Plenary Lecture

Particulates and Nitrogen Dioxide in the Brussels Ambient Air Need Drastic Emission Reduction

 
Engineer P. Vanderstraeten
Co-authors: O. Brasseur, M. Forton, A. Cheymol and M. Squilbin
Brussels Institute for Environmental Management
Laboratory for Environmental Research
Gulledelle 100, B-1200 Brussels
Belgium
E-mail: pvd@ibgebim.be

Abstract: Over the past 40 years ambient air quality in Brussels improved significantly. This was especially true for sulphur dioxide, lead, nitrogen monoxide, carbon monoxide, benzene and Benzo (a) pyrene.
With respect to the air quality objectives imposed by the most recent European directive 2008/50/EC two major problems remain, nitrogen dioxide and particulates (PM10 – PM2,5). Analysis of measured air quality data show that it will be extremely difficult to become fully compliant, in due time, in all of the different city environments. A comparison of the average concentration levels in Brussels with those in the surrounding regions, the interpretation of the average daily and weekly concentration profiles and some special observations (e.g. car free Sundays) make clear that some drastic measures will be needed if compliance is to be assured only by measures on the local scale.

Brief Biography of the Speaker:
Peter Vanderstraeten has a university degree in chemical engineering, University of Ghent 1975 (Belgium), and has more than 30 years experience with air quality monitoring and air quality data analysis. Main interests are the relation between air quality and traffic. He is senior scientist at the IBGE-BIM and responsible for the air quality network in the Brussels Capital Region. Author of about 100 reports on air quality and about 40 scientific contributions at national and international conferences and in scientific journals.