Long-range transport of Siberian biomass burning emissions and impact on surface ozone in western North America

Abstract

During the summer of 2003, biomass fires burned a large area of Siberia, the largest in at least 10 years. We used the NRL Aerosol Analysis and Prediction System (NAAPS) model to forecast the transport of the smoke from these fires. Transport of these airmasses to North America was confirmed by aircraft and surface observations. The fires resulted in enhancements in summer background CO and O3 of 23-37 and 5-9 ppbv, respectively, at 10 sites in Alaska, Canada and the Pacific Northwest. From the area burned, we estimate that the Siberian fires generated 68 Tg of CO and 0.82 Tg of NOx (as N). In addition, we show that the background O3 enhancement contributed to an exceedance of the ozone air quality standard in the Pacific Northwest. These results show that regional air quality and health are linked to global processes, including climate, forest fires and long-range transport of pollutants. Copyright 2004 by the American Geophysical Union.