Satellite‐observed U.S. power plant NO x emission reductions and their impact on air quality

• Published in: Geophysical research letters Vol. 33; no. 22
• Main Authors: Kim, S.‐W., Heckel, A., McKeen, S. A., Frost, G. J., Hsie, E.‐Y., Trainer, M. K., Richter, A., Burrows, J. P., Peckham, S. E., Grell, G. A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01.11.2006
• ISSN: 0094-8276; 1944-8007
• DOI: 10.1029/2006GL027749

Nitrogen oxide (NO x ) emissions resulting from fossil fuel combustion lead to unhealthy levels of near‐surface ozone (O 3 ). One of the largest U.S. sources, electric power generation, represented about 25% of the U.S. anthropogenic NO x emissions in 1999. Here we show that space‐based instruments observed declining regional NO x levels between 1999 and 2005 in response to the recent implementation of pollution controls by utility companies in the eastern U.S. Satellite‐retrieved summertime nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ) columns and bottom‐up emission estimates show larger decreases in the Ohio River Valley, where power plants dominate NO x emissions, than in the northeast U.S. urban corridor. Model simulations predict lower O 3 across much of the eastern U.S. in response to these emission reductions.