Professor Kevin Gurney <\/strong>of Northern Arizona University\u2019s School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems<\/a> today published results in Earth Systems Science Data<\/a><\/em> detailing greenhouse gas emissions in the Los Angeles Megacity\u2014the third-largest metropolitan area in the world\u2014occupying 4,850 square miles and housing more than 18.5 million people. In collaboration with scientists at Arizona State University, the University of Michigan, the National Institute of Standardized Technology<\/a> (NIST) and NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Gurney developed the high-resolution, bottom-up emissions map that includes every building and road in the basin for a staggering emissions total of 176 million tons of CO2<\/sub> per year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Gurney, who\nspecializes in atmospheric science, ecology and public policy, has spent\nseveral years developing a standardized system, as part of the Hestia\nProject<\/a>, that\nquantifies and visualizes greenhouse gases emitted in urban regions down to\neach street and building, identifying problem areas and showing where public\npolicy is\u2014or is not\u2014making a difference. His goal is to provide cities with a\nmeans to strategically address problem areas instead of taking a sweeping and\ncostly approach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019re\nproviding city stakeholders with a scalpel instead of a hammer. For example,\nabout 60 percent of roadway emissions come from 10 percent of the roads. With\nHestia, I can tell them which roads those are, and they can develop specific policy\nto address just those roads,\u201d Gurney said. \u201cThe same is true for buildings. We\ncan identify the ones with the highest emissions and track how well efforts to\nreduce those emissions are working. Policymakers can see progress.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Mapping\nLos Angeles was the latest effort in a long-term project that involves collaborators\nat NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NIST, the\nUniversity of Colorado, Pennsylvania State University, the Scripps Institution\nof Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego, the University of\nUtah, GNS Science in New Zealand and Purdue University. Other cities Gurney has\nmapped to this degree are Indianapolis, Salt Lake City and Baltimore. However, Gurney\nexpects the Los Angeles mapping to have the most significant implications,\nespecially considering the sheer size and scope of the area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s the first megacity for which we\u2019ve quantified emissions down to the scale of every building and roadway. Nothing has been left out of an area that includes 80 cities and five counties,\u201d Gurney said. \u201cCalifornia has an aggressive policy when it comes to carbon dioxide emissions, and people want to know what the best policy options are and whether those policies are working. We can provide the information to local governments and they can take immediate action. And if we can do this for the entire Los Angeles Megacity, we can do it anywhere in the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the\nstrengths of the approach is the incorporation of atmospheric monitoring of CO2<\/sub>\nfrom ground-based and satellite instruments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBy\nsynthesizing the detail of building and road-scale emissions with the\nindependence and accuracy of atmospheric monitoring, we have the best possible\nestimate of emissions with the most policy-relevant detail,\u201d Gurney said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Animated graphics help people visualize their city and their personal emissions to illustrate how their actions are affecting the environment in which they live. Gurney hopes that will inspire people to become more engaged in policy development. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhen\npeople see emissions from everyday activities mapped within the context of\ntheir block, neighborhood or city, they are more likely to become involved in\nthe solution process,\u201d Gurney said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Data from\nthe LA Basin mapping project are available on the NIST website<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gurney joined NAU in 2018, where he is continuing the research he started while at Arizona State University and prior to that at Purdue University. He has been involved with the United Nations Climate Change Framework Convention and the Kyoto Protocol for 25 years. In addition to his interests in carbon cycle science and policy, he has worked on stratospheric ozone depletion, radionuclide dose assessment and energy systems and climate-economic modeling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"Screenshot](\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wordpresst\/uploads\/sites\/153\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/hestia.video_.still-1014x558.jpg\")
<\/a><\/figure>LA first\nmegacity mapped in long-term project <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
![\"NAU](\"http:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wordpresst\/uploads\/sites\/153\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/NAU_primary-281_3514-1-e1536853679171.png\")
<\/figure>