Arrowtown

During winter, Arrowtown often has poor air quality largely because of its topography and climate combined with emissions from domestic heating. The town lies in the shadow of the mountain ranges extending from Coronet Peak in the east, to the Crown Range in the west. Throughout the evenings, cold air flows down from the hills and gathers in the basin, strengthening the temperature inversions that form overnight, and often extend into the late morning. These events cause PM₁₀ emissions to become trapped near the ground and become more concentrated.

Arrowtown's main emission source is from burning wood for home heating. The particulate concentrations are highest in winter, during the evenings, and to a lesser extent, at mid-morning. This matches the times when wood burners are in use. Seasonally, particulate concentrations are very high in winter, and are very low at all other times of the year. The National Environmental Standards are exceeded in Arrowtown several times each year.