Air pollution and its relations to climate change and sustainable development  - 

Linking immediate needs with long term challanges

"Saltsjöbaden 3"

12-14 March 2007, Gothenburg, Sweden

With this announcement we invite you to a 3rd strategic air pollution workshop related to international needs and processes. This workshop will include the two aspects of the earlier workshops; it will both contain an evaluation of present knowledge and processes towards new policies but it will also look at scientific and policy needs in a longer perspective, in particular the links between air pollution and climate change. Aspects of particular importance for this workshop include:

- The present understanding of air pollution policies in relation to CAFE and CLRTAP.

- The interaction between air pollution and climate change, both with respect to atmospheric behaviour and effects in the environment and with respect to policy options.

- The intercontinental transport of air pollution and needs for a hemispheric approach.

- The importance and policy needs with respect to emissions from shipping.

- The role of nitrogen and possibilities for an integrated policy to control nitrogen emissions and impacts.

- The involvement of countries in transition in the air pollution policy development.

Registration and Workshop information

The workshop will start Monday 12 March 2007 at 13:00 and finish Wednesday 14 March 2007 at 14:00.

Final registration should be made before 12 February 2007

There is no conference fee and the meals during the workshop is free of charge.

The organisers will give support to a limited number of participants from EECCA countries for travels and accommodations expenses. (For more information contact the workshop secretariat)

Backgroud

Air quality and climate change are becoming increasingly interlinked. Several compounds important for climate change, e.g. ozone and particles, are also important for air pollution. Climate change and air pollution are also interlinked with respect to atmospheric processes and environmental effects. Climate change will influence the emissions, transport and chemical behaviour of atmospheric pollutants and air pollution will influence the greenhouse gas cycles. Policies for one problem will thus influence the other. Climate change policies can have important co-benefits in the form of reduced air pollution. A combined approach of climate change and air pollution could have positive synergetic effects. The interlink between the problems has been highlighted in several activities, e.g. the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP) and research programs such the EU ACCENT Network of Excellence. Also within the European Commission the problem has recently become important due to the advantages in linking climate and air pollution policies. CLRTAP, covering most of the countries in Europe and Canada and USA, has been an important forum for assessments, policy discussions and agreements on control measures for some of the main international atmospheric problems. The Convention has recently also increased its interest to include hemispheric aspects as well as relations between regional (international) and local air pollution issues. In 2001, the European Commission initiated a process, Clean Air For Europe, directed towards an integrated and holistic view on European air pollution, which in 2005 resulted in a thematic strategy on air pollution outlining needs and possible pathways towards a significant improvement of European air quality in 2020. Also in North America and East and South Asia international initiatives are taken in order to improve air quality. In 2000 the Swedish ASTA program organised a workshop at Saltsjöbaden, Sweden directed at further needs in air pollution strategies in the view of the recently signed Gothenburg Protocol and the corresponding process under the European Commission. The outcome of the workshop served as a guideline for the further scientific and policy work. In 2004 a second workshop was held in Gothenburg, at which the further development in science and policy were evaluated in the view of expected policy recommendations.

Download The Workshop Report from Saltsjöbaden 2, October 2004 (pdf)

Read the report from the Saltsjöbaden 1 workshop in 2000 (pdf)

Aims of the workshop

The workshop will be directed towards:

- A discussion and evaluation of the current scientific understanding and possibilities regarding further legislation based on the EC Thematic Strategy on Air Pollution and the elements of the review of the Gothenburg protocol under CLRTAP. 

- An assessment of possible future science and policy needs in order to solve the long-term air pollution problems in both European (continental) and Northern hemispheric perspectives taking into account aspects such as socio-economic development and climate change.

Organisation of the workshop

The meeting will consist of plenary sessions with keynote presentations and working group sessions.  

Plenary presentations (tentative)

- Science-driven policy development - Today's experience and challenges for the future.

- Air pollution and climate change. Environmental and health interactions.

- Climate change and air pollution - how to get policies work together.

- Integrated Assessment modelling - future challenges and possibilities.

- Expanding regional air pollution policies.

- The EU process on regional air pollution.

- The North American experience in air pollution policies.

- Asia - a challenge for air pollution control.

- Nitrogen - needs for an integrated approach.

Contributions to the workshop

Short written contributions to the working group themes are welcomed. Titles and abstracts are appreciated as soon as possible in order to be able to plan the working group sessions.  

Working papers will be available on the workshop's web page after submission to the secretariat. As a start of the working group sessions there will be possibilities for short presentations. The organising committee will, together with the chair-persons of the working groups, organise these sessions.

Secretariat

Peringe Grennfelt (program issues)

IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute

grennfelt@ivl.se

Lars Lindau (program issues)

Swedish Environment Protection Agency

lars.lindau@naturvardsverket.se

Jenny Arnell (registration etc.)

IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute

jenny.arnell@ivl.se

Organising Committee

Peringe Grennfelt , Lars Lindau, Anna Engleryd, Jenny Arnell

Program  Committee

Markus Amann, Austria

Richard Ballaman, Switzerland

Keith Bull, UN ECE

Francisco Cardoso Ferreira, Portugal

David Fowler, UK

Peringe Grennfelt, Sweden

Bill Harnett, USA

Tor Johannesen, Norway

Andrzej Jagusiewicz, Poland

Lars Lindau, Sweden

Rob Maas, The Netherlands

Frank Raes, JRC/ACCENT

Jürgen Schneider, Austria

Surendra Shrestha, UNEP

Leonor Tarrason, Norway

Matti Vainio, DG Environment

Les White, UK

Martin Williams, UK

André Zuber, DG Environment

Christer Ågren, Sweden

The workshop will be held at Quality Hotel 11 (www.hotel11.se) in Gothenburg Sweden .  

Quality Hotel 11

Maskingatan 11

SE-417 64 Gothenburg

Sweden

Phone: +46 31 779 11 11

Fax: +46 31 779 11 10

E-mail: q.hotel11@choice.se