NASA HEALTH AND AIR QUALITY APPLIED SCIENCES TEAM
Connecting NASA Data and Tools with Health and Air Quality Stakeholders

Dr. Ted Russell

Credentials: Howard T. Tellepsen Chair, Regents Professor & Group Coordinator, Environmental Engineering Smart Cities, Sustainable Communities, Georgia Tech

Address:
Faculty Profile
Russell Group
ted.russell@ce.gatech.edu

Prof. Armistead (Ted) Russell is the Howard T. Tellepsen Chair and Regents Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Georgia Tech, where his research is aimed at approaches to improve air quality and health, develop novel technologies to remove traditional air pollutants and carbon dioxide from emissions and develop advanced modeling methods to tackle environmental problems globally.  A particular effort of his group is to better understand the dynamics of air pollutants at urban and regional scales and assess their impacts on health and the environment to develop approaches to design strategies to effectively improve air quality

HAQAST Project: Planes, Boats and Trains–and Satellites: Impact of Airport, Sea Port and Railyard Emissions on Air Quality, Exposure and Health at Local-to-Global Scales

Non-road mobile sources, including rail traffic, shipping, aviation, and related on-road activities around “ports” (sea ports, rail yards and airports) are becoming an increasing fraction of total emissions as contributions from other sectors rapidly decline. Ports are typically in, or near, major metropolitan areas, leading to a disproportionate level of exposure among urban communities, which have populations with limited access to healthcare and low socioeconomic status, and aspects of port-related emissions can be unique and of particular concern due to their potential toxicity. The goal of this proposed project is to make scientific advances in the use of earth science products (ESPs) that enable further use of ESPs in air quality management, health sciences, community engagement and justice, and education.

Project goals/deliverables:

  • Enhance the HiRes-X forecasting system using additional (and coming) ESPs, to provide forecasts of air quality and health impacts of port-related activities, and to provide those forecasts to state and local public health agencies, as well as communities impacted by port-related emissions.
  • Utilize the current and historical OMI and TROPOMI retrievals, along with high resolution (4-km horizontal) air quality modeling, to develop long term trends of NO2 and HCHO in port areas and to use those retrievals to improve speciated emissions estimates from port-related activities using inverse, adjoint-based, modeling. These activities will be extended to take advantage of TEMPO (and potentially MAIA) products when available.
  • Work directly with local and regional stakeholders to identify strategies to meet air quality and health goals around ports. We will begin with ports in Georgia, then expand to Chicago, Los Angeles, and Boston, then nationally.
  • Provide CDC with source apportioned results for locations impacted by port-related activities and jointly conduct a retrospective health analysis linking port-specific exposures with adverse health outcomes..
  • Work with disadvantaged communities near the studied ports to make them aware of air quality issues related to port activities (this includes intermodal activities) and related health issues, as well as potential mitigation activities and how ESPs can be utilized to help understand and address air quality problems.
  • Mentor high school teachers and students in impacted communities on the use of ESPs related to air quality and how they can use those products to better understand the issues. This will include working with students on the construction of low-cost sensors to compare with satellite observations.

Co-Investigators/Team Members: Yongtao Hu (Georgia Institute of Technology), M. Talat Odman (Georgia Institute of Technology), Jennifer Kaiser (Georgia Institute of Technology), Ambarish Vaidyanathan (CDC), James Boylan (Georgia Department of Natural Resources), Sang-Mi Lee (South Coast Air Quality Management District), Paul Miller (NorthEast States for Coordinated Air Use Management), Cassandra Johnson Gaither (US Forest Service, Southern Research Station), Allison Patton (Health Effects Institute), Donna Kenski (Lake Michigan Air Directors Consortium), John Faison (Woodward School)

Publications