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Assessment of NO 2 Pollution Level during the COVID-19 Lockdown in a Romanian City

Author

Listed:
  • Adrian Roșu

    (Faculty of Sciences and Environment, The European Centre of Excellence for the Environment, “Dunarea de Jos” University of Galati, Domneasca Street, No. 111, 800201 Galati, Romania)

  • Daniel-Eduard Constantin

    (Faculty of Sciences and Environment, The European Centre of Excellence for the Environment, “Dunarea de Jos” University of Galati, Domneasca Street, No. 111, 800201 Galati, Romania)

  • Mirela Voiculescu

    (Faculty of Sciences and Environment, The European Centre of Excellence for the Environment, “Dunarea de Jos” University of Galati, Domneasca Street, No. 111, 800201 Galati, Romania)

  • Maxim Arseni

    (Faculty of Sciences and Environment, The European Centre of Excellence for the Environment, “Dunarea de Jos” University of Galati, Domneasca Street, No. 111, 800201 Galati, Romania)

  • Bogdan Roșu

    (Faculty of Sciences and Environment, The European Centre of Excellence for the Environment, “Dunarea de Jos” University of Galati, Domneasca Street, No. 111, 800201 Galati, Romania)

  • Alexis Merlaud

    (Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), Ringlaan-3-Avenue Circulaire, B-1180 Brussels, Belgium)

  • Michel Van Roozendael

    (Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), Ringlaan-3-Avenue Circulaire, B-1180 Brussels, Belgium)

  • Puiu Lucian Georgescu

    (Faculty of Sciences and Environment, The European Centre of Excellence for the Environment, “Dunarea de Jos” University of Galati, Domneasca Street, No. 111, 800201 Galati, Romania)

Abstract

This study investigates changes in pollution associated with the lockdown period caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in Galati (45.43° N, 28.03° E), a Romanian city located in the southeast of Romania. The study is focused on nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), a trace gas which can be related to emissions from industrial activities, heating, and transportation. The investigation is based on in situ observations from local Air Quality Monitoring Stations (AQMS) and mobile remote sensing observations by Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (DOAS) technique. We also show results of the NO 2 vertical column measured by TROPOMI (TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument), a space instrument onboard of satellite mission Sentinel-5P, to complement local ground-based measurements. For in situ observations, the lockdown interval (23 March 2020–15 May 2020) was separated from normal periods. The decrease in local NO 2 concentration during lockdown, measured in situ, is rather small, of about 10–40% at the most, is observed only at some stations, and is better seen during workdays than during weekends. We conclude that the decrease in NO 2 content over Galati city during lockdown is relatively small and may be attributed to the reduction in local traffic, a consequence of special measures and restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 lockdown by the Romanian authorities.

Suggested Citation

  • Adrian Roșu & Daniel-Eduard Constantin & Mirela Voiculescu & Maxim Arseni & Bogdan Roșu & Alexis Merlaud & Michel Van Roozendael & Puiu Lucian Georgescu, 2021. "Assessment of NO 2 Pollution Level during the COVID-19 Lockdown in a Romanian City," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-16, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:2:p:544-:d:478410
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mirela Voiculescu & Daniel-Eduard Constantin & Simona Condurache-Bota & Valentina Călmuc & Adrian Roșu & Carmelia Mariana Dragomir Bălănică, 2020. "Role of Meteorological Parameters in the Diurnal and Seasonal Variation of NO 2 in a Romanian Urban Environment," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-15, August.
    2. Manfred Lenzen & Mengyu Li & Arunima Malik & Francesco Pomponi & Ya-Yen Sun & Thomas Wiedmann & Futu Faturay & Jacob Fry & Blanca Gallego & Arne Geschke & Jorge Gómez-Paredes & Keiichiro Kanemoto & St, 2020. "Global socio-economic losses and environmental gains from the Coronavirus pandemic," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(7), pages 1-13, July.
    3. Daniel-Eduard Constantin & Corina Bocăneala & Mirela Voiculescu & Adrian Roşu & Alexis Merlaud & Michel Van Roozendael & Puiu Lucian Georgescu, 2020. "Evolution of SO 2 and NOx Emissions from Several Large Combustion Plants in Europe during 2005–2015," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(10), pages 1-15, May.
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