Towards a Visibility Management Program in British Columbia: The Development of a Visual Air Quality Index for the Lower Fraser Valley

摘要

1. Quantitative measures of visibility are required in a visual air quality management program, however these measures (such as b_(ext)) need to be related to public perception for them to be meaningful. 2. On the basis of surveys of 456 participants in three earlier studies, measured b_(scat) or b_(ext) can be used to predict VAQ and % Scene Acceptability, for these two locations. These relationships were confirmed in a 2011 survey 3. The recent survey data provided the basis for the creation of a VAQ Index using two different methods as a relevant public reporting tool on the visibility conditions, and as a metric to track progress toward meeting a specified visibility improvement goal. 4. A test website shows two real-time vistas, the corresponding calculated visibility parameters and the two VAQ Index proposals. This information is currently being archived so the proposals can be evaluated to assess their ability to characterize visibility.