Status of black carbon monitoring in ambient air in Europe
Better monitoring needed to assess health and climate change impacts
Black carbon is increasingly discussed in science and environmental policy areas as an example of an air pollutant that affects both human health and contributes to climate change. This technical report provides a summary of black carbon definitions as discussed in the air quality monitoring community. Secondly, it provides a summary of the current status of black carbon-related monitoring in Europe including Switzerland. An overview of available measurement techniques and associated technical issues, monitoring networks and current data reporting practices are presented.