BE/CNH: Urban Trace-gas Emissions Study (UTES): Interactions Among Canopy Processes, Anthropogenic Emissions, and Social Institutions in the Salt Lake Valley, Utah

大多数温室气体和其他大气污染物来自城市，但人们对城市植被、人类活动和城市空气污染之间的联系知之甚少。二氧化碳和水蒸气是影响当地、区域和全球气候的温室气体，而挥发性有机化合物是形成城市烟雾的大气污染物的前体。所有这些气体都是由人类活动和城市环境中的植被排放的。大气科学家、社会科学、城市规划者和生态学家之间的跨学科合作对于测量这些气体的浓度和排放、追踪其来源以及评估对城市空气污染有效管理的影响是必要的。这项研究项目将由一个多学科的研究团队进行，以研究影响犹他州盐湖城山谷二氧化碳、水蒸气和挥发性有机化合物排放的复杂因素。在盐湖谷不同的土地利用区域，如工业区、居民区和密集发展的城市中心，将实施大气测量和监测计划。分析将区分与痕量气体浓度和排放相关的化合物，如车辆排放、工业排放、居民供暖贡献和城市植被排放。在确定了控制不同土地用途中不同组成部分的因素后，调查人员将开发一个系统动力学模型，以便于对整个城市系统进行检查。该模型还将有助于对公共政策和管理的选择进行量化评估。虽然城市环境是生态系统，但对生物体与其物理环境之间的联系进行综合研究。该项目将有助于理解城市生态系统的高度复杂性，并将提供一个框架，用于评估影响不同城市空气排放的多种相互作用因素。来自盐湖城和犹他州的规划者和决策者将参与这个项目，为模型开发提供意见，并探索研究结果的政策含义。通过将科学测量技术应用于定量建模并与当地决策者合作，该项目将评估在保持高空气质量标准的同时减少温室气体排放的不同方法的可行性和有效性。该项目得到了2002财年环境中生物复杂性特别竞赛的一个奖项的支持，该竞赛的重点是自然和人类耦合系统的动力学。

The majority of greenhouse gases and other atmospheric pollutants originate in cities, but the linkages among urban vegetation, human activities, and the urban airshed are poorly understood. Carbon dioxide and water vapor are greenhouse gases that affect local, regional, and global climate, while volatile organic compounds are pre-cursors to the atmospheric pollutants that form urban smog. All of these gases are emitted by human activities and by vegetation in the urban environment. Interdisciplinary collaborations of atmospheric scientists, social sciences, urban planners, and ecologists are necessary to measure the concentrations and emissions of these gases, to trace their origins, and to evaluate the implications for effective management of the urban airshed. This research project will be undertaken by a multi-disciplinary research team in order to study the complex factors affecting emissions of carbon dioxide, water vapor, and volatile organic compounds in the valley containing Salt Lake City, Utah. An atmospheric measurement and monitoring program will be implemented throughout the Salt Lake Valley in different land-use areas, such as industrial areas, residential neighborhoods, and the intensively developed city center. Analyses will distinguish the compounds associated with trace gas concentration and emission, such as vehicular emissions, industrial emissions, contributions from residential heating, and emissions from urban vegetation. After identifying the factors controlling the different components in various land uses, the investigators will develop a system-dynamics model that will facilitate examinations of the urban system as a whole. The model also will assist in quantitatively evaluating options for public policy and management.Although urban environments are ecosystems, comprehensive studies of linkages between organisms and their physical environments. This project will contribute to understanding of the high degree of complexity in urban ecosystems, and it will provide a framework for evaluating the multiple interactive factors that influence airsheds in a variety of cities. Planners and decision makers from Salt Lake City and the state of Utah will participate in this project, providing input into model development and exploring policy implications of the research results. By applying scientific measurement techniques to quantitative modeling and collaborating with local decision makers, this project will evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of different approaches to reducing greenhouse gas emissions while maintaining high air-quality standards. This project is supported by an award resulting from the FY 2002 special competition in Biocomplexity in the Environment focusing on the Dynamics of Coupled Natural and Human Systems.