Assessment and management of urban air pollution: A new project in Shanghai

With the rapid rise of means of transport, the emission of the motor vehicle has become a prime source of air pollution in many cities. The result of air quality monitoring says that the air in 70 percent of Chinese cities does not meet standards. In 2003, the total amount of hydrocarbon, carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxide emission reached about 2.5 times, 2.0 times and 3.0 times that of 1995 respectively. In the same period, the emission of other air pollutants like sulphur dioxide, soot and industrial dust dropped by 15 percent. This paper focuses on the application to an ongoing project in Shanghai about "Motor Vehicle Emission Urban Pollution" (MoVE-UP). In the framework of the Sino-Italian Cooperation Program for environmental protection, the Institute for Atmospheric Pollution of the Italian CNR is assessing the future trends in emissions and air quality in the urban area of Shanghai. The main topic is establishing a consistent framework in order to reduce emissions using the principles of cost-effectiveness, sound science and transparency, and to provide a foundation (in terms of data and modelling tools) for the transition towards longer-term air quality studies covering all emission sources. Priority has been given to a quantitative analysis of traffic emission and its effects on the urban environment of Shanghai, with the supply of a comprehensive strategy for vehicle-based pollution control. Besides the main "conventional" pollutants investigation, air quality modelling at urban and local scale have been employed to predict roadside air quality and to mitigate impacts. Other important aims of the project are the comparison with sources other than road transport, and the evaluation of the benefits of reducing emissions. Keywords: emissions, air pollution, road transport.