Professor Allen Goldstein

Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management

“Biogenic Volatile Organic Compounds in California’s Central Valley” 

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are organic compounds of natural and anthropogenic origin. VOCs react with oxides of nitrogen in the presence of sunlight to produce ozone and particulate matter, which are both considered hazardous air pollutants. VOCs emitted by plants are produced in larger quantities globally than VOCs from anthropogenic sources, but their relative contributions on local scales is more uncertain. BVOC emissions are strongly influenced by environmental conditions and the vegetation present.  Measurements of Biogenic volatile compound (BVOC) emissions is essential for understanding how to regulate air pollution to reduce ozone and particulate matter.1 Chemically speciated BVOC measurements were made at two field sites in California’s Central Valley. One of them located near Visalia, CA in the San Joaquin Valley and consisted of primarily agricultural vegetation. The second one was located near Ione, CA at Tonzi Ranch and was dominated by natural vegetation. Samples were analyzed with gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (GC/MS) to calculate concentrations of hundreds of different VOCs in the San Joaquin Valley. Additionally, at Tonzi Ranch we used a relaxed-eddy accumulation method to estimate canopy scale isoprene emissions from the California Blue Oak. This information on BVOCs will contribute to the analysis of the impact of VOCs on ozone and aerosol production for the Central Valley and create a better understanding of the different VOC sources and their atmospheric chemistry leading to detrimental air pollution.1 Ultimately providing important insights to governmental agencies such as the California Air Resources board to create effective policies to protect our communities and environment. The main focus of our analyses was on BVOC concentrations and emissions in California’s Central Valley. We present information of concentrations and diurnal cycles of numerous BVOCs in the San Joaquin Valley and preliminary calculations of isoprene emissions at Tonzi Ranch.

Luis was born in Guatemala and raised in Nicaragua. He attends Berkeley City and Laney Colleges with a 3.795 GPA. He will apply to UC Berkeley to pursue a major in Civil/Environmental engineering with a minor in City and Regional Planning. Luis is a first generation college student. He received the Hispanic Community affairs Council Scholarship. He would like to do research on alternative methods of construction to provide low-cost environmentally sustainable places for underrepresented communities in Latin America.