In February 2009 immission of wood smoke in a residential area in Schoorl (Noord-Holland, Netherlands) was investigated. The aim was to assess the effect of local fine dust emissions - caused by heating with wood stoves in this area - on local fine dust immission. To reveal the additional contribution of wood smoke to PM2.5 and PM10, measurements have been performed at two places: in Schoorl, as being the affected area, and at a farm in Burgerbrug, a place located at some 8 km distance from Schoorl. Burgerbrug is considered to be a background loca-tion where PM10 and PM2.5 are not directly influenced by local wood smoke sources. The sampling took place during westerly winds, a wind direction with usually lower fine dust concentrations in the coastal region of Noord-Holland.
Besides establishing the difference in mass concentration of PM2.5 and PM10 by weighing filter samples from both locations, also the amount of levoglucosan on the filter was analyzed. Combining the thus gathered information gave insight in the elevated levels of fine dust - at breathing height - presumably caused by heating with residential wood stoves. It was found that local fine dust concentrations have indeed a significant higher level at the residential area in Schoorl. The exceedence of fine dust in comparison with that in Burgerbrug could be attributed to wood smoke, for also levoglucosan concentrations were elevated in Schoorl.
The contribution of wood smoke to the local fine dust concentration was estimated to be minimal 9% and maximal 27% for PM10 and minimal 30% to maximal 39 % for PM2.5.
The ratio between levoglucosan and the exceeding fine dust was calculated on 41.6 for PM2.5 and 36.5 for PM10.
Remarkable is too that in Burgerbrug levoglucosan levels are found at westerly wind directions without influence of any local sources, suggesting that these amounts originate from remote sources (as for instance the United Kingdom)