A high-resolution emission inventory of crop burning in fields in China based on MODIS Thermal Anomalies/Fire products

Agricultural field burning plays an important role in atmospheric pollution and climate change. This work aims to develop a detailed emission inventory for agricultural burning in China with a high spatial and temporal resolution. Province-specific statistical data, distributed by the Chinese national government, and results from scientific literature were utilized to estimate the total emissions for the base year 2006. Emissions were allocated to a 1 km grid and a 10-day interval by using the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Thermal Anomalies/Fire product (MOD/MYD14A1). The estimated annual emission ranges, with a 90% confidence interval, are 68 (51-85) Tg CO2 yr−1, 4 (2-7) Tg CO yr−1, 0.25 (0.08-0.46) Tg CH4 yr−1, 2.2 (1.08-3.46) Tg NMOCs yr−1, 0.23 (0.08-0.41) Tg NOx yr−1, 0.09 (0.03-0.17) Tg NH3 yr−1, 0.02 (0.01-0.03) Tg SO2 yr−1, 0.03 (0.01-0.05) Tg BC yr−1, 0.1 (0.04-0.17) Tg OC yr−1, 0.27 (0.13-0.42) Tg PM2.5 yr−1, 0.31 (0.12-0.53) Tg PM10 yr−1. Provinces with the highest emissions are Anhui, Guizhou and Hunan. Spatially, agricultural fires are mostly located in the North China Plain, where the occurrence of fires is concentrated in early and late June (over 75% of the whole year) with another smaller peak in early October. This pattern corresponds with sowing and harvesting times for the main crops: wheat and maize. The temporal fire variation of two other agricultural zones in northeast China and south China are also detailed in our study. Our inventory, with a relatively high spatiotemporal resolution (1 km grid and 10 days), could meet the need of global and regional air quality simulations.

► Emission estimation for crop residue field burning in China. ► Relatively high spatiotemporal resolution: 1 km and 10 days. ► 8-year MODIS Thermal Anomalies/Fire products were used to allocate the emissions. ► Detailed discussion of spatiotemporal distribution of agricultural open fire.