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A Decade of Change in NO2 and SO2 over the Canadian Oil Sands As Seen from SpaceA decade (20052014) of observations from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) were used to examine trends in nitrogen dioxide(NO2) and sulfur dioxide (SO2) over a large region of western Canada and the northern United States, with a focus on the Canadian oil sands. In the oil sands, primarily over an area of intensive surface mining, NO2 tropospheric vertical column densities (VCDs) are seen to be increasing by as much as 10year, with the location of the largest trends in a newly developing NO2 lobe well removed from surface monitoring stations. SO2 VCDs in the oil sands have remained approximately constant. The only other significant increase in the region was seen in NO2 over Bakken gas fields in North Dakota which showed increases of up to5yr. By contrast, other locations in the region show substantial declines in both pollutants, providing strong evidence to the efficacy of environmental pollution control measures implemented by both nations. The OMI-derived trends were found to be consistent with those from the Canadian surface monitoring network, although in the case of SO2, it was necessary to apply a correction in order to remove the residual signal from volcanic eruptions present in the OMI data.
Document ID
20160001555
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
External Source(s)
Authors
Mclinden, Chris A.
(Environment Canada Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
Fioletov, Vitali
(Environment Canada Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
Krotkov, Nickolay A.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD United States)
Li, Can
(Maryland Univ. College Park, MD, United States)
Boersma, K. Folkert
(Universities Space Research Association Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Adams, Cristen
(Environment Canada Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
Date Acquired
February 5, 2016
Publication Date
December 7, 2015
Publication Information
Publication: Environmental Science and Technology
Publisher: Environmental Science and Technology
Volume: 50
Issue: 1
ISSN: 0013-936X
Subject Category
Environment Pollution
Report/Patent Number
GSFC-E-DAA-TN29333
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other
Keywords
NO2
Oil Sands
SO2
OMI
Air Quality

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