Estimates of CO₂ Anthropogenic Emission from the Megacity St. Petersburg

Abstract

The estimates of anthropogenic CO₂ emissions in the megacity of St. Petersburg per square kilometer and for the entire area of the city (integral emissions), obtained on the basis of ground-based measurements of the CO₂ content within the city limits, are presented. To determine emissions, the inverse problem was solved using the results of comparison between the measured and calculated data (ODIAC dataset) of the anthropogenic contribution to the CO₂ content from the city. Two approaches were applied. In the first, the tomographic method was used and the anthropogenic emissions of three city districts per square kilometer were determined. In the second, all available measurements were used to find the average correction factor R and estimates of the integral CO₂ emissions of the entire megacity and its central part. The emissions per square kilometer for the south of the city are in the range of 32.7–48.3 kt/km² year; for the center, 69.0–97.5 kt/km² year; and for the north, 78.2 kt/km² year. The integral CO₂ emissions from the central part and the entire metropolis are 39.8 and 65.3 Mt/year, respectively. Inaccuracies in the estimate reach 20–40%. The estimates of the CO₂ anthropogenic emissions in St. Petersburg are higher by approximately two times than earlier results.