan, Camelia; Markova, Jana; Dumitrache, R.; Iriza-Burca, Amalia; Juras, R.; Nicolae, Doina; Nicolae, V.; Novotný, Petr; Stefanie, Horatiu; Vanek, Lumir; Vlcek, O.; Zawadzka-Manko, Olga; Zehner, Claus

The satellite based monitoring initiative for regional air quality (SAMIRA) initiative was set up to demonstrate the exploitation of existing satellite data for monitoring regional and urban scale air quality. The project was carried out between May 2016 and December 2019 and focused on aerosol optical depth (AOD), particulate matter (PM), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and sulfur dioxide (SO2). SAMIRA was built around several research tasks: 1. The spinning enhanced visible and infrared imager (SEVIRI) AOD optimal estimation algorithm was improved and geographically extended from Poland to Romania, the Czech Republic and Southern Norway. A near real-time retrieval was implemented and is currently operational. Correlation coefficients of 0.61 and 0.62 were found between SEVIRI AOD and ground-based sun-photometer for Romania and Poland, respectively. 2. A retrieval for ground-level concentrations of PM2.5 was implemented using the SEVIRI AOD in combination with WRF-Chem output. For representative sites a correlation of 0.56 and 0.49 between satellite-based PM2.5 and in situ PM2.5 was found for Poland and the Czech Republic, respectively. 3. An operational algorithm for data fusion was extended to make use of various satellite-based air quality products (NO2, SO2, AOD, PM2.5 and PM10). For the Czech Republic inclusion of satellite data improved mapping of NO2 in rural areas and on an annual basis in urban background areas. It slightly improved mapping of rural and urban background SO2. The use of satellites based AOD or PM2.5 improved mapping results for PM2.5 and PM10. 4. A geostatistical downscaling algorithm for satellite-based air quality products was developed to bridge the gap towards urban-scale applications. Initial testing using synthetic data was followed by applying the algorithm to OMI NO2 data with a direct comparison against high-resolution TROPOMI NO2 as a reference, thus allowing for a quantitative assessment of the algorithm performance and demonstrating significant accuracy improvements after downscaling. We can conclude that SAMIRA demonstrated the added value of using satellite data for regional- and urban-scale air quality monitoring.

2021

Composition and sources of carbonaceous aerosols in Northern Europe during winter

Glasius, M.; Hansen, A. M. K.; Claeys, M.; Henzing, J.S; Jedynska, A. D.; Kasper-Giebl, Anne; Kistler, M.; Kristensen, K.; Martinsson, J.; Maenhaut, W.; Nøjgaard, J.K.; Spindler, G.; Stenström, K. E.; Swietlicki, E.; Szidat, S.; Simpson, David; Yttri, Karl Espen

2018

Holocene black carbon in New Zealand lake sediment records

Brugger, Sandra O.; McWethy, David B.; Chellman, Nathan J.; Prebble, Matiu; Mustaphi, Colin J. Courtney; Eckhardt, Sabine; Plach, Andreas; Stohl, Andreas; Wilmshurst, Janet M.; McConnell, Joseph R.; Whitlock, Cathy

Black carbon emitted from incomplete combustion of biomass and fossil fuel burning is an important aerosol; however, available long-term black carbon data are limited to remote polar and high-alpine ice cores from few geographic regions. Black carbon records from lake sediments fill geographic gaps but such records are still scarce, particularly in the Southern Hemisphere. We applied a new incandescence-based methodology to develop Holocene refractory black carbon (rBC) records from four lake-sediment archives in New Zealand and compare these with macroscopic charcoal records. Our rBC records suggest periods with substantial rBC deposition during the Holocene before human arrival in the 13th century reflecting long-range transport and possibly local wetland fires. With Polynesian settlement, rBC deposition increased on the South Island in agreement with macroscopic charcoal records, and it is this period of burning that is proposed as the source of rBC increases evident in Antarctic ice cores. However, sites on the North Island show no contemporaneous rBC increase suggesting regional differences in biomass burning patterns between the North and South islands. None of the New Zealand records show an increase in rBC from fossil fuel sources during the Industrial Era post-1850 CE.

2024

Hepato(Geno)Toxicity Assessment of Nanoparticles in a HepG2 Liver Spheroid Model

Elje, Elisabeth; Mariussen, Espen; Moriones, Oscar H.; Bastus, Neus G.; Puntes, Victor; Kohl, Yvonne; Dusinska, Maria; Rundén-Pran, Elise

(1) In compliance with the 3Rs policy to reduce, refine and replace animal experiments, the development of advanced in vitro models is needed for nanotoxicity assessment. Cells cultivated in 3D resemble organ structures better than 2D cultures. This study aims to compare cytotoxic and genotoxic responses induced by titanium dioxide (TiO2), silver (Ag) and zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles (NPs) in 2D monolayer and 3D spheroid cultures of HepG2 human liver cells. (2) NPs were characterized by electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, laser Doppler anemometry, UV-vis spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. Cytotoxicity was investigated by the alamarBlue assay and confocal microscopy in HepG2 monolayer and spheroid cultures after 24 h of NP exposure. DNA damage (strand breaks and oxidized base lesions) was measured by the comet assay. (3) Ag-NPs were aggregated at 24 h, and a substantial part of the ZnO-NPs was dissolved in culture medium. Ag-NPs induced stronger cytotoxicity in 2D cultures (EC50 3.8 µg/cm2) than in 3D cultures (EC50 > 30 µg/cm2), and ZnO-NPs induced cytotoxicity to a similar extent in both models (EC50 10.1–16.2 µg/cm2). Ag- and ZnO-NPs showed a concentration-dependent genotoxic effect, but the effect was not statistically significant. TiO2-NPs showed no toxicity (EC50 > 75 µg/cm2). (4) This study shows that the HepG2 spheroid model is a promising advanced in vitro model for toxicity assessment of NPs.

2020

Strengths and weaknesses of the FAIRMODE benchmarking methodology for the evaluation of air quality models

Monteiro, Alexandra; Durka, Pawel; Flandorfer, Claudia; Georgieva, Emilia; Guerreiro, Cristina; Kushta, Jonilda; Malherbe, L.; Maiheu, B.; Miranda, Ana Isabel; Santos, Gabriela Sousa; Stocker, Jenny R.; Trimpeneers, Elke; Tognet, Frédéric; Stortini, Michele; Wesseling, Joost; Janssen, Stijn; Thunis, Philippe

2018

Pharmacokinetics of PEGylated Gold Nanoparticles: In Vitro—In Vivo Correlation

Dubaj, Tibor; Kozics, Katarina; Srámková, Monika; Manova, Alena; Bastus, Neus G.; Moriones, Oscar H.; Kohl, Yvonne; Dusinska, Maria; Rundén-Pran, Elise; Puntes, Victor; Nelson, Andrew; Gábelová, Alena; Simon, Peter

Data suitable for assembling a physiologically-based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) model for nanoparticles (NPs) remain relatively scarce. Therefore, there is a trend in extrapolating the results of in vitro and in silico studies to in vivo nanoparticle hazard and risk assessment. To evaluate the reliability of such approach, a pharmacokinetic study was performed using the same polyethylene glycol-coated gold nanoparticles (PEG-AuNPs) in vitro and in vivo. As in vitro models, human cell lines TH1, A549, Hep G2, and 16HBE were employed. The in vivo PEG-AuNP biodistribution was assessed in rats. The internalization and exclusion of PEG-AuNPs in vitro were modeled as first-order rate processes with the partition coefficient describing the equilibrium distribution. The pharmacokinetic parameters were obtained by fitting the model to the in vitro data and subsequently used for PBPK simulation in vivo. Notable differences were observed in the internalized amount of Au in individual cell lines compared to the corresponding tissues in vivo, with the highest found for renal TH1 cells and kidneys. The main reason for these discrepancies is the absence of natural barriers in the in vitro conditions. Therefore, caution should be exercised when extrapolating in vitro data to predict the in vivo NP burden and response to exposure.

2022

A comprehensive evaluation of the use of Lagrangian particle dispersion models for inverse modeling of greenhouse gas emissions

Vojta, Martin; Plach, Andreas; Thompson, Rona Louise; Stohl, Andreas

Using the example of sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), we investigate the use of Lagrangian particle dispersion models (LPDMs) for inverse modeling of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and explore the limitations of this approach. We put the main focus on the impacts of baseline methods and the LPDM backward simulation period on the a posteriori emissions determined by the inversion. We consider baseline methods that are based on a statistical selection of observations at individual measurement sites and a global-distribution-based (GDB) approach, where global mixing ratio fields are coupled to the LPDM back-trajectories at their termination points. We show that purely statistical baseline methods can cause large systematic errors, which lead to inversion results that are sensitive to the LPDM backward simulation period and can generate unrealistic global total a posteriori emissions. The GDB method produces a posteriori emissions that are far less sensitive to the backward simulation period and that show a better agreement with recognized global total emissions. Our results show that longer backward simulation periods, beyond the often used 5 to 10 d, reduce the mean squared error and increase the correlation between a priori modeled and observed mixing ratios. Also, the inversion becomes less sensitive to biases in the a priori emissions and the global mixing ratio fields for longer backward simulation periods. Further, longer periods might help to better constrain emissions in regions poorly covered by the global SF6 monitoring network. We find that the inclusion of existing flask measurements in the inversion helps to further close these gaps and suggest that a few additional and well-placed flask sampling sites would have great value for improving global a posteriori emission fields.

2022

Source apportionment of circum-Arctic atmospheric black carbon from isotopes and modeling

Winiger, P.; Barrett, T. E.; Sheesley, R. J.; Huang, L.; Sharma, S.; Barrie, L. A.; Yttri, Karl Espen; Evangeliou, Nikolaos; Eckhardt, Sabine; Stohl, Andreas; Klimont, Z.; Heyes, C.; Semiletov, I. P.; Dudarev, O. V.; Charkin, A.; Shakhova, N.; Holmstrand, H.; Andersson, A.; Gustafsson, Ö.

Black carbon (BC) contributes to Arctic climate warming, yet source attributions are inaccurate due to lacking observational constraints and uncertainties in emission inventories. Year-round, isotope-constrained observations reveal strong seasonal variations in BC sources with a consistent and synchronous pattern at all Arctic sites. These sources were dominated by emissions from fossil fuel combustion in the winter and by biomass burning in the summer. The annual mean source of BC to the circum-Arctic was 39 ± 10% from biomass burning. Comparison of transport-model predictions with the observations showed good agreement for BC concentrations, with larger discrepancies for (fossil/biomass burning) sources. The accuracy of simulated BC concentration, but not of origin, points to misallocations of emissions in the emission inventories. The consistency in seasonal source contributions of BC throughout the Arctic provides strong justification for targeted emission reductions to limit the impact of BC on climate warming in the Arctic and beyond.

2019

Publikasjon
År
Kategori