Long‐range transport of Asian dust to the Lower Fraser Valley, British Columbia, Canada

Abstract

For the first time, long‐range transport of “Kosa” mineral aerosol from western China to southwestern British Columbia is documented. This late April 1998 event coincided with an episode of photochemical smog and reduced dispersion in the Lower Fraser Valley (LFV). Filter samples in the region show a massive injection of crustal elements (Si, Fe, Al, and Ca) with concentrations of Si approximately double those previously recorded. Ratios of these elements to Fe are shown to be statistically similar to ratios observed in mineral aerosol events in Hawaii and China. On the basis of the difference between observed and expected elemental concentrations and reconstructed soil mass in the episode, it is estimated that Asian dust contributed 38–55% to observed PM 10 in the LFV, the remainder being attributed to local sources. Comparison of the April 1998 event with two spring meteorological analogs is consistent with this estimate. Mesoscale model simulations suggest that mineral dust was incorporated into the planetary boundary layer as a result of strong subsidence over the interior of southern British Columbia and Washington State which permitted interception of lower tropospheric elevated aerosol layers by surface‐based mixing processes over mountainous terrain. Surface easterly (“outflow”) winds then transported this material into the Lower Fraser Valley where it contributed significantly to total particulate loadings and an intense haze. This mechanism is consistent with the observed spatial and temporal distribution of PM 10 .