State of the Art:

Air quality assessment and management is a well established field of research, with numerous projects, activities, models (e.g., CAFE: Clean Air For Europe). Most of the policy oriented research however, is based on highly aggregated national level data and very simplified, largely linear models of assessment or very coarse resolution such as the EMEP emission data at approximately 50 km.

To support environmental policy at a local (or for a small island nation like Cyprus, national) scale, we need to find the appropriate level of detail and resolution which will range from the continental scale for long-range transport and dynamic boundary conditions, to the local and in fact inner-city hot-spots of street canyons.

PM3 therefore is based on the integration of remote sensing and long-range transport modelling and chemical dust analysis for source attribution; multi-criteria optimization modelling for efficient source control; and a web based air quality assessment and management software system for continuous compliance monitoring, public information and stakeholder involvement which includes

• Multiple scales and resolutions from continental (extended EMEP) to the local/ street scale level using several levels of nested grid representations and different models, based on a range of FP sponsored projects and in particular, EUREKA E!3266 WEBAIR (e.g., Fedra, K. and Witwer, C. 2009; Fedra, K, Kim, T. and Rashidi, Y. (2009) as well as ETC/ACC experience (Kalognomou et al, 2009 ; Papathanasiou et al, 2008);
• Multiple models and methods, combining traditional air quality monitoring (point measurements) with remote sensing (satellite imagery e.g., from MODIS, Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer), chemical and mineralogical analysis of dust, a range of nested/coupled simulation models, and a non-linear, multi-criteria source control optimization model for the design of cost-efficient control strategies,
• Integrated in a web-based information and communication system framework that includes the use of 3G mobile phones (GSM, GPRS, UTMS) for public and stakeholder information and involvement based on personalized and location specific SMS/MMS.

The proposed methodology is using advanced ICT with web-based easy access to high performance cluster computing; this in turn is based on a public-private partnership model of SaaS, Software as a Service, where private service providers operate complex analytical systems on behalf of public authorities. eConsulting and eGovernment solutions are seen as relevant contribution to the Lisbon Strategy, ultimately not only furthering economic competitiveness in an emerging participatory information society (Web 2.0/3.0), but also integrating environmental considerations towards sustainable development, following the Göteborg Strategy. Efficient environmental management is understood as an opportunity for the development and application of new environmental technology, and the cost/benefit approach of the optimization strategy aims at demonstrating the economic potential and benefits of a clean environment as a win-win solution.

 

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