Air quality monitoring for urban development

The main load of anthropogenic air pollution is concentrated in the urban areas. The air pollutants show a spatial and a temporal distribution. Since a complete recording of the spatial distribution of all air pollutants within large areas is nearly impossible, the measurements are of random type or passive sampling methods are used. For carrying out a rndom spatial selecion the measurement points are usually positioned in a square grid with 1x1 km extension. The vertical distribution can be investigated by tethersonde balloon measurements. For determining temporal variations continuous measurements with automatic monitoring stations are necessary. The measurement locations shall be selected in this way that the results are representative for distinct urban areas.