Reliability Evaluation of CAMS Air Quality Products in the Context of Different Land Uses: The Example of Cyprus

Abstract

Cyprus is located between Europe, Asia and Africa, and its location is vulnerable to dust transport from the Sahara Desert, wildfire smoke particles from surrounding regions, and other anthropogenic emissions caused by several factors, mostly due to business activities on harbor areas. Moreover, the country suffers from heavy traffic conditions caused by the limited public transportation system in Cyprus. Therefore, taking into consideration the country’s geographic location, heavy commercial activities, and lack of good public transportation system, Cyprus is exposed to dust episodes and high anthropogenic emissions associated with multiple health and environmental issues. Therefore, continuous and qualitative air quality monitoring is essential. The Department of Labor Inspection of Cyprus (DLI) has established an air quality monitoring network that consists of 11 stations at strategic geographic locations covering rural, residential, traffic and industrial zones. This network measures the following pollutants: nitrogen oxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, ozone, carbon monoxide, particulate matter 2.5, and particulate matter 10. This case study compares and evaluates the agreement between Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) air quality products and ground-truth data from the DLI air quality network. The study period spans from January to December 2024. This study focuses on the following three pollutants: particulate matter 2.5, particulate matter 10, and ozone, using Ensemble Median, EMEP, and CHIMERE near-real-time model data provided by CAMS. A data analysis was performed to identify the agreement and the error rate between those two datasets (i.e., ground-truth air quality data and CAMS air quality data). In addition, this study assesses the reliability of assimilated datasets from CAMS across rural, residential, traffic and industrial zones. The results showcase how CAMS near-real-time analysis data can supplement air quality monitoring in locations without the availability of ground-truth data.