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The lockdown measures in response to the SARS-CoV-2 virus outbreak in 2020 have resulted in reductions in emissions of air pollutants and corresponding ambient concentrations. In the Netherlands, the most stringent lockdown measures were in effect from March to May 2020. These measures coincided with a period of unusual meteorological conditions with wind from the north-east and clear-sky conditions, which complicates the quantification of the effect of the lockdown measures on the air quality. Here we quantify the lockdown effects on the concentrations of nitrogen oxides (NOx and NO2), particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) and ozone (O3) in the Netherlands, by analyzing observations and simulations with the atmospheric chemistry-transport model EMEP/MSC-W in its EMEP4NL configuration, after eliminating the effects of meteorological conditions during the lockdown. Based on statistical analyses with a Random Forest method, we estimate that the lockdown reduced observed NO2 concentrations by 30% (95% confidence interval 25–35%), 26% (21–32%), and 18% (10–25%) for traffic, urban, and rural background locations, respectively. Slightly smaller reductions of 8–28% are found with the EMEP4NL simulations for urban and regional background locations based on estimates in reductions in economic activity and emissions of traffic and industry in the Netherlands and other European countries. Reductions in observed PM2.5 concentrations of about 20% (10–25%) are found for all locations, which is somewhat larger than the estimates of 5–16% based on the model simulations. A comparison of the calculated NO2 traffic contributions with observations shows a substantial drop of about 35% in traffic contributions during the lockdown period, which is similar to the estimated reductions in mobility data as reported by Apple and Google. Since the largest health effects related to air pollution in the Netherlands are associated with exposure to PM10 and PM2.5, the lockdown measures in spring of 2020 have temporarily improved the air quality in the Netherlands. The concentrations of the most health relevant compounds have only been reduced by about 10–25%.

Ook de zorgsector kan zijn bijdrage leveren aan het terugdringen van de uitstoot van broeikasgassen. Dat levert naast klimaatwinst ook gezondheidswinst op

Chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) banks from uses such as air conditioners or foams can be emitted after global production stops. Recent reports of unexpected emissions of CFC-11 raise the need to better quantify releases from these banks, and associated impacts on ozone depletion and climate change. Here we develop a Bayesian probabilistic model for CFC-11, 12, and 113 banks and their emissions, incorporating the broadest range of constraints to date. We find that bank sizes of CFC-11 and CFC-12 are larger than recent international scientific assessments suggested, and can account for much of current estimated CFC-11 and 12 emissions (with the exception of increased CFC-11 emissions after 2012). Left unrecovered, these CFC banks could delay Antarctic ozone hole recovery by about six years and contribute 9 billion metric tonnes of equivalent CO2 emission. Derived CFC-113 emissions are subject to uncertainty, but are much larger than expected, raising questions about its sources.

Policies implemented in Europe since the 1970s to improve the air quality have resulted in decreases in emissions in many countries with corresponding reductions in concentrations of sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and particulate matter (PM). We report here how much the air quality and associated health effects in the Netherlands have improved since 1980 and which countries, sectors and policies are responsible for this. To quantify the effects of emission reduction policies since 1980 we calculated the ambient concentrations of air pollutants in the Netherlands from 1980 to 2015, using two scenarios. A Baseline scenario with reported emissions in Europe and a World Avoided scenario which assumed that no air quality policies were adopted from 1980 onwards which would result in the growth in emissions of air pollutants. In the World Avoided scenario, the annual average PM2.5 concentration in the Netherlands increases from 59 μg m−3 in 1980 to 102 μg m−3 in 2015, while in reality (Baseline scenario) concentrations decreased to about 12 μg m−3. The avoided PM2.5 concentration in 2015 accounts for more than half (56%) of reductions in emissions in sectors outside the Netherlands. Foreign (38%) and domestic (16%) industry is the main contributing sector, followed by agriculture (23%) and transport (15%). In 2015, the avoided concentrations of air pollutants correspond to about 700,000 avoided years of life lost in the Netherlands per year, with an associated number of avoided attributable deaths of about 66,000 per year, and an increase in average life expectancy of about 6 years. The corresponding avoided monetary health damage amounts to between € 35 and € 77 billion per year in 2015. © 2019 Elsevier Ltd

The Montreal Protocol is an international agreement designed to heal the ozone layer. It outlines schedules for the phase-out of ozone-depleting substances (ODSs) such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), chlorinated solvents, halons, and methyl bromide. As a result of this phase-out, alternative chemicals and procedures were developed by industry for use in many applications including refrigeration, air-conditioning, foam-blowing, electronics, medicine, agriculture, and fire protection. Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) were used as ODS alternatives in many of these applications because they were suitable substitutes and they do not contain ozone-depleting chlorine or bromine; in addition, most HFCs have smaller climate impacts per molecule than the most widely used ODSs they replaced. Long-lived HFCs, CFCs, and HCFCs, however, are all potent greenhouse gases, and concerns were raised that uncontrolled future use of HFCs would lead to substantial climate warming. As a result of these concerns, HFCs were included as one group of greenhouse gases for which emissions controls were adopted by the 1997 Kyoto Protocol under the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Consequently, developed countries (those listed in Annex I to this Convention, or “Annex I” Parties) supply annual emission estimates of HFCs to the UNFCCC. Since the Kyoto Protocol only specified limits on the sum of all controlled greenhouse gases, emissions of HFCs were not explicitly controlled. However, following the Kyoto Protocol, some countries enacted additional controls specifically limiting HFC use based on their global warming potentials (GWPs). Ultimately the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol was agreed upon in 2016, and this Amendment supplies schedules for limiting the production and consumption of specific HFCs. Although the radiative forcing supplied by HFCs is currently small, this Amendment was designed to ensure that the radiative forcing from HFCs will not grow uncontrollably in the future. The Kigali Amendment will come into force at the start of 2019. HFC concentrations are currently monitored through atmospheric measurements. All HFCs with large abundances are monitored, as are most with small abundances. Most HFCs that are emitted to the atmosphere are intentionally produced for use in a variety of applications that were once dependent on ODSs. An exception is HFC-23, which is emitted to the atmosphere primarily as a by-product of HCFC-22 production. HFC-23 is also unique in that it has a substantially longer atmospheric lifetime and higher GWP than nearly all other HFCs. As a result, the Kigali Amendment includes different control schedules for HFC-23 production than for other HFCs. To date, HFC-23 emissions have been partially abated in developed countries through regulations or voluntary measures and in developing countries with assistance from the UNFCCC’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).

Background Long-term exposure to particulate air pollution has been associated with mortality in urban cohort studies. Few studies have investigated the association between emission contributions from different particle sources and mortality in large-scale population registries, including non-urban populations. Objectives The aim of the study was to evaluate the associations between long-term exposure to particulate air pollution from different source categories and non-accidental mortality in the Netherlands based on existing national databases. Methods We used existing Dutch national databases on mortality, individual characteristics, residence history, neighbourhood characteristics and modelled air pollution concentrations from different sources and air pollution components: particulate matter PM10, primary particulate matter PM10 (PPM10), particulate matter PM2.5, primary particulate matter PM2.5 (PPM2.5), elemental carbon (EC), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and secondary inorganic aerosol (SIA) in PM10 (SIA10) or in PM2.5 (SIA2.5). We established a cohort of 7.5 million individuals 30 years or older. We followed the cohort for eight years (2008–2015). We applied Cox proportional hazard regression models adjusting for potential individual and area-specific confounders. Results We found statistically significant associations between total and primary particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), elemental carbon and mortality. Adjustment for nitrogen dioxide did not change the associations. Secondary inorganic aerosol showed less consistent associations. All primary PM sources were associated with mortality, except agricultural emissions and, depending on the statistical model, industrial PM emissions. Conclusions We could not identify one or more specific source categories of particulate air pollution as main determinants of the mortality effects found in this and in a previous study. This suggests that present policy measures should be focussed on the wider spectrum of air pollution sources instead of on specific sources.

The ozone layer depletion and its recovery, as well as the climate influence of ozone-depleting substances (ODSs) and their substitutes that influence climate, are of interest to both the scientific community and the public. Here we report on the emissions of ODSs and their substitute from China, which is currently the largest consumer (and emitter) of these substances. We provide, for the first time, comprehensive information on ODSs and replacement hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) emissions in China starting from 1980 based on reported production and usage. We also assess the impacts (and costs) of controls on ODS consumption and emissions on the ozone layer (in terms of CFC-11-equivalent) and climate (in CO2-equivalent). In addition, we show that while China’s future ODS emissions are likely to be defined as long as there is full compliance with the Montreal Protocol; its HFC emissions through 2050 are very uncertain. Our findings imply that HFC controls over the next decades that are more stringent than those under the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol would be beneficial in mitigating global climate change.

An accurate estimate of global hydroxyl radical (OH) abundance is important for projections of air quality, climate, and stratospheric ozone recovery. As the atmospheric mixing ratios of methyl chloroform (CH3CCl3) (MCF), the commonly used OH reference gas, approaches zero, it is important to find alternative approaches to infer atmospheric OH abundance and variability. The lack of global bottom-up emission inventories is the primary obstacle in choosing a MCF alternative. We illustrate that global emissions of long-lived trace gases can be inferred from their observed mixing ratio differences between the Northern Hemisphere (NH) and Southern Hemisphere (SH), given realistic estimates of their NH-SH exchange time, the emission partitioning between the two hemispheres, and the NH versus SH OH abundance ratio. Using the observed long-term trend and emissions derived from the measured hemispheric gradient, the combination of HFC-32 (CH2F2), HFC-134a (CH2FCF3, HFC-152a (CH3CHF2), and HCFC-22 (CHClF2), instead of a single gas, will be useful as a MCF alternative to infer global and hemispheric OH abundance and trace gas lifetimes. The primary assumption on which this multispecies approach relies is that the OH lifetimes can be estimated by scaling the thermal reaction rates of a reference gas at 272 K on global and hemispheric scales. Thus, the derived hemispheric and global OH estimates are forced to reconcile the observed trends and gradient for all four compounds simultaneously. However, currently, observations of these gases from the surface networks do not provide more accurate OH abundance estimate than that from MCF.

Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) are manufactured for use as substitutes for ozone-depleting substances that are being phased out globally under Montreal Protocol regulations. While HFCs do not deplete ozone, many are potent greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change. Here, new global scenarios show that baseline emissions of HFCs could reach 4.0–5.3 GtCO2-eq yr−1 in 2050. The new baseline (or business-as-usual) scenarios are formulated for 10 HFC compounds, 11 geographic regions, and 13 use categories. The scenarios rely on detailed data reported by countries to the United Nations; projections of gross domestic product and population; and recent observations of HFC atmospheric abundances. In the baseline scenarios, by 2050 China (31%), India and the rest of Asia (23%), the Middle East and northern Africa (11%), and the USA (10%) are the principal source regions for global HFC emissions; and refrigeration (40–58%) and stationary air conditioning (21–40%) are the major use sectors. The corresponding radiative forcing could reach 0.22–0.25 W m−2 in 2050, which would be 12–24% of the increase from business-as-usual CO2 emissions from 2015 to 2050. National regulations to limit HFC use have already been adopted in the European Union, Japan and USA, and proposals have been submitted to amend the Montreal Protocol to substantially reduce growth in HFC use. Calculated baseline emissions are reduced by 90% in 2050 by implementing the North America Montreal Protocol amendment proposal. Global adoption of technologies required to meet national regulations would be sufficient to reduce 2050 baseline HFC consumption by more than 50% of that achieved with the North America proposal for most developed and developing countries.

The 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer is a landmark agreement that has successfully reduced the global production, consumption, and emissions of ozone-depleting substances (ODSs). ODSs are also greenhouse gases that contribute to the radiative forcing of climate change. Using historical ODSs emissions and scenarios of potential emissions, we show that the ODS contribution to radiative forcing most likely would have been much larger if the ODS link to stratospheric ozone depletion had not been recognized in 1974 and followed by a series of regulations. The climate protection already achieved by the Montreal Protocol alone is far larger than the reduction target of the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol. Additional climate benefits that are significant compared with the Kyoto Protocol reduction target could be achieved by actions under the Montreal Protocol, by managing the emissions of substitute fluorocarbon gases and/or implementing alternative gases with lower global warming potentials.