Transport and Chemical Transformation of Pollutants in the Troposphere

Book excerpt: A major environmental concern is the increasing burden on all scales of photo-oxidants, acidifying substances and potential nutrients in the troposphere. These lead to episodes of summer smog, and appreciable damage to eco-systems both on land and at sea. Underlying the environmental effects is the complex scientific problem of linking the man-made and biological emissions to the myriad chemical reactions that transform the pollutants as they are transported to and deposited in the surroundings and also pristine areas remote from the sources. The project, the scientific results of which are described in this book, was set up to study the problem in an inter-disciplinary way by co-ordinating the work of more than 150 research groups in some 20 countries.