The Air We Breathe: How Green is Our City?
MAY 26, 2009
A new monitoring network checks New York City air.
Carbon dioxide is often a topic whenever "green" development is being discussed. But do we really know how much CO2 is in the air we breathe? The Lamont Atmospheric Carbon Observation Project (LACOP) is the brainchild of Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (at Columbia University) geochemist Wade McGillis. The first of its kind, this carbon observation network produces detailed measurements of meteorological and environmental data, including carbon dioxide levels, in Manhattan and surrounding rural areas. The idea for the project came from an environmental engineering class McGillis had been teaching, as he tried to explain the need for more monitoring in urban areas in order to inform more sustainable decisions.
The monitoring stations have shown that the city's elevated carbon levels extend out at least 20 miles, but that the impact of the city's reach is actually less than most U.S. urban areas—the Atlantic Ocean helps flush the carbon dioxide out of the city's air, and forested upstate regions provide a constant low-carbon air stream. This makes New York one of the country's most carbon-neutral cities, but there is plenty of room for improvement. According to McGillis, keeping forests in good condition and adding trees to new development areas can go a long way toward keeping carbon dioxide levels low.
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