Dust Storms at Al-Ahsa Oasis of Saudi Arabia: A Case Study

(Imad on Almhina)

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Abstract

The aim of this study is to characterize dust storm conditions in the arid environment of Al-Ahsa Oasis in Saudi Arabia. Real-time and continuous measurements were done to monitor a severe dust storm struck Al-Ahsa during 12–13 March 2014. This storm caused widespread and heavy dust deposition. A dramatic decrease in visibility with arrival of the storm, and average dust concentrations recorded during a 10-hour peak period were 6,772, 5,862.4 and 451.1 µg/m3 for total suspended particles (TSP), particles smaller than or equal to 10 µm (PM10) and particles smaller than or equal to 2.5 µm (PM2.5), respectively. Particle size distributions show that the geometric mean diameter during the storm was 13.58 ?m, based on particle mass concentration. Furthermore, the cumulative percentage of mass concentration for particles of 0.3–25 ?m size range shows that the majority were larger than 2.5 ?m (> 85%). During the study dust event the quantity of atmospheric dust greatly exceeded air quality limits, which potentially affected human, agricultural, and animal welfare. Key Words: Air Quality, Dust storm, Saudi Arabia, Visibility.
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