Global climate driven effects on urban air pollution simulations using very high spatial resolution

Abstract

A dynamic downscaling tool has been implemented that uses global climate data with 1° spatial resolution to provide information of pollutant concentrations with a resolution of 50 metres, taking into account 3D obstacles. The tool has been used to understand the climate impact on air quality in the cities of Milan and London. Future years (2030, 2050 and 2100) have been compared to the present year (2011) for RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 scenarios. The system has been previously evaluated by comparing its results driven by real global meteorological data with the data measured by air quality monitoring stations. The performance of the system has been considered acceptable. The spatial distributions of the differences between the future and present averages emphasise how climate change could affect areas of the cities differently. The forecast changes obtained show the relevance of this type of work with high spatial resolution.