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Clean air policies are key for successfully mitigating Arctic warming

Research output: Contribution to journal/Conference contribution in journal/Contribution to newspaperJournal articleResearchpeer-review

  • Knut von Salzen, Environment Canada
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  • Cynthia H. Whaley, Environment Canada
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  • Susan C. Anenberg, George Washington University
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  • Rita Van Dingenen, European Commission Joint Research Centre Institute
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  • Zbigniew Klimont, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Laxenburg
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  • Mark G. Flanner, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
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  • Rashed Mahmood, Barcelona Supercomputing Center, University of Montreal
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  • Stephen R. Arnold, University of Leeds
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  • Stephen Beagley, Environment Canada
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  • Rong You Chien, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
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  • Jesper H. Christensen
  • Sabine Eckhardt, Norwegian Institute for Air Research
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  • Annica M.L. Ekman, Stockholm University
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  • Nikolaos Evangeliou, Norwegian Institute for Air Research
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  • Greg Faluvegi, Center for Climate Systems Research, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies
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  • Joshua S. Fu, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
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  • Michael Gauss, Norwegian Meteorological Institute
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  • Wanmin Gong, Environment Canada
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  • Jens L. Hjorth
  • Ulas Im
  • Srinath Krishnan, Stockholm University, Centre for International Climate and Environmental Research
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  • Kaarle Kupiainen, Finland's Environmental Administration
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  • Thomas Kühn, University of Eastern Finland, Finnish Meteorological Institute
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  • Joakim Langner, Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute
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  • Kathy S. Law, Sorbonne Université
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  • Louis Marelle, Sorbonne Université
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  • Dirk Olivié, Norwegian Meteorological Institute
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  • Tatsuo Onishi, Sorbonne Université
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  • Naga Oshima, Meteorological Research Institute
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  • Ville Veikko Paunu, Finnish Environment Institute
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  • Yiran Peng, Tsinghua University
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  • David Plummer, Environment Canada
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  • Luca Pozzoli, European Commission Joint Research Centre Institute, Fincons SPA
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  • Shilpa Rao, Norwegian Institute of Public Health
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  • Jean Christophe Raut, Sorbonne Université
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  • Maria Sand, Centre for International Climate and Environmental Research
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  • Julia Schmale, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne
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  • Michael Sigmond, Environment Canada
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  • Manu A. Thomas, Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute
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  • Kostas Tsigaridis, Center for Climate Systems Research, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies
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  • Svetlana Tsyro, Norwegian Meteorological Institute
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  • Steven T. Turnock, University of Leeds, Met Office
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  • Minqi Wang, Tsinghua University
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  • Barbara Winter, Environment Canada

A tighter integration of modeling frameworks for climate and air quality is urgently needed to assess the impacts of clean air policies on future Arctic and global climate. We combined a new model emulator and comprehensive emissions scenarios for air pollutants and greenhouse gases to assess climate and human health co-benefits of emissions reductions. Fossil fuel use is projected to rapidly decline in an increasingly sustainable world, resulting in far-reaching air quality benefits. Despite human health benefits, reductions in sulfur emissions in a more sustainable world could enhance Arctic warming by 0.8 °C in 2050 relative to the 1995–2014, thereby offsetting climate benefits of greenhouse gas reductions. Targeted and technically feasible emissions reduction opportunities exist for achieving simultaneous climate and human health co-benefits. It would be particularly beneficial to unlock a newly identified mitigation potential for carbon particulate matter, yielding Arctic climate benefits equivalent to those from carbon dioxide reductions by 2050.

Original languageEnglish
Article number222
JournalCommunications Earth and Environment
Volume3
Issue1
ISSN2662-4435
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Dec 2022

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