Jeremy P. Rishel

An Evaluation of a Diagnostic Wind Model (CALMET)

Abstract A U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-approved diagnostic wind model [California Meteorological Model (CALMET)] was evaluated during a typical lake-breeze event under fair weather conditions in the Chicago region. The authors focused on the performance of CALMET in terms of simulating winds that were highly variable in space and time. The reference winds were generated by the fifth-generation Pennsylvania State University–National Center for Atmospheric Research Mesoscale Model (MM5) assimilating system, with which CALMET results were compared. Statistical evaluations were conducted to quantify overall model differences in wind speed and direction over the domain. Below 850 m above the surface, relative differences in (layer averaged) wind speed were about 25%–40% during the simulation period; wind direction differences generally ranged from 6° to 20°. Above 850 m, the differences became larger because of the limited number of upper-air stations near the studied domain. Analyses implied th...

DUSTRAN 1.0 User’s Guide: A GIS-Based Atmospheric Dust Dispersion Modeling System

Abstract : The U.S. Department of Energy s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory just completed a multi-year project to develop a fully tested and documented atmospheric dispersion modeling system (DUST TRANsport or DUSTRAN) to assist the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) in addressing particulate air quality issues at military training and testing ranges. The project was primarily funded by DoD s Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program with additional funding from the U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to address their issues related to the off-target drift of aerially applied pesticides.

Development of criteria used to establish a background environmental monitoring station.

It is generally considered necessary to measure concentrations of contaminants-of-concern at a background location when conducting atmospheric environmental surveillance. This is because it is recognized that measurements of background concentrations can enhance interpretation of environmental monitoring data. Despite the recognized need for background measurements, there is little published guidance available that describes how to identify an appropriate atmospheric background monitoring location. This paper develops generic criteria that can guide the decision making process for identifying suitable locations for background atmospheric monitoring station. Detailed methods for evaluating some of these criteria are also provided and a case study for establishment of an atmospheric background surveillance station as part of an environmental surveillance program is described. While the case study focuses on monitoring for radionuclides, the approach is equally valid for any airborne constituent being monitored. The case study shows that implementation of the developed criteria can result in a good, defensible choice for a background atmospheric monitoring location.

Analysis of Radioactive Releases During Proposed Demolition Activities for the 224-U and 224-UA Buildings - Addendum

A post-demolition modeling analysis is conducted that compares during-demolition atmospheric concentration monitoring results with modeling results based on the actual meteorological conditions during the demolition activities. The 224-U and 224-UA Buildings that were located in the U-Plant UO3 complex in the 200 West Area of the Hanford Site were demolished during the summer of 2010. These facilities converted uranyl nitrate hexahydrate (UNH), a product of Hanford’s Plutonium-Uranium Extraction (PUREX) Plant, into uranium trioxide (UO3). This report is an addendum to a pre-demolition emission analysis and air dispersion modeling effort that was conducted for proposed demolition activities for these structures.

SPRAYTRAN 1.0 User’s Guide: A GIS-Based Atmospheric Spray Droplet Dispersion Modeling System

SPRAY TRANsport (SPRAYTRAN) is a comprehensive dispersion modeling system that is used to simulate the offsite drift of pesticides from spray applications. SPRAYTRAN functions as a console application within Environmental System Research Institute’s ArcMap Geographic Information System (Version 9.x) and integrates the widely-used, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-approved CALifornia PUFF (CALPUFF) dispersion model and model components to simulate longer-range transport and diffusion in variable terrain and spatially/temporally varying meteorological (e.g., wind) fields. Area sources, which are used to define spray blocks in SPRAYTRAN, are initialized using output files generated from a separate aerial-spray-application model called AGDISP (AGricultural DISPersal). The AGDISP model is used for estimating the amount of pesticide deposited to the spray block based on spraying characteristics (e.g., pesticide type, spray nozzles, and aircraft type) and then simulating the near-field (less than 300-m) drift from a single pesticide application. The fraction of pesticide remaining airborne from the AGDISP near-field simulation is then used by SPRAYTRAN for simulating longer-range (greater than 300 m) drift and deposition of the pesticide.

Establishment of a Background Environmental Monitoring Station for the PNNL Campus

The environmental surveillance of background levels of radionuclides and, in particular, the siting of a background environmental surveillance (monitoring) station are examined. Many published works identify and stress the need for background monitoring; however, little definitive and comprehensive information for siting a station exists. A definition of an ideal background monitoring location and the generic criteria recommended for use in establishing such a background monitoring location are proposed. There are seven primary (mandatory) criteria described with two additional, optional criteria. The criteria are applied to the Richland, Washington (WA), Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) Campus, which currently uses background monitoring data from the nearby Hanford Site. Eleven potential background monitoring sites were identified, with one location in Benton City, WA found to meet all of the mandatory and optional criteria. It is expected that the new sampler will be installed and operating by the end of June, 2015.

Preliminary Review of Safety Assessment Issues at Savannah River Site, August 2011

At the request of Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) management, a review team composed of experts in atmospheric transport modeling for environmental radiation dose assessment convened at the Savannah River Site (SRS) on August 29-30, 2011. Several issues were presented at the meeting for discussion. This is a short summary that is organized in accordance with the primary issues discussed, which is not necessarily a chronological record. Issues include: SRS Meteorological Data and its Use in MACCS2; Deposition Velocities for Particles; Deposition Velocities for Tritium; MACCS2 Dispersion Coefficients; Use of Low Surface Roughness in Open Areas; Adequacy of Meteorological Tower and Instrumentation; Displacement Height; and Validity of MACCS2 Calculations at Close-in Distances. A longer report will be issued at a later date that expands upon these topics and recommendations.

Meteorological Integration for the Biological Warning and Incident Characterization (BWIC) System: General Guidance for BWIC Cities

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is responsible for developing systems to detect the release of aerosolized bioagents in urban environments. The system that accomplishes this, known as BioWatch, is a robust first-generation monitoring system. In conjunction with the BioWatch detection network, DHS has also developed a software tool for cities to use to assist in their response when a bioagent is detected. This tool, the Biological Warning and Incident Characterization (BWIC) System, will eventually be deployed to all BioWatch cities to aid in the interpretation of the public health significance of indicators from the BioWatch networks. BWIC consists of a set of integrated modules, including meteorological models, that estimate the effect of a biological agent on a city’s population once it has been detected. For the meteorological models in BWIC to successfully calculate the distribution of biological material, they must have as input accurate meteorological data, and wind fields in particular. The purpose of this document is to provide guidance for cities to use in identifying sources of good-quality local meteorological data that BWIC needs to function properly. This process of finding sources of local meteorological data, evaluating the data quality and gaps in coverage, and getting the data into BWIC, referred to as meteorological integration, is described. The good news for many cities is that meteorological measurement networks are becoming increasingly common. Most of these networks allow their data to be distributed in real time via the internet. Thus, cities will often only need to evaluate the quality of available measurements and perhaps add a modest number of stations where coverage is poor.

Final Technical Report: Development of the DUSTRAN GIS-Based Complex Terrain Model for Atmospheric Dust Dispersion

Activities at U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) training and testing ranges can be sources of dust in local and regional airsheds governed by air-quality regulations. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory just completed a multi-year project to develop a fully tested and documented atmospheric dispersion modeling system (DUST TRANsport or DUSTRAN) to assist the DoD in addressing particulate air-quality issues at military training and testing ranges.

Dust Plume Modeling at Fort Bliss: Move-Out Operations, Combat Training and Wind Erosion

The potential for air-quality impacts from heavy mechanized vehicles operating in the training ranges and on the unpaved main supply routes at Fort Bliss was investigated. This report details efforts by the staff of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory for the Fort Bliss Directorate of Environment in this investigation. Dust emission and dispersion from typical activities, including move outs and combat training, occurring on the installation were simulated using the atmospheric modeling system DUSTRAN. Major assumptions associated with designing specific modeling scenarios are summarized, and results from the simulations are presented.