Investigation of the potential for mercury release from flue gas desulfurization solids applied as an agricultural amendment.

The potential for beneficial use of flue gas desulfurization-derived gypsum (FGDG), a coal combustion byproduct, as an agricultural soil amendment is currently being debated. This study investigated the hypothesis that Hg released to air from FGDG will be reduced when amended to planted and bare soils. The potential for enhanced methylmercury (MeHg) production and Hg uptake by plants in soils amended with FGDG was also investigated. Flue gas desulfurization-derived gypsum from three sources was homogenized into three soils at 4.5, 45, and 170 t ha and applied at 4.9 t ha as a thin layer to simulate tilled and no-till applications, respectively. Twenty-four-hour Hg flux was measured from unamended and FGDG-amended soils on a seasonal time step over 1 yr and after disturbing, watering, and planting. Methylmercury in soil, irrigation drainage, and total Hg in plant tissues were quantified. Results should be interpreted within the confines of the experimental setting and materials used for this study. Total Hg concentrations in soils, homogenized with FGDG, were below that considered representative of soil with background values (<100 ng g). Emissions from amended soils were higher initially relative to unamended soils but became similar over time. Significantly less Hg (2%) was lost to the air from FGDG-amended soils (90 g FGDG added for lowest application) than that released from the FGDG alone (30-70%) (50 g FGDG) over 1 yr. Total Hg and MeHg in irrigation drainage and total Hg concentrations measured in plants were similar for amended and unamended soils.

Development of a statistical model to identify spatial and meteorological drivers of elevated O3 in Nevada and its application to other rural mountainous regions.

Measurements of O3 at relatively remote monitoring sites are useful for quantifying baseline O3, and subsequently the magnitude of O3 not controllable by local regulations. As the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for O3 becomes more stringent, there is an increased need to quantify baseline O3 particularly in the Western US, where regional and global sources can significantly enhance O3 measured at surface sites, yielding baseline mixing ratios approaching or exceeding the NAAQS threshold. Past work has indicated that meteorological conditions as well as site specific spatial characteristics (e.g. elevation, basin size, gradient) are significantly correlated with O3 intercepted at rural monitoring sites. Here, we use 3 years of measurements from sites throughout rural Nevada to develop a categorical tree model to identify spatial and meteorological characteristics that are associated with elevated baseline O3. Data from other sites in the Intermountain Western US are used to test the applicability of the model for sites throughout the region. Our analyses indicate that increased elevation and basin size were associated with increased frequency of elevated O3. On a daily time scale, relative humidity had the strongest association with observed MDA8 O3. Seventy-four percent of MDA8 O3 observations>60 ppbv occurred when daily minimum relative humidity was <15%. Further, we found that including ancillary pollutant data did not improve the predictive accuracy for measurements >60 ppbv whereas including upper air meteorological measurements improved the accuracy of predicting periods when O3 was >60 ppbv. These findings indicate that transport, rather than local production, influences O3 measurements in Nevada, and that high elevation sites in rural Nevada, are representative of baseline conditions in the Intermountain Western US.

Identifying sources of ozone to three rural locations in Nevada, USA, using ancillary gas pollutants, aerosol chemistry, and mercury.

Ozone (O3) is a secondary air pollutant of long standing and increasing concern for environmental and human health, and as such, the US Environmental Protection Agency will revise the National Ambient Air Quality Standard of 75 ppbv to ≤ 70 ppbv. Long term measurements at the Great Basin National Park (GBNP) indicate that O3 in remote areas of Nevada will exceed a revised standard. As part of the Nevada Rural Ozone Initiative, measurements of O3 and other air pollutants were made at 3 remote sites between February 2012 and March 2014, GBNP, Paradise Valley (PAVA), and Echo Peak (ECHO). Exceptionally high concentrations of each air pollutant were defined relative to each site as mixing ratios that exceeded the 90th percentile of all hourly data. Case studies were analyzed for all periods during which mean daily O3 exceeded the 90th percentile concurrently with a maximum 8-h average (MDA8) O3 that was "exceptionally high" for the site (65 ppbv at PAVA, 70 ppbv at ECHO and GBNP), and of potential regulatory significance. An MDA8 ≥ 65 ppbv occurred only five times at PAVA, whereas this occurred on 49 and 65 days at GBNP and ECHO, respectively. The overall correlation between O3 and other pollutants was poor, consistent with the large distance from significant primary emission sources. Mean CO at these locations exceeded concentrations reported for background sites in 2000. Trajectory residence time calculations and air pollutant concentrations indicate that exceedances at GBNP and ECHO were promoted by air masses originating from multiple sources, including wildfires, transport of pollution from southern California and the marine boundary layer, and transport of Asian pollution plumes. Results indicate that the State of Nevada will exceed a revised O3 standard due to sources that are beyond their control.

The Nevada Rural Ozone Initiative (NVROI): Insights to understanding air pollution in complex terrain.

The Nevada Rural Ozone Initiative (NVROI) was established to better understand O3 concentrations in the Western United States (US). The major working hypothesis for development of the sampling network was that the sources of O3 to Nevada are regional and global. Within the framework of this overarching hypothesis, we specifically address two conceptual meteorological hypotheses: (1) The high elevation, complex terrain, and deep convective mixing that characterize Nevada, make this state ideally located to intercept polluted parcels of air transported into the US from the free troposphere; and (2) site specific terrain features will influence O3 concentrations observed at surface sites. Here, the impact of complex terrain and site location on observations are discussed. Data collected in Nevada at 6 sites (1385 to 2082 m above sea level (asl)) are compared with that collected at high elevation sites in Yosemite National Park and the White Mountains, California. Average daily maximum 1-hour concentrations of O3 during the first year of the NVROI ranged from 58 to 69 ppbv (spring), 53 to 62 ppbv (summer), 44 to 49 ppbv (fall), and 37 to 45 ppbv (winter). These were similar to those measured at 3 sites in Yosemite National Park (2022 to 3031 m asl), and at 4 sites in the White Mountains (1237 to 4342 m asl) (58 to 67 ppbv (summer) and 47 to 58 ppbv (fall)). Results show, that in complex terrain, collection of data should occur at high and low elevation sites to capture surface impacts, and site location with respect to topography should be considered. Additionally, concentrations measured are above the threshold reported for causing a reduction in growth and visible injury for plants (40 ppbv), and sustained exposure at high elevation locations in the Western USA may be detrimental for ecosystems.

Investigating the influence of long-range transport on surface O3 in Nevada, USA, using observations from multiple measurement platforms.

The current United States (US) National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for O3 (75 ppb) is expected to be revised to between 60 and 70 ppb. As the NAAQS becomes more stringent, characterizing the extent of O3 and precursors transported into the US is increasingly important. Given the high elevation, complex terrain, and location in the Intermountain West, the State of Nevada is ideally situated to intercept air transported into the US. Until recently, measurements of O3 and associated pollutants were limited to areas in and around the cities of Las Vegas and Reno. In 2011, the Nevada Rural Ozone Initiative began and through this project 13 surface monitoring sites were established. Also in 2011, the NASA Ames Alpha Jet Atmospheric eXperiment (AJAX) began making routine aircraft measurements of O3 and other greenhouse gases in Nevada. The availability of aircraft and surface measurements in a relatively rural, remote setting in the Intermountain West presented a unique opportunity to investigate sources contributing to the O3 observed in Nevada. Our analyses indicate that stratosphere to troposphere transport, long-range transport of Asian pollution, and regional emissions from urban areas and wildfires influence surface observations. The complexity of sources identified here along with the fact that O3 frequently approaches the threshold being considered for a revised NAAQS indicate that interstate and international cooperation will be necessary to achieve compliance with a more stringent regulatory standard. Further, on a seasonal basis we found no significant difference between daily 1-h maximum O3 at surface sites, which ranged in elevation from 888 to 2307 m, and aircraft measurements of O3 <2500 m which suggests that similar processes influence daytime O3 across rural Nevada and indicates that column measurements from Railroad Valley, NV are useful in understanding these processes.

Unraveling the sources of ground level ozone in the Intermountain Western United States using Pb isotopes.

Ozone as an atmospheric pollutant is largely produced by anthropogenic precursors and can significantly impact human and ecosystem health, and climate. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has recently proposed lowering the ozone standard from 75 ppbv (MDA8 = Maximum Daily 8-Hour Average) to between 65 and 70 ppbv. This will result in remote areas of the Intermountain West that includes many U.S. National Parks being out of compliance, despite a lack of significant local sources. We used Pb isotope fingerprinting and back-trajectory analysis to distinguish sources of imported ozone to Great Basin National Park in eastern Nevada. During discrete Chinese Pb events (> 1.1 ng/m(3) & > 80% Asian Pb) trans-Pacific transported ozone was 5 ± 5.5 ppbv above 19 year averages for those dates. In contrast, concentrations during regional transport from the Los Angeles and Las Vegas areas were 15 ± 2 ppbv above the long-term averages, and those characterized by high-altitude transport 3 days prior to sampling were 19 ± 4ppbv above. However, over the study period the contribution of trans-Pacific transported ozone increased at a rate of 0.8 ± 0.3 ppbv/year, suggesting that Asian inputs will exceed regional and high altitude sources by 2015-2020. All of these sources will impact regulatory compliance with a new ozone standard, given increasing global background.

Variability and sources of surface ozone at rural sites in Nevada, USA: Results from two years of the Nevada Rural Ozone Initiative.

Ozone (O3) has been measured at Great Basin National Park (GBNP) since September 1993. GBNP is located in a remote, rural area of eastern Nevada. Data indicate that GBNP will not comply with a more stringent National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for O3, which is based upon the 3-year average of the annual 4th highest Maximum Daily 8-h Average (MDA8) concentration. Trend analyses for GBNP data collected from 1993 to 2013 indicate that MDA8 O3 increased significantly for November to February, and May. The greatest increase was for May at 0.38, 0.35, and 0.46 ppb yr(-1) for the 95th, 50th, and 5th percentiles of MDA8 O3 values, respectively. With the exception of GBNP, continuous O3 monitoring in Nevada has been limited to the greater metropolitan areas. Due to the limited spatial detail of O3 measurements in rural Nevada, a network of rural monitoring sites was established beginning in July 2011. For a period ranging from July 2011 to June 2013, maximum MDA8 O3 at 6 sites occurred in the spring and summer, and ranged from 68 to 80ppb. Our analyses indicate that GBNP, in particular, is ideally positioned to intercept air containing elevated O3 derived from regional and global sources. For the 2 year period considered here, MDA8 O3 at GBNP was an average of 3.1 to 12.6 ppb higher than at other rural Nevada sites. Measured MDA8 O3 at GBNP exceeded the current regulatory threshold of 75 ppb on 7 occasions. Analyses of synoptic conditions, model tracers, and air mass back-trajectories on these days indicate that stratospheric intrusions, interstate pollution transport, wildfires, and Asian pollution contributed to elevated O3 observed at GBNP. We suggest that regional and global sources of ozone may pose challenges to achieving a more stringent O3 NAAQS in rural Nevada.