Effects of Vegetation on Traffic-Related Particulate Matter

Traffic-related air pollution has been shown to have detrimental effects on health and the environment. One of the components of such pollution is particulate matter smaller than 10 µm in aerodynamic diameter (PM10), which increases the risk of cardiopulmonary symptoms and diseases when inhaled or absorbed. Since the amount of traffic has steadily been increasing around the globe, mitigation measures to combat traffic-related air pollution have been researched. As plants are already known for their sequestration properties, research has been put forth in order to investigate other potential amenities they might offer. This thesis focuses on the effects vegetation barriers have on particulate matter (PM) emitted by road traffic. Through a comparison in PM distribution with and without a vegetation barrier, as well as a comparison between two different kinds of barriers, an attempt was made to determine the effectiveness of these barriers, and potentially offer a suggestion to the city officials in an attempt to improve near-road air quality in Reykjavik. The results of the study indicate that the smallest fraction of measured particles (ultrafine particles up to 1 µm) responds well to a dense barrier made up of plants of various species, both coniferous and deciduous, and of varying heights. The results for other sizes and for the coniferous barrier in general were less conclusive