Redai dili (Oct 2022)
Evaluation of the Effect of Firework and Firecracker Prohibition during the Spring Festival in Xiangyang on a Local Scale
Abstract
Based on air quality data from dense local micro-stations and sparse national stations, and meteorological data, this study examined the temporal and spatial patterns of air pollution during the Spring Festival in Xiangyang using high-frequency spatial analysis, correlation analysis, and pollutant concentration comparison. The implementation effect of a policy banning fireworks and firecrackers during the Spring Festival was evaluated. The results showed that during the Spring Festival in 2018, the weather in Xiangyang was relatively stable, and the air quality was generally poor. Owing to the influence of fireworks and firecrackers set off from New Year's Eve to the first day of the Lunar New Year in the peripheral areas of Xiangyang, the air pollution condition shifted from mild to severe. The concentrations of PM2.5 and PM10 increased gradually from 19:00 on New Year's Eve, rose linearly after 00:00 on the first day of the Lunar New Year, and then reached a peak during the Spring Festival at 08:00. During this period, the concentrations of SO2 and NO2 also increased significantly, whereas that of CO had no obvious regularity. During the Spring Festival, the spatial distribution patterns of PM2.5 and PM10 daily average concentrations showed a moderate or higher pollution trend of "high in the South and low in the North" on New Year's Eve and the second to fifth days of the Lunar New Year, with Hanjiang and Tangbai Rivers as the boundaries. On the first and sixth days of the Lunar New Year, air pollutants covered almost all of Xiangyang. The setting off of fireworks and firecrackers in the surrounding areas is the primary cause of the heavily polluted weather from New Year's Eve to the first day of the Lunar New Year, and until the fourth day. Traffic exhaust, road dust, and cooking fumes remain significant sources of air pollutants in Xiangyang during the Spring Festival. The characteristic geographical environment and variable meteorological elements are important factors that cause air pollution. Owing to the continuous adoption of air pollution prevention and control policies over the past four years, the overall air pollution situation has improved in Xiangyang. The scope of the firework bans was gradually expanded, thus effectively improving the overall air quality. Compared with research on urban air pollution using a small number of monitoring stations, the application of a high-density air quality monitoring network can describe in detail the spatio-temporal distribution characteristics of urban air pollution on a local scale. Accordingly, increasing the frequency of the spatial analysis of air pollution can allow for the deduction of the specific evolutionary process of air pollution in space. Particularly in special periods or polluted weather, a precise understanding of the spatio-temporal evolution of air pollution can provide an important basis and reference for the prevention and control of urban air pollution.
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