A methodology to compute emission projections from road transport (EmiTRANS)

Atmospheric emissions from road transport have increased all around the world during the last decades more rapidly than from other pollution sources. For instance, they contribute to more than 25% of total CO, CO2, NOx, and fine particle emissions in most of the European countries. This situation shows the importance of road transport when complying with emission ceilings and air quality standards applied to these pollutants. This paper presents a modelling system to perform atmospheric emission projections (simultaneously both air quality pollutants and greenhouse gases) from road transport including the development of a tailored software tool (EmiTRANS) as a planning tool. The methodology has been developed with two purposes: 1) to obtain outputs used as inputs to the COPERT4 software to calculate emission projections and 2) to summarize outputs for policy making evaluating the effect of emission abatement measures for a vehicle fleet. This methodology has been applied to the calculation of emission projections in Spain up to 2020 under several scenarios, including a sensitivity analysis useful for a better interpretation and confidence building on the results. This case study demonstrates the EmiTRANS applicability to a country, and points out the need for combining both technical and non-technical measures (such as behavioural changes or demand management) to reduce emissions, indirectly improving air quality and contributing to mitigate climate change.

Study of PM10 and PM2.5 levels in three European cities: Analysis of intra and inter urban variations

In the present paper, 1-year PM10 and PM 2.5 data from roadside and urban background monitoring stations in Athens (Greece), Madrid (Spain) and London (UK) are analysed in relation to other air pollutants (NO,NO2,NOx,CO,O3 and SO2)and several meteorological parameters (wind velocity, temperature, relative humidity, precipitation, solar radiation and atmospheric pressure), in order to investigate the sources and factors affecting particulate pollution in large European cities. Principal component and regression analyses are therefore used to quantify the contribution of both combustion and non-combustion sources to the PM10 and PM 2.5 levels observed. The analysis reveals that the EU legislated PM 10 and PM2.5 limit values are frequently breached, forming a potential public health hazard in the areas studied. The seasonal variability patterns of particulates varies among cities and sites, with Athens and Madrid presenting higher PM10 concentrations during the warm period and suggesting the larger relative contribution of secondary and natural particles during hot and dry days. It is estimated that the contribution of non-combustion sources varies substantially among cities, sites and seasons and ranges between 38-67% and 40-62% in London, 26-50% and 20-62% in Athens, and 31-58% and 33-68% in Madrid, for both PM10 and PM 2.5. Higher contributions from non-combustion sources are found at urban background sites in all three cities, whereas in the traffic sites the seasonal differences are smaller. In addition, the non-combustion fraction of both particle metrics is higher during the warm season at all sites. On the whole, the analysis provides evidence of the substantial impact of non-combustion sources on local air quality in all three cities. While vehicular exhaust emissions carry a large part of the risk posed on human health by particle exposure, it is most likely that mitigation measures designed for their reduction will have a major effect only at traffic sites and additional measures will be necessary for the control of background levels. However, efforts in mitigation strategies should always focus on optimal health effects.

Air quality modeling and mortality impact of fine particles reduction policies in Spain

Background: In recent years, Spain has implemented a number of air quality control measures that are expected to lead to a future reduction in fine particle concentrations and an ensuing positive impact on public health. Objectives: We aimed to assess the impact on mortality attributable to a reduction in fine particle levels in Spain in 2014 in relation to the estimated level for 2007. Methods: To estimate exposure, we constructed fine particle distribution models for Spain for 2007 (reference scenario) and 2014 (projected scenario) with a spatial resolution of 16x16 km2. In a second step, we used the concentration-response functions proposed by cohort studies carried out in Europe (European Study of Cohorts for Air Pollution Effects and Rome longitudinal cohort) and North America (American Cancer Society cohort, Harvard Six Cities study and Canadian national cohort) to calculate the number of attributable annual deaths corresponding to all causes, all non-accidental causes, ischemic heart disease and lung cancer among persons aged over 25 years (2005-2007 mortality rate data). We examined the effect of the Spanish demographic shift in our analysis using 2007 and 2012 population figures. Results: Our model suggested that there would be a mean overall reduction in fine particle levels of 1mg/m3 by 2014. Taking into account 2007 population data, between 8 and 15 all-cause deaths per 100,000 population could be postponed annually by the expected reduction in fine particle levels. For specific subgroups, estimates varied from 10 to 30 deaths for all non-accidental causes, from 1 to 5 for lung cancer, and from 2 to 6 for ischemic heart disease. The expected burden of preventable mortality would be even higher in the future due to the Spanish population growth. Taking into account the population older than 30 years in 2012, the absolute mortality impact estimate would increase approximately by 18%. Conclusions: Effective implementation of air quality measures in Spain, in a scenario with a short-term projection, would amount to an appreciable decline infine particle concentrations, and this, in turn, would lead to notable health-related benefits. Recent European cohort studies strengthen the evidence of an association between long-term exposure to fine particles and health effects, and could enhance the health impact quantification in Europe. Air quality models can contribute to improved assessment of air pollution health impact estimates, particularly in study areas without air pollution monitoring data.

Road Dust Emission Sources and Assessment of Street Washing Effect

Although previous studies report on the effect of street washing on ambient particulate matter levels, there is a lack of studies investigating the results of street washing on the emission strength of road dust. A sampling campaign was conducted in Madrid urban area during July 2009 where road dust samples were collected in two sites, namely Reference site (where the road surface was not washed) and Pelayo site (where street washing was performed daily during night). Following the chemical characterization of the road dust particles the emission sources were resolved by means of Positive Matrix Factorization, PMF (Multilinear Engine scripting) and the mass contribution of each source was calculated for the two sites. Mineral dust, brake wear, tire wear, carbonaceous emissions and construction dust were the main sources of road dust with mineral and construction dust being the major contributors to inhalable road dust load. To evaluate the effectiveness of street washing on the emission sources, the sources mass contributions between the two sites were compared. Although brake wear and tire wear had lower concentrations at the site where street washing was performed, these mass differences were not statistically significant and the temporal variation did not show the expected build-up after dust removal. It was concluded that the washing activities resulted merely in a road dust moistening, without effective removal and that mobilization of particles took place in a few hours between washing and sampling. The results also indicated that it is worth paying attention to the dust dispersed from the construction sites as they affect the emission strength in nearby streets.

Effectiveness of improved cookstoves to reduce indoor air pollution in developing countries. The case of the Cassamance Natural Subregion, Western Africa

The Spanish NGO "Alianza por la Solidaridad" has installed improved cookstoves in 3000 households during 2012 and 2013 to improve energy efficiency reducing fuelwood consumption and to improve indoor air quality. The type of cookstoves were Noflaye Jeeg and Noflaye Jaboot and were installed in the Cassamance Natural Subregion covering part of Senegal, The Gambia and Guinea-Bissau. The Technical University of Madrid (UPM) has conducted a field study on a sample of these households to assess the effect of improved cookstoves on kitchen air quality. Measurements of carbon monoxide (CO) and fine particle matter (PM2.5) were taken for 24-hr period before and after the installation of improved cookstoves. The 24-hr mean CO concentrations were lower than the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for Guinea-Bissau but higher for Senegal and Gambia, even after the installation of improved cookstoves. As for PM2.5 concentrations, 24-hr mean were always higher than these guidelines. However, improved cookstoves produced significant reductions on 24-hr mean CO and PM2.5 concentrations in Senegal and for mean and maximum PM2.5 concentration on Gambia. Although this variability needs to be explained by further research to determine which other factors could affect indoor air pollution, the study provided a better understanding of the problem and envisaged alternatives to be implemented in future phases of the NGO project.

Development and assessment of traffic-related emission abatement measures for the Madrid city (Spain) through the WRF-SMOKE-CMAQ modelling system

The achievement of the limit values established in the European legislation pose an important handicap for large urban areas with intense road traffic, such as Madrid (Spain). Despite permanent measures included in air quality plans it is important to assess additional measures that may be temporally applied under unfavourable conditions. This paper reports on the simulation of different traffic restriction strategies in Madrid for high-pollution episodes.

Assessment of urban parameterizations in the WRF model for air quality modelling purposes in Madrid (Spain)

This study aims to assess the performance or multi-layer canopy parameterizations implemented in the mesoscale WRF model in order to understand their potential contribution to improve the description of energy fluxes and wind fields in the Madrid city. It was found that the Building Energy Model (BEP+BEM) parameterization yielded better results than the bulk standard scheme implemented in the Noah LSM, but very close to those of the Building Energy Parameterization (BEP). The later was deemed as the best option since data requirements and CPU time were smaller. Two annual runs were made to feed the CMAQ chemical-transport model to assess the impact of this feature in routinely air quality modelling activities.

Evaluation of air quality impacts with an integrated assessment model for Spain

The present paper describes the advancement and evaluation of air quality-related impacts with the Atmospheric Evaluation and Research Integrated system for Spain (AERIS). In its current version, AERIS is able to provide estimates on the impacts of air quality over human health (PM2.5 and O3), crops and vegetation (O3). The modules that allow quantifying the before mentioned impacts were modeled by applying different approaches (mostly for the European context) present in scientific literature to the conditions of the Iberian Peninsula. This application was supported by reliable data sources, as well as by the good predictive capacity of AERIS for ambient concentrations. For validation purposes, the estimates of AERIS for impacts on human health (change in the statistical life expectancy-PM2.5) and vegetation (loss of wheat crops-O3) were compared against results from the SERCA project and GAINS estimates for two emission scenarios. In general, good results evidenced by reasonable correlation coefficients were obtained, therefore confirming the adequateness of the followed modeling approaches and the quality of AERIS predictions.

Analysis of Contributions to NO2 Ambient Air Quality Levels in Madrid City (Spain) through Modeling. Implications for the Development of Policies and Air Quality Monitoring

As environmental standards become more stringent (e.g. European Directive 2008/50/EC), more reliable and sophisticated modeling tools are needed to simulate measures and plans that may effectively tackle air quality exceedances, common in large cities across Europe, particularly for NO2. Modeling air quality in urban areas is rather complex since observed concentration values are a consequence of the interaction of multiple sources and processes that involve a wide range of spatial and temporal scales. Besides a consistent and robust multi-scale modeling system, comprehensive and flexible emission inventories are needed. This paper discusses the application of the WRF-SMOKE-CMAQ system to the Madrid city (Spain) to assess the contribution of the main emitting sectors in the region. A detailed emission inventory was compiled for this purpose. This inventory relies on bottom-up methods for the most important sources. It is coupled with the regional traffic model and it makes use of an extensive database of industrial, commercial and residential combustion plants. Less relevant sources are downscaled from national or regional inventories. This paper reports the methodology and main results of the source apportionment study performed to understand the origin of pollution (main sectors and geographical areas) and define clear targets for the abatement strategy. Finally the structure of the air quality monitoring is analyzed and discussed to identify options to improve the monitoring strategy not only in the Madrid city but the whole metropolitan area.

Sistematización y versatilidad. El ejemplo Inviso-Guardiola

Habitualmente la prefabricación en la construcción residencial se enfrenta a dos problemas: participación de sistemas cerrados (dependencia de patentes/fabricantes) y existencia de una masa crítica mínima a edificar que rentabilice los sobrecostes de fabricación con la reducción de tiempos de ejecución. Nuestro estudio realiza una labor de investigación en sistemas de construcción industrializados abiertos, flexibles, de bajo costo, en propuestas como las aquí presentadas: el CONCURSO INVISO (INdustrialización VIvienda Sostenible_ EMVS/ Instituto_Torroja: 1º_PREMIO) proponía un sistema teórico, abierto, independiente de escala programa o tipología residencial, posteriormente materializado en la CASA GUARDIOLA, aplicación del anterior que recogía sus ideas: una sistematización más conceptual que tecnológica, basada en industrialización abierta (compatible con materiales y elementos de mercado) modulada, flexible, reversible (junta seca con ensambles de tornillería) sistematizada (separación de elementos en respuesta a solicitudes específicas) con limitación dimensional y estructural (sin maquinaria pesada). Esta casa obtuvo el 1º premio VETECO en soluciones de fachada innovadora.

RenovAndes H1 : preparación de una oferta para una licitación internacional en Perú : Central Hidroeléctrica y Línea de Transmisión H1-Chanchamayo.

El ámbito del proyecto es la construcción, operación y transferencia de una Central Hidroeléctrica RenovAndes H1 y La Línea de Transmisión H1 con capacidad total de 60 kV mediante un transformador de 25 MVA de potencia, con un período de construcción de máximo 2 años y concesión de operación y mantenimiento a 20 años, como parte del Plan Nacional Estratégico para el Desarrollo del sector hidroeléctrico de Perú. El proyecto Línea de Transmisión 60 kV H1 – Chanchamayo se ubica en la zona central del Perú,políticamente en los distritos de Perené, Chanchamayo y San Ramón, provincia de Chanchamayo, departamento de Junín donde se encuentra a su paso el rio Huatziroki a aproximadamente 14 km aguas arriba de su confluencia con el rio Perené. Con este estudio se pretende evaluar los diferentes aspectos que influyen en la preparación de una oferta de licitación, incluye los análisis previos, el proceso de precalificación y la preparación de la oferta para la licitación.

Técnicas BIM aplicadas a la reconstrucción virtual del yacimiento arqueológico Mleiha 5 (E.A.U.)

El objetivo del siguiente Proyecto Fin de Carrera consiste en definir y describir de forma ordenada, clara y precisa el procedimiento a seguir en el desarrollo de un trabajo mediante técnicas BIM (Building Information Modeling - Modelado de Información de Construcción)con la finalidad añadida de que pueda servir como un protocolo general para los profesionales relacionados con el ámbito de estas materias. Este proyecto se ocupará de las siguientes tareas: 1.-Terminología, normativa, ámbitos de aplicación, metodología y flujo de trabajo empleados en la utilización de técnicas denominadas BIM. 2.- Aplicación sobre el yacimiento arqueológico Mleiha zona 5 situado en Emiratos Árabes Unidos, incluyendo la elaboración de un modelo de reconstrucción virtual de este cementerio y sus antiguos panteones. Para ello contaremos con la topografía y cartografía de la zona, en una superficie aproximada de 1 Hectárea, procedente de un levantamiento a escala 1:200 realizado en Mayo de 2013.

Development and implementation of an air quality integrated assessment modelling system for the Iberian Peninsula

La mejora de la calidad del aire es una tarea eminentemente interdisciplinaria. Dada la gran variedad de ciencias y partes involucradas, dicha mejora requiere de herramientas de evaluación simples y completamente integradas. La modelización para la evaluación integrada (integrated assessment modeling) ha demostrado ser una solución adecuada para la descripción de los sistemas de contaminación atmosférica puesto que considera cada una de las etapas involucradas: emisiones, química y dispersión atmosférica, impactos ambientales asociados y potencial de disminución. Varios modelos de evaluación integrada ya están disponibles a escala continental, cubriendo cada una de las etapas antesmencionadas, siendo el modelo GAINS (Greenhouse Gas and Air Pollution Interactions and Synergies) el más reconocido y usado en el contexto europeo de toma de decisiones medioambientales. Sin embargo, el manejo de la calidad del aire a escala nacional/regional dentro del marco de la evaluación integrada es deseable. Esto sin embargo, no se lleva a cabo de manera satisfactoria con modelos a escala europea debido a la falta de resolución espacial o de detalle en los datos auxiliares, principalmente los inventarios de emisión y los patrones meteorológicos, entre otros. El objetivo de esta tesis es presentar los desarrollos en el diseño y aplicación de un modelo de evaluación integrada especialmente concebido para España y Portugal. El modelo AERIS (Atmospheric Evaluation and Research Integrated system for Spain) es capaz de cuantificar perfiles de concentración para varios contaminantes (NO2, SO2, PM10, PM2,5, NH3 y O3), el depósito atmosférico de especies de azufre y nitrógeno así como sus impactos en cultivos, vegetación, ecosistemas y salud como respuesta a cambios porcentuales en las emisiones de sectores relevantes. La versión actual de AERIS considera 20 sectores de emisión, ya sea equivalentes a sectores individuales SNAP o macrosectores, cuya contribución a los niveles de calidad del aire, depósito e impactos han sido modelados a través de matrices fuentereceptor (SRMs). Estas matrices son constantes de proporcionalidad que relacionan cambios en emisiones con diferentes indicadores de calidad del aire y han sido obtenidas a través de parametrizaciones estadísticas de un modelo de calidad del aire (AQM). Para el caso concreto de AERIS, su modelo de calidad del aire “de origen” consistió en el modelo WRF para la meteorología y en el modelo CMAQ para los procesos químico-atmosféricos. La cuantificación del depósito atmosférico, de los impactos en ecosistemas, cultivos, vegetación y salud humana se ha realizado siguiendo las metodologías estándar establecidas bajo los marcos internacionales de negociación, tales como CLRTAP. La estructura de programación está basada en MATLAB®, permitiendo gran compatibilidad con software típico de escritorio comoMicrosoft Excel® o ArcGIS®. En relación con los niveles de calidad del aire, AERIS es capaz de proveer datos de media anual y media mensual, así como el 19o valor horario más alto paraNO2, el 25o valor horario y el 4o valor diario más altos para SO2, el 36o valor diario más alto para PM10, el 26o valor octohorario más alto, SOMO35 y AOT40 para O3. En relación al depósito atmosférico, el depósito acumulado anual por unidad de area de especies de nitrógeno oxidado y reducido al igual que de azufre pueden ser determinados. Cuando los valores anteriormente mencionados se relacionan con características del dominio modelado tales como uso de suelo, cubiertas vegetales y forestales, censos poblacionales o estudios epidemiológicos, un gran número de impactos puede ser calculado. Centrándose en los impactos a ecosistemas y suelos, AERIS es capaz de estimar las superaciones de cargas críticas y las superaciones medias acumuladas para especies de nitrógeno y azufre. Los daños a bosques se calculan como una superación de los niveles críticos de NO2 y SO2 establecidos. Además, AERIS es capaz de cuantificar daños causados por O3 y SO2 en vid, maíz, patata, arroz, girasol, tabaco, tomate, sandía y trigo. Los impactos en salud humana han sido modelados como consecuencia de la exposición a PM2,5 y O3 y cuantificados como pérdidas en la esperanza de vida estadística e indicadores de mortalidad prematura. La exactitud del modelo de evaluación integrada ha sido contrastada estadísticamente con los resultados obtenidos por el modelo de calidad del aire convencional, exhibiendo en la mayoría de los casos un buen nivel de correspondencia. Debido a que la cuantificación de los impactos no es llevada a cabo directamente por el modelo de calidad del aire, un análisis de credibilidad ha sido realizado mediante la comparación de los resultados de AERIS con los de GAINS para un escenario de emisiones determinado. El análisis reveló un buen nivel de correspondencia en las medias y en las distribuciones probabilísticas de los conjuntos de datos. Las pruebas de verificación que fueron aplicadas a AERIS sugieren que los resultados son suficientemente consistentes para ser considerados como razonables y realistas. En conclusión, la principal motivación para la creación del modelo fue el producir una herramienta confiable y a la vez simple para el soporte de las partes involucradas en la toma de decisiones, de cara a analizar diferentes escenarios “y si” con un bajo coste computacional. La interacción con políticos y otros actores dictó encontrar un compromiso entre la complejidad del modeladomedioambiental con el carácter conciso de las políticas, siendo esto algo que AERIS refleja en sus estructuras conceptual y computacional. Finalmente, cabe decir que AERIS ha sido creado para su uso exclusivo dentro de un marco de evaluación y de ninguna manera debe ser considerado como un sustituto de los modelos de calidad del aire ordinarios. ABSTRACT Improving air quality is an eminently inter-disciplinary task. The wide variety of sciences and stakeholders that are involved call for having simple yet fully-integrated and reliable evaluation tools available. Integrated AssessmentModeling has proved to be a suitable solution for the description of air pollution systems due to the fact that it considers each of the involved stages: emissions, atmospheric chemistry, dispersion, environmental impacts and abatement potentials. Some integrated assessment models are available at European scale that cover each of the before mentioned stages, being the Greenhouse Gas and Air Pollution Interactions and Synergies (GAINS) model the most recognized and widely-used within a European policy-making context. However, addressing air quality at the national/regional scale under an integrated assessment framework is desirable. To do so, European-scale models do not provide enough spatial resolution or detail in their ancillary data sources, mainly emission inventories and local meteorology patterns as well as associated results. The objective of this dissertation is to present the developments in the design and application of an Integrated Assessment Model especially conceived for Spain and Portugal. The Atmospheric Evaluation and Research Integrated system for Spain (AERIS) is able to quantify concentration profiles for several pollutants (NO2, SO2, PM10, PM2.5, NH3 and O3), the atmospheric deposition of sulfur and nitrogen species and their related impacts on crops, vegetation, ecosystems and health as a response to percentual changes in the emissions of relevant sectors. The current version of AERIS considers 20 emission sectors, either corresponding to individual SNAP sectors or macrosectors, whose contribution to air quality levels, deposition and impacts have been modeled through the use of source-receptor matrices (SRMs). Thesematrices are proportionality constants that relate emission changes with different air quality indicators and have been derived through statistical parameterizations of an air qualitymodeling system (AQM). For the concrete case of AERIS, its parent AQM relied on the WRF model for meteorology and on the CMAQ model for atmospheric chemical processes. The quantification of atmospheric deposition, impacts on ecosystems, crops, vegetation and human health has been carried out following the standard methodologies established under international negotiation frameworks such as CLRTAP. The programming structure isMATLAB ® -based, allowing great compatibility with typical software such as Microsoft Excel ® or ArcGIS ® Regarding air quality levels, AERIS is able to provide mean annual andmean monthly concentration values, as well as the indicators established in Directive 2008/50/EC, namely the 19th highest hourly value for NO2, the 25th highest daily value and the 4th highest hourly value for SO2, the 36th highest daily value of PM10, the 26th highest maximum 8-hour daily value, SOMO35 and AOT40 for O3. Regarding atmospheric deposition, the annual accumulated deposition per unit of area of species of oxidized and reduced nitrogen as well as sulfur can be estimated. When relating the before mentioned values with specific characteristics of the modeling domain such as land use, forest and crops covers, population counts and epidemiological studies, a wide array of impacts can be calculated. When focusing on impacts on ecosystems and soils, AERIS is able to estimate critical load exceedances and accumulated average exceedances for nitrogen and sulfur species. Damage on forests is estimated as an exceedance of established critical levels of NO2 and SO2. Additionally, AERIS is able to quantify damage caused by O3 and SO2 on grapes, maize, potato, rice, sunflower, tobacco, tomato, watermelon and wheat. Impacts on human health aremodeled as a consequence of exposure to PM2.5 and O3 and quantified as losses in statistical life expectancy and premature mortality indicators. The accuracy of the IAM has been tested by statistically contrasting the obtained results with those yielded by the conventional AQM, exhibiting in most cases a good agreement level. Due to the fact that impacts cannot be directly produced by the AQM, a credibility analysis was carried out for the outputs of AERIS for a given emission scenario by comparing them through probability tests against the performance of GAINS for the same scenario. This analysis revealed a good correspondence in the mean behavior and the probabilistic distributions of the datasets. The verification tests that were applied to AERIS suggest that results are consistent enough to be credited as reasonable and realistic. In conclusion, the main reason thatmotivated the creation of this model was to produce a reliable yet simple screening tool that would provide decision and policy making support for different “what-if” scenarios at a low computing cost. The interaction with politicians and other stakeholders dictated that reconciling the complexity of modeling with the conciseness of policies should be reflected by AERIS in both, its conceptual and computational structures. It should be noted however, that AERIS has been created under a policy-driven framework and by no means should be considered as a substitute of the ordinary AQM.

La forma del agua. Temas e invariantes en el jardín y el paisaje. Análisis de casos (Holanda-España, 1548-1648)

El espacio geográfico, entendido como territorio que da soporte a la vida y a la civilización, ha estado siempre fuertemente supeditado a la presencia de agua. Desde la Prehistoria el hombre otorgó al agua, junto a otros elementos que aseguraban o protegían su vida, un valor superior, por encima de lo humano. Paralelamente y de manera natural, el jardín, en sus inicios en estrecha relación con la agricultura y con el paisaje, fue el ámbito idóneo para la creación de nuevas formas acuáticas artificiales. Este proceso dio lugar a un extenso repertorio de formas compositivas que parece que tuvo en el Renacimiento un punto de inflexión, en el que se observa como la mayoría de recursos y configuraciones básicas del agua estaban ya plenamente establecidas. Esta evolución y sus resultados ha sido el objeto de la primera parte de la tesis: su objetivo ha sido analizar cómo el agua configura, cualifica o puede llegar a construir el jardín y el territorio en el que se inserta, así como establecer las posibles relaciones entre estos dos ámbitos de estudio. Aunque la historia es su fundamento, el planteamiento aquí ha sido más bien conceptual; estudiando los componentes acuáticos desde un punto de vista fundamentalmente compositivo. Esta indagación previa ha sido indispensable para llegar a entender en profundidad los modos en los que el agua se muestra en el jardín y en el paisaje renacentista y manierista, momentos en que se insertan los dos casos de estudio que constituyen la segunda parte de la tesis. Sin caer en un determinismo geográfico extremo, puede admitirse que el jardín, como manifestación cultural intrínsecamente ligada al entorno, depende fuertemente del territorio en el que se asienta; hecho particularmente evidente en aquellas regiones en las que su especial geografía ha sido un claro factor condicionante de su historia. Por ello, Holanda y España han sido las dos localizaciones elegidas para profundizar en este estudio; no tanto por su estrecha relación política y cultural, sino por su profundo y sugerente contraste de medio físico y climático. La Península Ibérica, geográficamente el término del mundo conocido en Occidente hasta el final de la Edad Media, y por esta circunstancia convertida en destino, en territorio de permanencia y fusión, estará además supeditada en la mayoría de su territorio a la falta de agua, siendo a la vez heredera directa del universo y la tradición del jardín meridional originario de Oriente. En el extremo opuesto, Holanda, espacio de transición entre el mar y la tierra firme “real”, es un territorio permeado de humedad y surcado con generosidad por grandes ríos. El país, con una relación ambivalente con el agua, unas veces como amenaza y otras como fuente de nuevas oportunidades, será por el contrario especialmente favorable para el desarrollo de un modelo de jardín septentrional. Un jardín del norte, que no obstante, no surgirá de despejar los bosques, como en el arquetipo nórdico, sino que crecerá sobre planicies antes saturadas de agua o directamente anegadas. El marco temporal de los dos casos concretos ha considerado como fecha inicial 1548, momento en el que Felipe II, aún príncipe, realizó su primer viaje a los Países Bajos, y entró en contacto con el modelo holandés. La extensa producción posterior de jardines de Felipe II, siempre con el agua como protagonista, tuvo como destacado referente la adaptación al suelo y la geografía hispánicos de dicho modelo. Como fecha final se fija 1648, justo un siglo después, fecha coincidente con la firma de la Paz de Westfalia, tratado que supone la total reorganización política del territorio europeo y la pérdida de la hegemonía española en Europa. En Holanda sólo dos años después nacerá Guillermo III de Orange, estatúder de las Provincias Unidas, también futuro rey de Inglaterra, Escocia e Irlanda. Para entonces en Holanda ya se había asistido al desarrollo de un arte propio de jardín, íntimamente ligado al agua, sorprendentemente no demasiado bien conocido y que será uno de los temas de esta investigación. Finalmente, se propone una lectura conjunta de toda esta serie de intervenciones que tienen como argumento el agua, en la que se integra la información procedente de distintos campos de estudio, cada una con su metodología particular. El resultado es una tesis en la que el jardín y el territorio son tratados desde un nuevo y enriquecedor punto de vista. ABSTRACT Geographical space, understood as the territory that provides support to human life and civilization, has always been strongly subjected to the presence of water. From Prehistory man gave to water, along with other elements that ensured or protected life, a higher value than the merely human. At the same time and in a natural way, the garden, in its beginnings with a close relationship with agriculture and landscape, soon developed as the appropriate ground for the creation of new artificial aquatic forms, in a process that seems to have a turning point in the Renaissance, when most of the basic waterworks and resources were already fully established. This development and its outcomes are the subjects of the first part of the thesis: its scope has been to analyse how water configures, qualifies and might even help to construct the garden or landscape attached to it; and to establish the possible links between these two fields of study. Although history based, the point of view here is mainly conceptual, studying the water components understood as composite elements. This exploratory research has been essential to deeply understand the water patterns shown in the Renaissance and Mannerist garden and landscape, periods in which the two case studies are inserted. Without falling in extreme determinism, it can be accepted however, that garden, as a cultural expression linked to environment, is strongly dependant on territorial setting; something particularly evident in those areas where specific geography has been a clear history conditioning factor. This is the reason that leads to choose the Netherlands and Spain to deepen this study, no so much for their interesting cultural and politics relations as for the suggestive and profound contrast of their physical environment and climate. The Iberian Peninsula, geographically the limit of the known world in Occident until the end of the Medium Age, and by this circumstance understood as endpoint, more a destination than a crossroad, a territory of permanence and fusion, but also subjected to water shortage; is thus associated with the universe and tradition of the meridional garden imported from Orient. In the opposite, the Netherlands, a transitional space between the sea and the “real” firm land, is a territory permeated by water and crossed by big rivers. Always with an ambivalent relationship with water, sometimes seen as a threat and sometimes as a source of new opportunities, it was in the other hand the adequate land for the development of a special model of Northern garden. A garden that will not arise, however, from the clearing of woods as in the Nordic archetype, but that will grow on plains originally saturated of water or directly waterlogged. The timeframe of the two cases has 1548 as the initial year, moment in which Philip II, yet prince, made his first trip to the Low Lands and imbibed the Dutch garden model. The later and bountiful garden works of the king, always with the water as the main focus, adapted the imported model to the Spanish ground and geography. The final date is fixed in 1648, just a century after, in coincidence with the Westfalia Peace; a treaty that implied the total political reorganization of the European territory and the end of the Spanish hegemony in the continent. In Holland, only two years later, William III of Orange, Stadtholder of the United Provinces and also future king of England, Scotland and Ireland, was born. But by then the Netherlands had developed an own garden art, closely linked to water. This type garden, surprisingly not very well known, and its relationship with water, will be other of the addressing questions of this work. Finally, the investigation merges the different interventions that have water as an argument, integrating all the fields considered with their particular methodological approaches. The final result is a thesis in which garden and territory are treated from a new and enriching perspective.

An integrated assessment of two decades of air pollution policy making in Spain: Impacts, costs and improvements

This paper analyses the effects of policy making for air pollution abatement in Spain between 2000 and 2020 under an integrated assessment approach with the AERIS model for number of pollutants (NOx/NO2, PM10/PM2.5, O3, SO2, NH3 and VOC). The analysis of the effects of air pollution focused on different aspects: compliance with the European limit values of Directive 2008/50/EC for NO2 and PM10 for the Spanish air quality management areas; the evaluation of impacts caused by the deposition of atmospheric sulphur and nitrogen on ecosystems; the exceedance of critical levels of NO2 and SO2 in forest areas; the analysis of O3-induced crop damage for grapes, maize, potato, rice, tobacco, tomato, watermelon and wheat; health impacts caused by human exposure to O3 and PM2.5; and costs on society due to crop losses (O3), disability-related absence of work staff and damage to buildings and public property due to soot-related soiling (PM2.5). In general, air quality policy making has delivered improvements in air quality levels throughout Spain and has mitigated the severity of the impacts on ecosystems, health and vegetation in 2020 as target year. The findings of this work constitute an appropriate diagnosis for identifying improvement potentials for further mitigation for policy makers and stakeholders in Spain.