Abstract

This study presents the analysis of the emission, transport, dispersion, and concentration of particulate matter emitted from a large industrial complex dedicated to the manufacture of cement in the town of Malagueno, province of Cordoba (Argentina), using the USEPA's (Environmental Protection Agency) AERMOD model. The model was applied for 224 industrial and background emission sources (8 stacks, 3 limestone quarries, 13 material storage piles, 18 agricultural fields and 182 paved and unpaved segment roads). The application of the model was validated with Total Suspended Particulate matter (TSP) measured at two monitoring sites, where samples were collected for 62 consecutive days in winter. The maximum TSP values obtained at both monitoring sites (748 and 1100 mu g m(-3)) were well above the suggested WHO guidelines. The results obtained showed the impact of this industrial activity on local particulate matter concentrations, from which unpaved industrial roads and stockpiles were the most influential emission sources, directly affecting two of the closest neighborhoods in the area. Future studies will include the accumulation of heavy metals and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in TSP samples, the environmental risk assessment for exposure of the Malagueno population and the source apportionment of these pollutants. Copyright (C) 2015 Turkish National Committee for Air Pollution Research and Control. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.