New Articles Added to Knowledgebase

New Modeling Data

After adding support in CALPUFF View™ for GLCC LULC files and GTOPO30 and SRTM global terrain data formats, Lakes Environmental has also included this global terrain and land use/land cover data on our website. You can download it at https://www.weblakes.com/modeling_data.html

Lakes Environmental to Offer CALPUFF Course in Brazil

Lakes Environmental will offer a 3-day CALPUFF training course in Brazil from September 24-29, 2007. Anyone interested should contact our distributor in Brazil, Mr. Silvio de Oliveira, to sign up for the course. Contact details for Mr. Silvio de Oliveira are available at https://www.weblakes.com/lakedist.html. More details of this course will soon be posted on our website.

Lakes Environmental at A&WMA 2007 Annual Conference

Lakes Environmental, Mr. Gareth Davis, and Mrs. Julie Swatson would like to thank the organizers of the Air & Waste Management Association 2007 Annual Conference and everyone who stopped by our booth. We look forward to seeing you next year.

The winner of the draw for a free copy of ISC-AERMOD View was Mr. Christopher D. Powell from Alcoa. We would like to thank all of the entrants to the draw.

Lakes Environmental Closed for the August Civic Holiday

Lakes Environmental will be closed on Monday, August 6, 2007 to observe the Canadian holiday. If you have any pressing needs during that time, please email us at support@weblakes.com and we will contact you August 7th, 2007 when we re-open.

We’ve set a number of training dates for 2007, with additional courses to be announced soon! Be sure to register for courses 30 days in advance to receive a 10% discount.

AERMOD Courses

For more information on the above courses, such as registration information, location, and course outlines, please visit our web site: https://www.weblakes.com/courses.html.

Using ISH Data in AERMOD

A common format for surface meteorological data provided by the NCDC (www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/ncdc.html) is the abbreviated ISH (Integrated Surface Hourly) format. This format is not directly usable in AERMET, but may be converted into SAMSON format (which is usable in AERMET) using a freely available application called NCDC_CNV.

NCDC_CNV is a program written by Russell Lee; it is available for download from www.rflee.com under the Meteorological section, and comes with detailed instructions and sample input file.

ISH Data

Abbreviated ISH data (also know as ISHWO or ISHD) is available from the NCDC for stations throughout the world, with data as recent as a few months ago – see the station list at ftp://ftp.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/inventories/ISH-HISTORY.TXT.

Important notes:

An example of ISH data is shown below:

ISH Data

SAMSON data is compatible with both the AERMET and PCRAMMET meteorological pre-processors.

After converting the above ISH file using NCDC_CNV, the following SAMSON file was created:

Missing Data

When NCDC_CNV is run, it will create two SAMSON files; one a direct conversion from the ISH data, and the other adjusted to replace any missing values, as described in "Procedures for Substituting Values for Missing NWS Meteorological Data for Use in Regulatory Air Quality Models" by Dennis Atkinson and Russell F. Lee (1992) which is available on the U.S. EPA SCRAM website at https://www.epa.gov/scram001.

Notes from the Developer

Before running NCDN_CNV, please see these notes from the developer of NCDC_CNV.

Acknowledgement: Many thanks to Russ Lee of RF Lee Consulting for contributions to this modeling tip.

Remember: We are currently accepting submissions for the Monthly Modeling Tip which appears in our newsletters.  If you have a modeling tip that may benefit a variety of people, please send it to us at support@weblakes.com. Your name and the name of your organization will appear below the tip providing you with greater exposure.

Chinese Air Pollution Deadliest in World, Report Says

BEIJING - July 9, 2007 - China, the world's fastest growing economy, has earned another startling superlative: the highest annual incidence of premature deaths triggered by air pollution in the world, according to a new study.

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Rock Stars Tackle Cynics as Well as Climate Change

LONDON - July 6, 2007 - More famous for Learjets and limousines than green living, pop stars performing at Saturday's Live Earth environmental concerts face widespread cynicism from fans, commentators and campaigners alike. Built on the model of the Live Aid famine relief gigs of 1985 and Live 8 anti-poverty concerts in 2005, Live Earth aims to raise awareness about climate change and encourage people to live greener lives. .
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Greenland really was green!

WASHINGTON - July 6, 2007 - Ice-covered Greenland really was green a half-million or so years ago, covered with forests in a climate much like that of Sweden and eastern Canada today.

New Danish research shows that large parts of Greenland were once covered by forest.

An international team of researchers recovered ancient DNA from the bottom of an ice core that indicates the presence of pine, yew and alder trees as well as insects.
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Searching for true Carbon offsets

VANCOUVER - July 4, 2007 - The fast-growing carbon offset industry is at risk of being discredited as operators struggle to prove their offsets are actually reducing greenhouse gas emissions. There is unease in the sector amid growing evidence that some carbon offset schemes are of dubious value. Some analysts believe too readily available offsets actually discourage companies from making the investments needed to reduce their greenhouse gas outputs. While the idea of purchasing credits to be ‘carbon neutral’ seems attractive, many are discovering that their dollars have not been well spent. There is an urgent need for a credible standard to differentiate the good from the bad.
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Asia-Pacific Countries See Effects of Climate Change on Health, Brace for More

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - July 3, 2007 - Officials from more than a dozen Asian countries met Tuesday in Malaysia to outline health problems their populations are facing in relation to a rise in global temperatures. Officials discussed ways to work together to limit the fallout in a region expected to be hit hard by flooding, drought, heat waves, mosquito-borne diseases and waterborne illnesses.
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Here are a few conferences and trade shows coming up in the next few months: