Spatial Distribution of Atmospheric Ammonia using Samplers in Jeollabuk-do

Atmospheric ammonia (NH3) is a key important pollutant contributing to air quality and ecosystem. However, distributions and characteristics of atmospheric NH3 are still poorly understood. In this study, using passive samplers, we measured atmospheric NH3 concentrations from ten different monitoring sites at an urban area (three sites in Jeonju), a livestock area (three sites in Jeongeup), an agricultural area (three sites in Gimje), and a remote area (one site in Saemangeum) in Jeollabuk-do from June to December 2020. During the entire periods, a livestock area #3 showed the highest NH3 concentration of similar to 161.1 ppb while a remote area #1 presented the lowest NH3 concentration of similar to 4.9 ppb. During the summertime, there was a significant increase in atmospheric NH3 levels at most sites. However, high NH3 level was observed in winter at the point emission source of a large-scale pig farm due to the production of livestock manure and chemical fertilizer. During the whole periods, the average atmospheric NH3 concentrations ranged in the livestock area (72.7 +/- 73.6 ppb) > agricultural area (34.9 +/- 26.4 ppb) > urban area (13.0 +/- 6.2 ppb) > remote area in Saemangeum (4.9 +/- 1.8 ppb). These results would be useful to establish an effective policy for ammonia reduction.