Title: Study of the pollution exchange between Bulgaria and northern Greece

Authors: C. Zerefos, D. Syrakov, K. Ganev, A. Vasaras, K. Kourtidis, M. Tzortziou, M. Prodanova, R. Dimitrova, E. Georgieva, D. Yordanov, N. Miloshev

Addresses: Laboratory of Atmospheric Physics, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Campus Box 149, 54006 Thessaloniki, Greece. ' National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 66 Tzarigradsko Chausee, Sofia 1784, Bulgaria. ' Institute of Geophysics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad.G.Bonchev str., block 3, Sofia 1113, Bulgaria. ' Laboratory of Atmospheric Physics, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Campus Box 149, 54006 Thessaloniki, Greece. ' Laboratory of Atmospheric Physics, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Campus Box 149, 54006 Thessaloniki, Greece. ' Laboratory of Atmospheric Physics, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Campus Box 149, 54006 Thessaloniki, Greece. ' National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 66 Tzarigradsko Chausee, Sofia 1784, Bulgaria. ' Institute of Geophysics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad.G.Bonchev str., block 3, Sofia 1113, Bulgaria. ' Institute of Geophysics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad.G.Bonchev str., block 3, Sofia 1113, Bulgaria. ' Institute of Geophysics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad.G.Bonchev str., block 3, Sofia 1113, Bulgaria. ' Institute of Geophysics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad.G.Bonchev str., block 3, Sofia 1113, Bulgaria

Abstract: The present work aims at a detailed study and explanation of the pollution transport in the air basin over south-western Bulgaria and northern Greece and assessment of the air pollution exchange between Bulgaria and Greece. Some well-known specific climatic air pollution effects were studied and explained. Calculations were made of the SO₂ pollution of the Balkan Peninsula from both Greek and Bulgarian sources for 1995, and the country-to-country pollution budget diagrams were built. Days with extreme mean concentration for Bulgaria and northern Greece were picked out, and some further specification of the contribution of the different sources in both the countries to these cases of extreme pollution was made. Some preliminary studies of possible mesoscale effects on the pollution exchange between Bulgaria and northern Greece were carried out. A three-layer pollution transport model with a more complex chemistry block was introduced, and some preliminary simulations of the transport of sulfur and nitrogen compounds were performed.

Keywords: air pollution transport; country-to-country pollution budget; functions of influence; mesoscale effects; numerical modelling; Greece; Bulgaria.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEP.2004.005507

International Journal of Environment and Pollution, 2004 Vol.22 No.1/2, pp.163 - 185

Published online: 12 Oct 2004 *

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