摘要
Deterioration of air quality due to the increase in atmospheric emissions from biomass burning(BB)is one of the major environmental problems worldwide.In this study,we estimated the contributions of BB to PM_(2.5) concentrations in the municipalities of Soledad and Malambo located in the Colombian Caribbean.The evaluation period ranged from February 24 to March 30,2018,a period with a high number of BB events recorded in the surroundings of the evaluated sites.The contribution of BB to the two sampling sites was estimated using the Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory(HYSPLIT)dispersion model with forwarding trajectories from each of the burning points identified by satellite images(n=1089).The PM_(2.5) emissions were determined using the fire radiative power(FRP),obtained by remote-sensing data,and corresponded to the radiant energy released per time unit by burning vegetation.The average PM_(2.5) concentrations during the evaluation period were 19.91μg/m^(3) for Soledad and 22.44μg/m^(3) for Malambo.The average contribution of BB to these municipalities was 22.8%and 28.8%,respectively.The methodology used in this study allowed to estimate the contribution of this important source without knowledge of a previous tracer of BB,thereby increasing the use of the proposed procedure worldwide.This information would enable the implementation of effective mitigation,thereby diminishing the adverse impact of PM_(2.5) on the health of the population.
