The effects of Typhoon Morakot on concentration of airborne particulates derived from unvegetated riverbanks

Landslides frequently occur during large earthquakes and storms in Taiwan, supplying large volumes of sediment to downslope areas. When coupled with the intense northeast monsoon over Taiwan in the dry winter season, this can lead to high concentrations of airborne particulates that are hazardous to human health. Air quality monitoring stations near unvegetated riverbanks recorded high concentrations of particulate matter less than 10 μm (PM<Subscript>10</Subscript>) after Typhoon Morakot in 2009. The objective of this study was, therefore, to analyze the effects on air quality of sediment caused by the typhoon. A deflation module was simulated, and the resulting estimates were compared with observed data from the Taitung monitoring station for 2004 and 2005. The relationship of dust flux to average atmospheric dust concentration was analyzed for October to December 2001–2010. Analysis showed that the 2001–2008 data are highly correlated (0.78) with the average concentration. The intercept of 28.07 represented the background concentration with no dust emission, from October to December of 2001–2008. Based on the dust flux potential in 2009, the average yearly PM<Subscript>10</Subscript> concentration would be 37.98 µg/m<Superscript>3</Superscript>; however, the measured concentration was 61.67 µg/m<Superscript>3</Superscript> from October to December. This suggests the strong influence of dust re-suspended from unvegetated riverbanks by Typhoon Morakot. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014