Air quality, weather forecasting projects net climate research funding

Two UBC Science research projects—one looking at improving weather forecasting and warning capability, the other investigating the effects of international pollutants on Canada’s air quality—have received more than $300,000 from Canada’s major funding body for university-led climate research.

The Canadian Foundation for Climate and Atmospheric Sciences (CFCAS) funding, which runs over two years for each project, will support the work of Professor Roland Stull in the Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences and Professor Allan Bertram in the Department of Chemistry.

Stull’s work will incorporate new methods into older forecasting techniques with the hope of generating more accurate weather predictions in complex terrain—efforts that can help the Canadian economy and save lives. Bertram’s research will investigate the trans-Pacific transportation of particles from Eastern Asia to Canada’s western provinces in order to better manage the threats they may pose.

"We are delighted for professors Stull and Bertram," says Don Brooks, UBC’s Associate Vice-President, Research. "Funding from institutions such as CFCAS goes a long way to augment other sources of research support to advance our knowledge and prepare us for some of the most pressing issues in the world today."

The funding is part of a CFCAS competition focused on research that could guide environmental policy or adaptation strategies. Funds were awarded for research on air quality, northern science, weather prediction and forecasting, or climate change and water resources.

More about the CFCAS: www.cfcas.org