Figure 3.3: Coastal fumigation
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Text description of figure
Figure 3.3 shows two stacks emitting plumes into the air near the coast. The boundary layer, where stable onshore flow above the sea meets unstable air above the land, is shown as a line starting at ground level at the land/sea interface, increasing in height with increasing distance inland.
The stack on the left is located on the shoreline closest to the sea. As the plume from this stack travels over the land it remains aloft in the stable air zone with limited mixing until it encounters the boundary layer, at which point it is drawn into the unstable air and mixed down to ground level.
The stack on the right is located further inland. Emissions from this stack remain within the boundary layer where dispersion (mixing) is higher than in the stable zone above.
