Assessing in near real time the impact of the April 2010 Eyjafjallajökull ash plume on air quality

• Published in: Atmospheric Environment
• Main Authors: Colette, Augustin, Favez, Olivier, Meleux, Frédérik, Chiappini, Laura, Haeffelin, Martial, Morille, Yohann, Malherbe, Laure, Papin, Arnaud, Bessagnet, Bertrand, Menut, Laurent, Leoz-Garziandia, Eva, Rouil, Laurence
• Other Authors: Institut National de l'Environnement Industriel et des Risques (INERIS), Institut Pierre-Simon-Laplace (IPSL (FR_636)), École normale supérieure - Paris (ENS-PSL), Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ)-Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université Paris Diderot - Paris 7 (UPD7)-École polytechnique (X)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Laboratoire de Météorologie Dynamique (UMR 8539) (LMD), Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-École polytechnique (X)-École des Ponts ParisTech (ENPC)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Département des Géosciences - ENS Paris, Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-École normale supérieure - Paris (ENS-PSL), Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2010
• Subjects: Air quality; Eyjafjallajökull; Long range transport; Lidar remote sensing; Chemistry transport modelling; [SDE.ES]Environmental Sciences/Environment and Society
• Online Access: https://enpc.hal.science/hal-00681690; https://enpc.hal.science/hal-00681690/document; https://enpc.hal.science/hal-00681690/file/04-Colette-et-al-Atm-Envir-2011-45-1217-1221.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosenv.2010.09.064

5 p. International audience The eruption of the Eyjafjallajökull in April 2010 led to the injection in the troposphere of an important quantity of volcanic ash whose advection towards densely populated areas raised serious concerns regarding potential impacts on air quality. Here we investigate to what extent air quality in France was altered using exclusively quantitative data that was available in near real-time. We rely on a combination of atmospheric dispersion modelling, ground-based remote sensing, and chemical characterization of airborne particles. One week after the onset of the eruption we were able to conclude that the Eyjafjallajökull ash plume was locally responsible for an increase of up to 30 +/- 10 µgm-3 of total PM10 (particulate matter finer than 10 µm) that reached 65 mg m-3 on 18 and 19 April 2010. The methodology presented in this letter offers promising perspectives in terms of emergency response strategy when facing such unforeseen atmospheric dispersion events.