Transport and transformation of air pollutants from Israel's coastal area

The occasional high ozone levels measured in Jerusalem could not be attributed solely to local sources such as vehicular traffic or industry. A satellite monitoring station was set up outside the city limits to explore the possibility of transport and transformation of air pollutants from the highly populated and industrialized coastal area of Israel to the inland hilly region. This study revealed that the high ozone levels were always associated with a parallel increase of SO₂ and that power plants and/or vehicles operating in the coastal region are a major source for the nitrogen oxides which undergo photochemical transformation to form ozone during inland travel of the air parcel under conditions of intense sunlight.