Tree selection in urban greening shapes air quality for global cities
8 affiliations
- 1College of Environment and Climate, Institute for Environmental and Climate Research, Guangdong-Hongkong-Macau Joint Laboratory of Collaborative Innovation for Environmental Quality, Jinan University, 511443 Guangzhou, China
- 2Department of Chemistry and Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
- 3David D. Parrish LLC, 4630 MacArthur Ln, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
- 4Department of Environment and Energy Engineering, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, Gwangju, Republic of Korea
- 5Department of Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
- 6Aerodyne Research Inc., Billerica, MA 01821, USA
- 7Institute for Atmospheric and Earth System Research/Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Helsinki, Helsinki 00014, Finland
- 8Department of Atmospheric and Cryospheric Sciences, University of Innsbruck, Innrain 52f, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria
Abstract
Mitigating ozone pollution remains a pressing challenge for megacities worldwide. Biogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are proposed as pivotal precursors to urban ozone formation. However, direct observational evidence is scarce and the extent of this effect across cities is unclear. Here, by combining an unprecedented eddy covariance flux dataset from Beijing with modeling analysis, we find that urban vegetation contributes over half of organic reactivity essential for ozone production, predominantly driving ozone exceedances during hot periods. The unexpectedly high biogenic influences are attributed to the abundance of urban trees with strong emission potentials of VOCs within the city. Model extrapolations reveal that similar or even greater challenges exist for other cities across Asia and Oceania, where urban greening strategies often favor highly emitting trees. Our findings underscore the critical need for selective urban planning in greening programs to counteract a warming climate.
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BibTeX
@article{he2026tree,
title = {{Tree selection in urban greening shapes air quality for global cities}},
author = {Xianjun He and Bin Yuan and Yibo Huangfu and J. A. de Gouw and Sihang Wang and Suxia Yang and Yuwen Peng and D. D. Parrish and Xiaobing Li and Ming Chang and Zhanyou Mo and Kyung‐Eun Min and Woohui Nam and Yubin Chen and Xiaoxiao Zhang and Jipeng Qi and Qianqian Xie and Weihua Chen and Alex Guenther and Xuemei Wang and Douglas R. Worsnop and Thomas Karl and Min Shao},
journal = {Science Advances},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1126/sciadv.aee5583},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aee5583},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Tree selection in urban greening shapes air quality for global cities
AU - Xianjun He
AU - Bin Yuan
AU - Yibo Huangfu
AU - J. A. de Gouw
AU - Sihang Wang
AU - Suxia Yang
AU - Yuwen Peng
AU - D. D. Parrish
AU - Xiaobing Li
AU - Ming Chang
AU - Zhanyou Mo
AU - Kyung‐Eun Min
AU - Woohui Nam
AU - Yubin Chen
AU - Xiaoxiao Zhang
AU - Jipeng Qi
AU - Qianqian Xie
AU - Weihua Chen
AU - Alex Guenther
AU - Xuemei Wang
AU - Douglas R. Worsnop
AU - Thomas Karl
AU - Min Shao
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/19
JO - Science Advances
DO - 10.1126/sciadv.aee5583
UR - https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aee5583
AB - Mitigating ozone pollution remains a pressing challenge for megacities worldwide. Biogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are proposed as pivotal precursors to urban ozone formation. However, direct observational evidence is scarce and the extent of this effect across cities is unclear. Here, by combining an unprecedented eddy covariance flux dataset from Beijing with modeling analysis, we find that urban vegetation contributes over half of organic reactivity essential for ozone production, predominantly driving ozone exceedances during hot periods. The unexpectedly high biogenic influences are attributed to the abundance of urban trees with strong emission potentials of VOCs within the city. Model extrapolations reveal that similar or even greater challenges exist for other cities across Asia and Oceania, where urban greening strategies often favor highly emitting trees. Our findings underscore the critical need for selective urban planning in greening programs to counteract a warming climate.
SN - 2375-2548
ER -