GC12B-13
Urbanization and the Carbon Cycle: Synthesis of Ongoing Research
Monday, 14 December 2015: 12:10
3014 (Moscone West)
Kevin R Gurney1, Riley M Duren2, Lucy Hutyra3, James R Ehleringer4, Risa Patarasuk1, Yang Song1, Jianhua Huang1, Ken Davis5, Eric A Kort6, Paul B Shepson7, Jocelyn C Turnbull8, Thomas Lauvaux9, Preeti Rao2, Annmarie Eldering2, Charles E Miller2, Stephen Wofsy10, Kathryn McKain10, Daniel L Mendoza11, John C Lin11, Colm Sweeney12, Natasha L Miles9, Scott Richardson9 and Maria O. L. Cambaliza13, (1)Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United States, (2)NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, United States, (3)Boston University, Boston, MA, United States, (4)Univ Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States, (5)Pennsylvania State University Penn State Erie Behrend College, Erie, PA, United States, (6)University of Michigan Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor, MI, United States, (7)Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States, (8)GNS Science / Rafter Radiocarbon, Lower Hutt, New Zealand, (9)Pennsylvania State University Main Campus, University Park, PA, United States, (10)Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, United States, (11)University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States, (12)NOAA Boulder, ESRL, Boulder, CO, United States, (13)Ateneo de Manila University, Physics, Quezon City, Philippines
Abstract:
Given the explosive growth in urbanization and its dominant role in current and future global greenhouse gas emissions, urban areas have received increasing research attention from the carbon cycle science community. The emerging focus is driven by the increasingly dense atmospheric observing capabilities – ground and space-based – in addition to the rising profile of cities within international climate change policymaking. Dominated by anthropogenic emissions, urban carbon cycle research requires a cross-disciplinary perspective with contributions from disciplines such as engineering, economics, social theory, and atmospheric science. We review the recent results from a sample of the active urban carbon research efforts including the INFLUX experiment (Indianapolis), the Megacity carbon project (Los Angeles), Salt Lake City, and Boston. Each of these efforts represent unique approaches in pursuit of different scientific and policy questions and assist in setting priorities for future research. From top-down atmospheric measurement systems to bottom-up estimation, these research efforts offer a view of the challenges and opportunities in urban carbon cycle research.
