| Title: | Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Air Quality in Metropolitan New Jersey |
| Author(s): | Yao Y; Artigas FJ; Fan S; Gao Y; |
| Address: | "Meadowlands Environmental Research Institute, New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority, 1 Dekorte Park Plaza, Lyndhurst, NJ 07071 USA. GRID: grid.494408.5. ISNI: 0000 0000 9690 8240 Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ 07102 USA. GRID: grid.430387.b. ISNI: 0000 0004 1936 8796" |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s11270-022-05764-w |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 0049-6979 (Print) 1573-2932 (Electronic) 0049-6979 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "Improved air quality has been the silver lining of the pandemic since early 2020. The air quality in northern New Jersey (NJ) was continuously measured during the COVID-19 pandemic and through the three stages of recovery, i.e., the Stay-at-home stage, Reopening stage 1, and Reopening stage 2. A significant change in air quality was observed during the Stay-at-home stage (March 16 to May 16, 2020) as most people stayed home and industrial activity decreased 60%. Compared to 2019, carbon dioxide (CO(2)) decreased 17%, carbon monoxide (CO) decreased 7%, and nitrogen oxides (NO(x)) decreased 51% during the Stay-at-home stage in 2020. However, the ground-level ozone (O(3)) increased in 2020 because of the reduced NO(x) emission and the possibly increased levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) due to warmer weather. With the step-by-step reopening process, the difference in local CO(2) levels between 2019 and 2020 was reduced, and the NO(x) concentration returned to its 2019 level. The CO(2) concentrations were positively correlated with CO, and the NO(x) concentrations were negatively correlated with O(3). Under the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, NJ consumed 14% less natural gas and 21% less gasoline; therefore, the CO(2), CO, and NO(x) emissions and concentration levels were reduced besides the effects of meteorology parameters on air quality in metropolitan New Jersey. Our findings support that replacing fossil fuels with electric or renewable energy in the transportation systems and industry could be beneficial for the concentration reduction of certain greenhouse gases. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11270-022-05764-w" |
| Keywords: | Air quality Covid-19 Carbon dioxide Carbon monoxide Ground-level ozone Nitrogen oxides; |
| Notes: | "PubMed-not-MEDLINEYao, Ying Artigas, Francisco J Fan, Songyun Gao, Yuan eng Netherlands 2022/07/26 Water Air Soil Pollut. 2022; 233(8):289. doi: 10.1007/s11270-022-05764-w. Epub 2022 Jul 20" |
