Black carbon monitoring instruments’ operation, maintenance, and applications

About the workshop

The Atmospheric Watch Initiative (AWI) is conducting a two-day regional hybrid training workshop to enhance the capacity of its country partners on the basic working principles of black carbon monitoring instruments and their daily operational aspects, maintenance, and troubleshooting.

The participants will be guided by a team of scientists and engineers from the original manufacturer. Building on this workshop, ICIMOD will organize trainings on other air quality parameters such as particulate matter and trace gases. Officials from the Department of Environment, Ministry of Forests and Environment – Government of Nepal; Tribhuvan University; Kathmandu University; and Real Time Solutions Pvt. Ltd will participate in the workshop.

Background

Over recent decades, the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region has been affected by rising emissions of air pollutants from urban, industrial, and rural sources. This has raised concerns about deteriorating air quality, impacts on health and visibility, changes in atmospheric heating and cooling, and changes in cloud microphysics and in the strength and timing of monsoon. Impacts of these pollutants are visible across the region, with increasing stratospheric pollution above the Tibetan Plateau, deposition of light-absorbing substances on snow and ice surfaces, and increased melting of the Himalayan cryosphere.

The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development’s (ICIMOD) Regional Programme on Atmosphere aims to improve understanding of air pollutant emissions, atmospheric processes and change, and impacts. It promotes mitigation and policy solutions and builds capacity and collaboration in the HKH and upwind regions.

Housed within the Regional Programme on Atmosphere, the AWI focuses on studies that involve rigorous social and scientific analysis, using multiple data sets or combinations of field data, modelling, and remote-sensing analysis. These studies are expected to help influence policies and strategies in the region. Since its establishment, the AWI, in collaboration with Nepali and Bhutanese government partners (Department of Environment and National Environment Commission, respectively), has set up state-of-the-art air quality monitoring stations with aerosol and trace gas measuring instruments. Among these instruments, the Aethalometer Model AE33 (manufactured by Aerosol d.o.o.) has been used as the primary instrument for the measurement of ambient black carbon concentration. This instrument requires regular servicing and calibration to ensure the highest quality of data.

Agenda