Predicting annual average particulate concentration in urban areas

Particulate matter concentrations are in most cities a major environmental problem. This is also the case in Greece where, despite the various measures taken in the past, the problem still persists. In this aspect, a cost efficient, comprehensive method was developed in order to help decision makers to take the most appropriate measures towards particulates pollution abatement. The method is based on the source apportionment estimation from the application of 3D meteorological and dispersion modeling and is validated with the use of 10 years (2002-2012) PM10 monitoring data, in Athens, Greece, as well as using PM10 emission data for the same area and time period. It appears that the methodology can be used for estimating yearly average PM10 concentrations in a quite realistic manner, giving thus the decision makers the possibility to evaluate ex ante the effectiveness of specific abatement measures.