A multi- year time series analysis of major traffic air pollutants in El Paso, TX and Atlanta, GA

Traffic Air Pollution in major urban metropolitan areas of the United States can be a major health hazard for sensitive populations like the elderly, pregnant women, and young children. Two major cities: El Paso (Southwest) and Atlanta (Southeast) have developed considerably in terms of population growth and urban development in the last few years. This abstract characterizes the pollutant concentrations of major traffic air pollutants of interest like fine particulate matter (PM_2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), carbon monoxide (CO), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) like benzene. Hourly data for five years (2005-2010) obtained from the various central ambient monitoring stations at both these cities would be analyzed. The time series characterization for each of these pollutants would be studied in detail and the results incorporated into Geographic Information Systems (GIS) models to tease out the year to year changes occurring over the time frame of five years. The results would add to the body of knowledge about subsequent land use pattern, population growth, and air pollution episodes in these two cities. The geospatial results would also help assess the exposure of local populations to traffic air pollution.