It’s once again time for our annual Holiday Quiz. This is your opportunity to answer some modeling-related questions, have fun, and win a cool prize. No Scantron, Blue Book, or #2 pencil is required for this quiz. Just send your answers to info@providenceoris.com and the first five correct answers will receive a Go BEEST Mode t-shirt *PLUS* will be entered into a drawing for a free copy of our AERMOD Wizard software. So, without further ado, here’s our 2019 Holiday Quiz. Good luck!
1. Much has been discussed over the last year about something called MERPs. What does MERP stand for?
- Maximum Emission Rate Processor
- Modeled Emission Rates for Precursors
- Minimally Eventful Rapid Pulse
- Monitoring Events for Receptors and Pollutants
- None of the above
2. Which two new source types were introduced in AERMOD version 19191?
- VOLUME and BUOYLINE
- AREAPOLY and FLARE
- RLINEXT and RLINE
- BEAVIS and BUTTHEAD
- None of the above
3. Which of the following is *NOT* a temporal mode (secondary) keyword in AERMOD when creating ambient background inputs?
- SEASHR
- QUARTER
- SHRDOW7
- WSPEED
- MONTH
4. The AERMAP program can only process terrain data in what format?
- ArcGrid
- JPEG
- DWG
- GeoTIFF
5. CalPuff is a(n) _______ type of air quality model.
- Gaussian plume
- Lagrangian puff
- Eulerian grid
- Easy
Be sure to send your answers to info@providenceoris.com and good luck!
EPA News
EPA has posted the presentations, transcripts and audio recordings from the 12th Conference on Air Quality Models. You can access that information here.
On December 6, 2019, the EPA Model Clearinghouse released a concurrence memo on the use of the AERCOARE-AERMOD system for a project in Region 6. You can see that memorandum here.
Conferences and Workshops
100th Annual Meeting of the American Meteorological Society – This centennial meeting of the AMS will be held January 12-16, 2020 in Boston, MA. Of special interest to us in the modeling business is the 21st Joint Conference on the Applications of Air Pollution Meteorology with the A&WMA, which is being held as one of the conferences during the annual meeting. Topics of interest in this joint conference include Advancements and Needs in Dispersion Modeling, Modeling and Monitoring of Air Pollution in the Urban Environment, Measurements and Standards in Air Pollution Meteorology, Modeling of Other Complex Air Pollution Meteorological Phenomena, and more! For more information on the annual meeting click here and for more information of the 21st joint conference with AWMA click here.
If your company, organization, agency, State, etc. has an upcoming modeling or air quality-related event and you’d like it publicized in Providence/Oris Notes, please send that information to us at info@providenceoris.com, and we’ll be happy to include it.
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Simply the Best!
BEEST Suite
BEEST 12.01 is now out and includes these updates:
- Support for the RLINE source type in AERMOD 19191
- Support for BPIPPRM 19191_DRFT
- Restored the Download ArcGrid button on the Calculate Domain Limits for AERMAP form
- Added warning for selecting 1-hr and other short-term averages for SO2 and NO2 in Control Options
- Added warning for selecting 24-hr and other short-term averages for PM2.5 in Control Options
As always, users in maintenance can download the most recent version of BEEST from Support → Software Updates.
On November 14, 2019, we presented a webinar about BEEST 12.01 and its new features. If you missed the webinar, we recorded it and you can find it here.
"Go BEEST Mode!" — What? You still don’t have your own "Go BEEST Mode" t-shirt? Don’t worry, we’ve got plenty left – so email your request to info@providenceoris.com and receive your very own "Go BEEST Mode" T-shirt! You’ll be the envy of modelers everywhere!
AerScreen for Windows
Since AerScreen for Windows uses AERMOD, we will be releasing AerScreen for Windows 4.00 later this month. Version 4.00 will fully support AERMOD 19191 and will also include an updated website link for downloading terrain data and the Terrain Files Converter utility.
Users in maintenance can download the most recent version of AerScreen for Windows from Support → Software Updates.
Professional CalPuff
Our most recent version of Professional CalPuff (4.00) was released on August 26, 2016 and is available to all registered users with current maintenance.
Users in maintenance can download the most recent version of Professional CalPuff from Support → Software Updates.
AERMOD Wizard
AERMOD Wizard 1.02 is now here! It includes these enhancements:
- Support for downloading EPA ambient data published in May 2019
- Ability to generate forward and backward trajectories from AERMET-generated SFC data
- Support for processing monitoring data for 3-hour SO2, annual NO2 and annual PM2.5
- Full support for AERMET 19191
Users in maintenance can download the most recent version of AERMOD Wizard from Support → Software Updates.
We’re currently working on AERMOD Wizard 1.03, which will include the ability to do MERPs analyses for ozone and secondary PM2.5.
*We’re off to see the Wizard!*
If you have suggestions for an enhancement to any of our modeling software products, please let us know and we’ll do our best to incorporate it into the software ASAP!
Modeling Tip of the Month
We typically model a complete year (or 5 complete years) of meteorological data when conducting regulatory-type modeling for a permit application. However, did you know that there’s a way to model time frames of less than a year in duration? If you open BEEST, and go to Met Options, the "Met Start/End" option on the "Met Options" tab can be used. That is, you can tell AERMOD just run a specific sequence of dates and hours, say, from March 16 hour 15 to April 9 hour 22. Another technique could be to just run a single year of interest out of a 5-year concatenated met data file. For example, if you had a concatenated 5-year data set of 2014-2018, but you only wanted to run 2017, you could tell AERMOD to run from January 1, 2017 hour 1 to December 31, 2017 hour 24.
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“Our expertise is contagious. Catch it!”
AERMOD Modeling for Permits
Our first scheduled AERMOD Modeling for Permits class for 2020 will be February 18-19 in Austin, TX. Register today and plan to join us in the Live Music Capital of the World. Click here to register!
Advanced AERMOD
Similarly, our first scheduled Advanced AERMOD class for 2020 is going to be February 20-21, also in Austin.
Advanced AERMOD covers those topics that are near and dear to modelers, such as:
- NAAQS modeling for 1-hour NO2, 1-hour SO2 and 24-hour PM2.5 (including MaxDCont Viewer)
- Meteorological data processing with AERMET / AERMINUTE / AERSURFACE
- AERSCREEN
- Changes related to the new Appendix W (Guideline on Air Quality Models)
- MAXIFILE and ARRAY2 processing
- AERMOD alpha options, such as PSDCREDIT
- AERMOD Wizard and its uses
Click here to register!
**Don’t forget, if our schedule of classes doesn’t mesh with your schedule, or if you have several people that need to be trained at once, contact us about setting up an on-site class. Have laptop, will travel!**
2020 Class Schedule
| Class | Dates | |
| AERMOD Modeling for Permits | February 18-19, 2020 | |
| Advanced AERMOD | February 20-21, 2020 | |
| AERMOD Modeling for Permits | May 12-13, 2020 | |
| Advanced AERMOD | May 14-15, 2020 | |
| AERMOD Modeling for Permits | September 15-16, 2020 | |
| Advanced AERMOD | September 17-18, 2020 | |
| AERMOD Modeling for Permits | December 1-2, 2020 | |
| Advanced AERMOD | December 3-4, 2020 |
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BeestXpress
BeestXpress users have some great system enhancements to work with:
- The "Job Details" webpage now displays the pollutant being modeled;
- The "Job Details" webpage now displays run progress for MAXDCONT calculations;
- Modeling runs with multiple partitions now include a combined AERMOD input file (*.DTA) in the output .ZIP file;
- Added an option to the "Submit Job" webpage that affects modeling runs with multiple partitions: the intermediate output files created by each partition can be omitted from the output .ZIP file
- The "Job Search" webpage now includes the option to search by project number
- Users have access to up to 50 partitions per AERMOD run
To date, BeestXpress has processed over 350,000 AERMOD runs.
If you’ve never used BeestXpress, or it has been a while since you did, you may want to log on at www.beestxpress.com to take advantage of our AERMOD "force multiplier". That AERMOD run that might have taken a day to run on your desktop computer can finish in an hour or less on BeestXpress. When time is money, BeestXpress is the best modeling return on investment there is!
BeestXpress has been updated to run AERMOD 19191.
Meteorological Data Processing Services
Do you need AERMOD-ready or CalPuff-ready meteorological data? If so, we can help! Whether it’s running the AERMET / AERMINUTE system or a full CalMet run, Providence has the background, know-how, and experience to have your data processed and ready for you ASAP. Need on-site data processed? We do that, too! If you’d like more information, contact us at info@providenceoris.com or jamesred@providenceeng.com.
Consulting Solutions
One thing that we’re very proud of is the depth and range of our modeling experience and expertise. The kinds of air quality models we’ve used include all types, ranging from simple screening tools like SCREEN3 and AERSCREEN to plume models like ISC and AERMOD to CalPuff to CAMx. The types of analyses included basic Significant Impact Level, NAAQS, PSD increment consumption, Class I analyses, air toxics, and SIP attainment demonstrations. Most recently, we have begun conducting nonattainment permit inter-pollutant trading (NOx for VOC) modeling using CAMx. So, we’ve seen it all. To that end, should you or your clients need additional modeling assistance or just a second set of eyes to QA or peer review your modeling (ranging from initial protocol up to final submission), we stand ready to help. Feel free to contact us at (512) 258-8855 or info@providenceoris.com.
January 12-16, 2020
100th Annual Meeting of the American Meteorological Society
Boston, MA
February 18-19, 2020
AERMOD Modeling for Permits
Austin, TX
February 20-21, 2020
Advanced AERMOD
Austin, TX
Our complete class schedule can be found at www.providenceoris.com.
