The Dangers Of Global Temperature Rises For Cities

An increase in air temperature caused by climate change provokes an increase in the number of pollutants in the air of cities, said Irina Smirnova, head of the laboratory for modeling and predicting atmospheric pollution of the Main Geophysical Observatory (GGO) named after A.I. Voeikov.

GGO is a part of Roshydromet and carries out work on air quality assessment in Russian cities. The GGO data are included in the report of the Ministry of Natural Resources on the state of the environment in Russia.

“There will be more secondary impurities formed in the atmosphere as a result of chemical reactions (nitrogen dioxide, ozone, formaldehyde). For example, with an increase in air temperature, the concentration of formaldehyde increases … Theoretically, air warming will give us an increase in the concentration of formaldehyde, which has already been observed in recent years the country’s average concentration has increased, “said Smirnova.

As the scientist explained, formaldehyde is an impurity that enters the air with emissions from enterprises and vehicles, and also forms in a polluted atmosphere as a result of successive chemical reactions under the influence of solar radiation.

She noted that there are no exact estimates of how much the concentration will increase with increasing temperature. Under conditions of atmospheric warming, the rates of chemical reactions change and the chemical activity of the atmosphere increases. Depending on the initial levels of air pollution, the concentration of formaldehyde may increase by 2-10 μg / m3. This can be especially pronounced when the so-called heat waves occur.

Smirnova recalled that in cities where rainfall is projected, climate change, on the contrary, will positively affect the state of the air: rains flush the air.