1. Faculty of Environment
  2. School of Earth and Environment
  3. People
  4. Profile
Dr Carly Reddington

Dr Carly Reddington

  • Position: AIA Research Fellow in Asian Air Quality
  • Areas of expertise: atmospheric aerosol; aerosol modelling; biomass burning aerosol; air quality; air pollution; aerosol microphysics
  • Email: C.L.S.Reddington@leeds.ac.uk
  • Phone: +44(0)113 343 5612
  • Location: 10.126 School of Earth and Environment
  • Website: Twitter | Googlescholar | Researchgate | ORCID

Profile

I am Research Fellow in the Institute for Climate and Atmospheric Science (ICAS) and a member of the Biosphere Atmosphere Group and the Atmospheric Chemistry and Aerosols research group. My Research Fellow position is supported by a gift from AIA Group Ltd as part of the Air Quality in Asia Project.

Research interests

My primary research interest lies in understanding how human activities impact the atmosphere and biosphere and, in turn, affect human health. A key focus of my research is exploring how air pollutant emissions, including those from deforestation fires and wildfires, alter atmospheric composition, degrade regional air quality, and harm public health. Another important area of my work examines the impacts of climate warming and compound-climate events on public health. I am particularly interested in the environmental justice dimensions of these issues, especially how they disproportionately affect lower-income groups with limited capacity to adapt to environmental challenges.

To address these complex challenges, I employ a range of research tools, including atmospheric chemistry and Earth system models, air quality monitoring data, and satellite observations. Driven by a commitment to societal impact, I am passionate about conducting research that extends beyond the scientific community, aiming to inform evidence-based policy and practice.

Research Highlights

Impacts of policy scenarios on air quality and public health in the Greater Bay Area, China
  1. PM2.5 exposure inside the Greater Bay Area (GBA) is strongly controlled by emissions outside the GBA (Conibear, Reddington et al., 2021).
  2. Reductions in residential solid fuel use and agricultural emissions result in the greatest reductions in PM2.5 exposure and the largest health benefits (Conibear, Reddington et al., 2021).
Examining major sources of air pollution in Asia
  1. Emissions from industry and residential cooking and heating make the largest to particulate air pollution in China (Reddington et al., 2019).
  2. Eliminating emissions from the residential sector would avert 467,000 (95 % uncertainty interval (95UI): 409,000–542,000) annual premature deaths across India, China, and Southeast Asia (Reddington et al., 2019).
Deforestation, fires and air quality
  1. Particulate air pollution from forest and vegetation fires disproportionately effects poorer populations in Southeast Asia. Preventing these fires would substantially improve air quality and reduce exposure to air pollution (Reddington et al., 2021).
  2. Reductions in fires associated with deforestation in Brazil between 2004 and 2012, caused regional particulate air pollution to decline by ~30% during the dry season. This reduction in air pollution would have a considerable public health benefit across South America (Reddington et al., 2015).
  3. Deforestation and peat fires in Sumatra account for 75% of the smoke pollution in Singapore; improved fire management in Indonesia would improve local and regional air quality (Reddington et al., 2014).

Previous research

The South American Biomass Burning Analysis (SAMBBA) Project: Investigating the properties and impacts of tropical biomass burning aerosol. For this project I used a global aerosol microphysics model and a variety of observations in the Amazon region to improve understanding of aerosol emissions from vegetation fires (Reddington et al., 2016; 2019). I also used these tools to quantify the effects of biomass burning on atmospheric composition, regional air quality and human health (Reddington et al., 2014; 2015).

The Global Synthesis Science Project (GASSP): Constraining uncertainty in global aerosol models. This this project I synthesised a vast database of diverse aerosol measurements from aircraft, ground stations and ships (Reddington et al., 2017), which is being used in combination with statistical methods to evaluate global aerosol and climate models and constrain their uncertainties.

PhD Project. During my PhD I investigated primary and secondary sources of atmospheric aerosol over Europe using a global atmospheric chemistry-transport model (Reddington et al., 2011; 2013).

Qualifications

  • PhD, Atmospheric Science
  • MPhys (Hons), Physics with Astrophysics

Professional memberships

  • Member of the Royal Society of Chemistry (MRSC)
  • Member of the American Geophysical Union

Research groups and institutes

  • Atmospheric Chemistry and Aerosols
  • Institute for Climate and Atmospheric Science
<h4>Postgraduate research opportunities</h4> <p>We welcome enquiries from motivated and qualified applicants from all around the world who are interested in PhD study. Our <a href="https://phd.leeds.ac.uk">research opportunities</a> allow you to search for projects and scholarships.</p>