National Institutefor Public Healthand the Environment

Operational use of satellites for RIVM core tasksReinout Woittiez

Director Environment and Safety Division, RIVM

National Institutefor Public Healthand the Environment

The National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM)

Political responsibility(Departments of Health and Environment)

Research & implementation (“objective” info and knowledge)

National Institutefor Public Healthand the Environment

National Air Quality Monitoring Network

• Legal obligation (EU)

• SMOG: information to the public

• Policy monitoring (long-term trends)

• Input and validation of air quality models

• RIVM has a statutory National "reference function".

- Assessment regional monitoring networks and model calculations

- This reference function is becoming more and more of importance

National Institutefor Public Healthand the Environment

Monitoring stations (large and small)

National Institutefor Public Healthand the Environment

National Institutefor Public Healthand the Environment

RIVM, Atmosphere and Satellites (1)

• Ozone layer (Montreal protocol)

- Monitor the expected recovery

- Study interaction with Climate Change

- Monitoring is well developed (ground based + satellites)

- RIVM: Monitoring Ozone Layer (NDACC, Lauder)

- RIVM: Satellite validation (EQUAL project)

- RIVM: Monitoring UVB, calculation of health effects

National Institutefor Public Healthand the Environment

RIVM, Atmosphere and Satellites (2)

• Air Quality (a.o. CLRTAP)

- Issues are: aerosols (PM10, PM2.5), Ozone, local NO2

- Smog

- Long range transport

- Global emissions and trends

- Interaction with Climate Change

- Monitoring well developed and regulated (mainly groundbased)

- RIVM: National Air Quality Monitoring Network

- RIVM: Emission and deposition measurements

- RIVM: Modeling

- RIVM: Smog Forecast

National Institutefor Public Healthand the Environment

RIVM, Atmosphere and Satellites (3)

• Climate Change (Kyoto protocol, IPCC)- Greenhouse gases (sources, sinks and trends)

- Aerosols, clouds and the radiation balance

- Research on the Climate System

- Testing of Climate models

- RIVM: Greenhouse gas monitoring

- RIVM: Participation in CESAR station at Cabauw

- RIVM: Climate Lidar in BSIK project

- RIVM: Satellite validation (aerosols, clouds, tropospheric ozone)

National Institutefor Public Healthand the Environment

TROPOMI ?

• RIVM needs information on the state of the atmosphere, and is interested in the most efficient way to obtain it

- Satellites must either provide unique info, or better info, or cheaper info to be relevant for operational users

- In general, the best solution will be a combination of sources: groundbased, satellite and modeling.

- The scale of the problem is relevant (global vs. regional)

- There are opportunities in Climate Change as legislation is less far developed and the scale of the problem is global

• Continuity of the information stream is a prerequisite for operational use

- We are just beginning to explore the use of SCIAMACHY and OMI data for RIVM core products. This summer: first use of satellite data in operational smog forecast