Houston's Air Quality

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Ozone is currently Houston's main air quality problem. The Houston-Galveston area (HGA) is classified as a severe nonattainment area for this pollutant. The counties that comprise the HGA ozone nonattainment area are Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, and Waller. View a map highlighting the nonattainment area.

Modeling Methodology

Since the summer of 2001, the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) has used the Mesoscale Model 5 and Comprehensive Air Quality Model with Extensions meteorological and photochemical models to study the potential impacts of heat island reduction measures in Houston on the area's meteorology and ozone air quality. LBNL's modeling domain covers approximately three million km², covering the entire state of Texas, surrounding states, and parts of Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico.

Modeling Results

Using a September 5 through 13, 1993 modeling period, LBNL determined that heat island reduction strategies can result in ozone decreases and increases, with the net effect, in general, being reduced ozone concentrations in the modeling domain. The direction of the results depends on several factors including the reduction scenarios modeled, model inputs, and selected metrics.

The final results are still being formulated and examined. The largest simulated air temperature changes have been on the order of up to 5°F (2.8°C). Temperature decreases result primarily from increased solar reflectance – or albedo – compared to increased vegetative cover. The higher humidity in the area tends to limit the effectiveness of evapotranspiration – or evaporation of water from leaves – from increased vegetative cover.

Houston's Air Quality

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Modeling Methodology

Modeling Results

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