Air pollution: a tale of two countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Haryanto, Budi; Franklin, Peter

2011-01-01

The fast growing economies and continued urbanization in Asian countries have increased the demand for mobility and energy in the region, resulting in high levels of air pollution in cities from mobile and stationary sources. In contrast, low level of urbanization in Australia produces low level of urban air pollution. The World Health Organization estimates that about 500,000 premature deaths per year are caused by air pollution, leaving the urban poor particularly vulnerable since they live in air pollution hotspots, have low respiratory resistance due to bad nutrition, and lack access to quality health care. Identifying the differences and similarities of air pollution levels and its impacts, between Indonesia and Australia, will provide best lesson learned to tackle air pollution problems for Pacific Basin Rim countries.

Indoor air pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qureshi, I.H.

2001-01-01

Indoor air pollution is a potential risk to human health. Prolonged exposure to indoor pollutants may cause various infectious, allergic and other diseases. Indoor pollutants can emanate from a broad array of internal and external sources. Internal sources include building and furnishing materials, consumer and commercial products, office equipment, micro-organisms, pesticides and human occupants activities. External sources include soil, water supplies and outside makeup air. The main indoor air pollutants of concern are inorganic gases, formaldehyde and other volatile organic compounds, pesticides, radon and its daughters, particulates and microbes. The magnitude of human exposure to indoor pollutants can be estimated or predicted with the help of mathematical models which have been developed using the data from source emission testing and field monitoring of pollutants. In order to minimize human exposure to indoor pollutants, many countries have formulated guidelines / standards for the maximum permissible levels of main pollutants. Acceptable indoor air quality can be achieved by controlling indoor pollution sources and by effective ventilation system for removal of indoor pollutants. (author)

Coping with Indoor Air Pollution

Science.gov (United States)

... Pollution > Coping with Indoor Air Pollution Font: Outdoor Pollution Indoor Air Pollution Asthma Triggers For Kids and Teachers Coping with Indoor Air Pollution Indoor air pollution is irritating to everyone: But people who ...

Long-term Changes in Extreme Air Pollution Meteorology and the Implications for Air Quality.

Science.gov (United States)

Hou, Pei; Wu, Shiliang

2016-03-31

Extreme air pollution meteorological events, such as heat waves, temperature inversions and atmospheric stagnation episodes, can significantly affect air quality. Based on observational data, we have analyzed the long-term evolution of extreme air pollution meteorology on the global scale and their potential impacts on air quality, especially the high pollution episodes. We have identified significant increasing trends for the occurrences of extreme air pollution meteorological events in the past six decades, especially over the continental regions. Statistical analysis combining air quality data and meteorological data further indicates strong sensitivities of air quality (including both average air pollutant concentrations and high pollution episodes) to extreme meteorological events. For example, we find that in the United States the probability of severe ozone pollution when there are heat waves could be up to seven times of the average probability during summertime, while temperature inversions in wintertime could enhance the probability of severe particulate matter pollution by more than a factor of two. We have also identified significant seasonal and spatial variations in the sensitivity of air quality to extreme air pollution meteorology.

Indoor Air Pollution

Science.gov (United States)

We usually think of air pollution as being outdoors, but the air in your house or office could also be polluted. Sources of indoor pollution include Mold and pollen Tobacco smoke Household products ...

Hazardous Air Pollutants

Science.gov (United States)

... Search Main menu Environmental Topics Air Bed Bugs Chemicals and Toxics Environmental Information by Location Greener Living Health Land, ... regulate toxic air pollutants, also known as air toxics, from categories of industrial facilities in two phases . About Hazardous Air Pollutants ...

Ground water pollution through air pollutants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cichorowski, G.; Michel, B.; Versteegen, D.; Wettmann, R.

1989-01-01

The aim of the investigation is to determine the significance of air pollutants for ground water quality and ground water use. The report summarizes present knowledge and assesses statements with a view to potential ground water pollution from the air. In this context pollution paths, the spreading behaviour of pollutants, and 'cross points' with burden potentials from other pollutant sources are presented. (orig.) [de

Effect of environmental air pollution on cardiovascular diseases.

Science.gov (United States)

Meo, S A; Suraya, F

2015-12-01

Environmental air pollution has become a leading health concern especially in the developing countries with more urbanization, industrialization and rapidly growing population. Prolonged exposure to air pollution is a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of environmental air pollution on progression of cardiovascular problems. In this study, we identified 6880 published articles through a systematic database including ISI-Web of Science, PubMed and EMBASE. The allied literature was searched by using the key words such as environmental pollution, air pollution, particulate matter pollutants PM 2.5 μm-PM 10 μm. Literature in which environmental air pollution and cardiac diseases were discussed was included. Descriptive information was retrieved from the selected literature. Finally, we included 67 publications and remaining studies were excluded. Environmental pollution can cause high blood pressure, arrhythmias, enhanced coagulation, thrombosis, acute arterial vasoconstriction, atherosclerosis, ischemic heart diseases, myocardial infarction and even heart failure. Environmental air pollution is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. Environmental pollution exerts its detrimental effects on the heart by developing pulmonary inflammation, systemic inflammation, oxidative stress, endothelial dysfunction and prothrombotic changes. Environmental protection officials must take high priority steps to minimize the air pollution to decrease the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases.

Chinese air pollution embodied in trade

Science.gov (United States)

Davis, S. J.

2014-12-01

Rapid economic development in China has been accompanied by high levels of air pollution in many areas of China. Although researchers have applied a range of methods to monitor and track pollutant emissions in the atmosphere, studies of the underlying economic and technological drivers of this pollution have received considerably less attention. I will present results of a series of studies that have quantified the air pollutants embodied in goods being traded both within China and internationally. The results show that trade is facilitating the concentration of pollution in less economically developed areas, which in turn export pollution-intensive goods to more affluent areas. However, the export-related pollution itself is sometimes transported long distances; for instance, we have quantified the impacts of the Chinese pollution embodied in internationally-exported goods on air quality in the US. These findings important implications for Chinese efforts to curb CO2 emissions and improve air quality. The research to be presented reflects the efforts of a multiple year, ongoing collaboration among interdisciplinary researchers in China, the US and the UK.

Air Pollution and Stroke.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Kuan Ken; Miller, Mark R; Shah, Anoop S V

2018-01-01

The adverse health effects of air pollution have long been recognised; however, there is less awareness that the majority of the morbidity and mortality caused by air pollution is due to its effects on the cardiovascular system. Evidence from epidemiological studies have demonstrated a strong association between air pollution and cardiovascular diseases including stroke. Although the relative risk is small at an individual level, the ubiquitous nature of exposure to air pollution means that the absolute risk at a population level is on a par with "traditional" risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Of particular concern are findings that the strength of this association is stronger in low and middle income countries where air pollution is projected to rise as a result of rapid industrialisation. The underlying biological mechanisms through which air pollutants exert their effect on the vasculature are still an area of intense discussion. A greater understanding of the effect size and mechanisms is necessary to develop effective strategies at individual and policy levels to mitigate the adverse cardiovascular effects of air pollution.

Interactions between particulate air pollution and temperature in air pollution mortality time series studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roberts, Steven

2004-01-01

In many community time series studies on the effect of particulate air pollution on mortality, particulate air pollution is modeled additively. In this study, we investigated the interaction between daily particulate air pollution and daily mean temperature in Cook County, Illinois and Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, using data for the period 1987-1994. This was done through the use of joint particulate air pollution-temperature response surfaces and by stratifying the effect of particulate air pollution on mortality by temperature. Evidence that the effect of particulate air pollution on mortality may depend on temperature is found. However, the results were sensitive to the number of degrees of freedom used in the confounder adjustments, the particulate air pollution exposure measure, and how the effects of temperature on mortality are modeled. The results were less sensitive to the estimation method used--generalized linear models and natural cubic splines or generalized additive models and smoothing splines. The results of this study suggest that in community particulate air pollution mortality time series studies the possibility of an interaction between daily particulate air pollution and daily mean temperature should be considered

Air pollution epidemiology. Assessment of health effects and risks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Katsouyanni, K. [Athens Univ. (Greece). Dept. of Hygiene and Epidemiology

1995-12-31

Air pollution epidemiology is the study of the occurrence and distribution of health outcomes in association with community air pollution exposure. It is therefore specific in the exposure variable. Air pollution health effects became evident during high air pollution episodes which occurred in the first decades of our century. Since then, legal and other control measures have led to lower air pollution levels. However, recent results from several studies indicate that lower levels of air pollution than the previously considered safe have serious adverse health effects. Although, there is increasingly agreement that air pollution, at levels measured today, affects health, there is still a lot to be understood concerning specific causal pollutants, biologic mechanisms involved and sensitive groups of individuals. The extent of potential confounding, time-considerations in air pollution effects, individual variation in air pollution exposure and exposure misclassification are some factors which complicate the study of these issues. (author)

Air pollution epidemiology. Assessment of health effects and risks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Katsouyanni, K [Athens Univ. (Greece). Dept. of Hygiene and Epidemiology

1996-12-31

Air pollution epidemiology is the study of the occurrence and distribution of health outcomes in association with community air pollution exposure. It is therefore specific in the exposure variable. Air pollution health effects became evident during high air pollution episodes which occurred in the first decades of our century. Since then, legal and other control measures have led to lower air pollution levels. However, recent results from several studies indicate that lower levels of air pollution than the previously considered safe have serious adverse health effects. Although, there is increasingly agreement that air pollution, at levels measured today, affects health, there is still a lot to be understood concerning specific causal pollutants, biologic mechanisms involved and sensitive groups of individuals. The extent of potential confounding, time-considerations in air pollution effects, individual variation in air pollution exposure and exposure misclassification are some factors which complicate the study of these issues. (author)

Indoor Air Pollution (Environmental Health Student Portal)

Science.gov (United States)

... Students to Environmental Health Information Menu Home Air Pollution Air Pollution Home Indoor Air Pollution Outdoor Air Pollution ... Pollution Indoor Air Pollution Print this Page Air Pollution Air Pollution Home Indoor Air Pollution Outdoor Air Pollution ...

APEX (Air Pollution Exercise) Volume 21: Legal References: Air Pollution Control Regulations.

Science.gov (United States)

Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC. Office of Manpower Development.

The Legal References: Air Pollution Control Regulations Manual is the last in a set of 21 manuals (AA 001 009-001 029) used in APEX (Air Pollution Exercise), a computerized college and professional level "real world" game simulation of a community with urban and rural problems, industrial activities, and air pollution difficulties. The manual…

Air pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nelson, P.

2000-01-01

Australian cites experience a number of current and emerging air pollution problems. Concentrations of traditional primary pollutants such as CO, lead and dust have fallen in recent years as a consequence of air pollutant control measures, and the widespread introduction of lead-free petrol. However, recommended guidelines for ozone, the principal component of photochemical smog, are regularly exceeded in major capital cities in the summer months. In addition, it is predicted that extensive urban expansion will lead to much greater dependence on the motor vehicle as the primary means of transportation. Effects of air pollution are felt at a variety of scales. Traditionally, concerns about gaseous and particulate emissions from industrial and vehicular sources were focused on local impacts due to exposure to toxic species such as CO and lead. As noted above, concentrations of these pollutants have been reduced by a variety of control measures. Pollutants which have effects at a regional scale, such as photochemically-produced ozone, and acidic gases and particles have proved more difficult to reduce. In general, these pollutants arc not the result of direct emissions to atmosphere, but result from complex secondary processes driven by photochemical reactions of species such as NO 2 and aldehydes. In addition, global effects of gaseous and particulate emissions to the atmosphere have received significant recent attention, concentrations of atmospheric CO 2 with predicted impacts on global climate, and ozone depletion due to anthropogenic emissions of chlorine-containing chemicals are the two major examples. Combustion processes from petrol- and diesel-fuelled vehicles, make major contributions to air pollution, and the magnitude of this contribution is discussed in this article

Healthy neighborhoods: walkability and air pollution.

Science.gov (United States)

Marshall, Julian D; Brauer, Michael; Frank, Lawrence D

2009-11-01

The built environment may influence health in part through the promotion of physical activity and exposure to pollution. To date, no studies have explored interactions between neighborhood walkability and air pollution exposure. We estimated concentrations of nitric oxide (NO), a marker for direct vehicle emissions), and ozone (O(3)) and a neighborhood walkability score, for 49,702 (89% of total) postal codes in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. NO concentrations were estimated from a land-use regression model, O(3) was estimated from ambient monitoring data; walkability was calculated based on geographic attributes such as land-use mix, street connectivity, and residential density. All three attributes exhibit an urban-rural gradient, with high walkability and NO concentrations, and low O(3) concentrations, near the city center. Lower-income areas tend to have higher NO concentrations and walkability and lower O(3) concentrations. Higher-income areas tend to have lower pollution (NO and O(3)). "Sweet-spot" neighborhoods (low pollution, high walkability) are generally located near but not at the city center and are almost exclusively higher income. Increased concentration of activities in urban settings yields both health costs and benefits. Our research identifies neighborhoods that do especially well (and especially poorly) for walkability and air pollution exposure. Work is needed to ensure that the poor do not bear an undue burden of urban air pollution and that neighborhoods designed for walking, bicycling, or mass transit do not adversely affect resident's exposure to air pollution. Analyses presented here could be replicated in other cities and tracked over time to better understand interactions among neighborhood walkability, air pollution exposure, and income level.

Air Pollution Prevention and Control Policy in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Cunrui; Wang, Qiong; Wang, Suhan; Ren, Meng; Ma, Rui; He, Yiling

2017-01-01

With rapid urbanization and development of transport infrastructure, air pollution caused by multiple-pollutant emissions and vehicle exhaust has been aggravated year by year in China. In order to improve air quality, the Chinese authorities have taken a series of actions to control air pollution emission load within a permissible range. However, although China has made positive progress on tackling air pollution, these actions have not kept up with its economy growth and fossil-fuel use. The traditional single-pollutant approach is far from enough in China now, and in the near future, air pollution control strategies should move in the direction of the multiple-pollutant approach. In addition, undesirable air quality is usually linked with the combination of high emissions and adverse weather conditions. However, few studies have been done on the influence of climate change on atmospheric chemistry in the global perspective. Available evidence suggested that climate change is likely to exacerbate certain kinds of air pollutants including ozone and smoke from wildfires. This has become a major public health problem because the interactions of global climate change, urban heat islands, and air pollution have adverse effects on human health. In this chapter, we first review the past and current circumstances of China's responses to air pollution. Then we discuss the control challenges and future options for a better air quality in China. Finally, we begin to unravel links between air pollution and climate change, providing new opportunities for integrated research and actions in China.

High-Resolution Air Pollution Mapping with Google Street View Cars: Exploiting Big Data.

Science.gov (United States)

Apte, Joshua S; Messier, Kyle P; Gani, Shahzad; Brauer, Michael; Kirchstetter, Thomas W; Lunden, Melissa M; Marshall, Julian D; Portier, Christopher J; Vermeulen, Roel C H; Hamburg, Steven P

2017-06-20

Air pollution affects billions of people worldwide, yet ambient pollution measurements are limited for much of the world. Urban air pollution concentrations vary sharply over short distances (≪1 km) owing to unevenly distributed emission sources, dilution, and physicochemical transformations. Accordingly, even where present, conventional fixed-site pollution monitoring methods lack the spatial resolution needed to characterize heterogeneous human exposures and localized pollution hotspots. Here, we demonstrate a measurement approach to reveal urban air pollution patterns at 4-5 orders of magnitude greater spatial precision than possible with current central-site ambient monitoring. We equipped Google Street View vehicles with a fast-response pollution measurement platform and repeatedly sampled every street in a 30-km 2 area of Oakland, CA, developing the largest urban air quality data set of its type. Resulting maps of annual daytime NO, NO 2 , and black carbon at 30 m-scale reveal stable, persistent pollution patterns with surprisingly sharp small-scale variability attributable to local sources, up to 5-8× within individual city blocks. Since local variation in air quality profoundly impacts public health and environmental equity, our results have important implications for how air pollution is measured and managed. If validated elsewhere, this readily scalable measurement approach could address major air quality data gaps worldwide.

Air Pollution Training Programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Public Health Service (DHEW), Rockville, MD.

This catalog lists the universities, both supported and not supported by the Division of Air Pollution, which offer graduate programs in the field of air pollution. The catalog briefly describes the programs and their entrance requirements, the requirements, qualifications and terms of special fellowships offered by the Division of Air Pollution.…

Health Effects of Air Pollution

Science.gov (United States)

... Health effects of air pollution Health effects of air pollution Breathing air that is not clean can hurt ... important to know about the health effects that air pollution can have on you and others. Once you ...

Interaction patterns of major air pollutants in Hong Kong territory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu, W.Z.; Wang, X.K.

2004-01-01

Air pollution in a metropolitan city like Hong Kong is a major obstacle to improve air quality and living environment due to the high population density and the vehicle emission increases. The high air pollutant levels impose harm to the human health and impair the city image. The characteristic analysis of air pollutants is very important and necessary to pollutant monitoring, forecasting and controlling. In this study, the interaction patterns of principle air pollutants, e.g. nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), nitric oxide (NO), nitric oxides (NO x ) and ozone (O 3 ), a secondary pollutant, are investigated based on the measured database in four selected areas, which covers two urban types (i.e. residential area, mixed residential/commercial/industrial area) in Hong Kong, during the period of 1999-2001. The study involves analyzing the chemical and physical properties, the characteristics of air pollutants and the factors affecting such interactions using statistical method. The results reveal several routines in urban air pollutants' variations, interaction and trends from macro aspect

Can air pollutant controls change global warming?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Strefler, Jessica; Luderer, Gunnar; Kriegler, Elmar; Meinshausen, Malte

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Air pollution policies do not affect long-term climate targets. • Reduction of aerosols counteracts a fraction of the reduction of Kyoto forcing. • Air pollution policies may affect the rate of climate change in the short term. • There is no tradeoff between clean air and climate policies. - Abstract: In this paper we analyze the interaction between climate and air pollution policies using the integrated assessment model REMIND coupled to the reduced-form climate model MAGICC. Since overall, aerosols tend to cool the atmosphere, there is a concern that a reduction of pollutant emissions could accelerate global warming and offset the climate benefits of carbon dioxide emission reductions. We investigate scenarios which independently reduce emissions from either large-scale sources, such as power plants, or small-scale sources, such as cooking and heating stoves. Large-scale sources are likely to be easier to control, but their aerosol emissions are characterized by a relatively high sulfur content, which tends to result in atmospheric cooling. Pollution from small-scale sources, by contrast, is characterized by a high share of carbonaceous aerosol, which is an important contributor to global warming. We find that air pollution policies can significantly reduce aerosol emissions when no climate policies are in place. Stringent climate policies lead to a large reduction of fossil fuel use, and therefore result in a concurrent reduction of air pollutant emissions. These reductions partly reduce aerosol masking, thus initially counteracting the reduction of greenhouse gas forcing, however not overcompensating it. If climate policies are in place, air pollution policies have almost no impacts on medium- and long-term radiative forcing. Therefore there is no conflict of objectives between clean air and limiting global warming. We find that the stringency of air pollution policies may influence the rate of global temperature change in the first decade

Multicontaminant air pollution in Chinese cities.

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Lijian; Zhou, Weiqi; Pickett, Steward Ta; Li, Weifeng; Qian, Yuguo

2018-04-01

To investigate multicontaminant air pollution in Chinese cities, to quantify the urban population affected and to explore the relationship between air pollution and urban population size. We obtained data for 155 cities with 276 million inhabitants for 2014 from China's air quality monitoring network on concentrations of fine particulate matter measuring under 2.5 μm (PM 2.5 ), coarse particulate matter measuring 2.5 to 10 μm (PM 10 ), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ) and ozone (O 3 ). Concentrations were considered as high, if they exceeded World Health Organization (WHO) guideline limits. Overall, 51% (142 million) of the study population was exposed to mean annual multicontaminant concentrations above WHO limits - east China and the megacities were worst affected. High daily levels of four-contaminant mixtures of PM 2.5 , PM 10 , SO 2 and O 3 and PM 2.5 , PM 10 , SO 2 and NO 2 occurred on up to 110 days in 2014 in many cities, mainly in Shandong and Hebei Provinces. High daily levels of PM 2.5 , PM 10 and SO 2 occurred on over  146 days in 110 cities, mainly in east and central China. High daily levels of mixtures of PM 2.5 and PM 10 , PM 2.5 and SO 2 , and PM 10 and SO 2 occurred on over  146 days in 145 cities, mainly in east China. Surprisingly, multicontaminant air pollution was less frequent in cities with populations over 10 million than in smaller cities. Multicontaminant air pollution was common in Chinese cities. A shift from single-contaminant to multicontaminant evaluations of the health effects of air pollution is needed. China should implement protective measures during future urbanization.

Air Pollutants Minimalization of Pollutant Absorber with Condensation System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruhiat, Yayat; Wibowo, Firmanul Catur; Oktarisa, Yuvita

2017-01-01

Industrial development has implications for pollution, one of it is air pollution. The amount of air pollutants emitted from industrial depend on several factors which are capacity of its fuel, high chimneys and atmospheric stability. To minimize pollutants emitted from industries is created a tool called Pollutant Absorber (PA) with a condensing system. Research and Development with the approach of Design for Production was used as methodology in making PA. To test the function of PA, the simulation had been done by using the data on industrial emissions Cilegon industrial area. The simulation results in 15 years period showed that the PA was able to minimize the pollutant emissions of SO2 by 38% NOx by 37% and dust by 64%. Differences in the absorption of pollutants shows the weakness of particle separation process in the separator. This condition happen because the condensation process is less optimal during the absorption and separation in the separator. (paper)

Noise, air pollutants and traffic: continuous measurement and correlation at a high-traffic location in New York City.

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, Zev; Kheirbek, Iyad; Clougherty, Jane E; Ito, Kazuhiko; Matte, Thomas; Markowitz, Steven; Eisl, Holger

2011-11-01

Epidemiological studies have linked both noise and air pollution to common adverse health outcomes such as increased blood pressure and myocardial infarction. In urban settings, noise and air pollution share important sources, notably traffic, and several recent studies have shown spatial correlations between noise and air pollution. The temporal association between these exposures, however, has yet to be thoroughly investigated despite the importance of time series studies in air pollution epidemiology and the potential that correlations between these exposures could at least partly confound statistical associations identified in these studies. An aethelometer, for continuous elemental carbon measurement, was co-located with a continuous noise monitor near a major urban highway in New York City for six days in August 2009. Hourly elemental carbon measurements and hourly data on overall noise levels and low, medium and high frequency noise levels were collected. Hourly average concentrations of fine particles and nitrogen oxides, wind speed and direction and car, truck and bus traffic were obtained from nearby regulatory monitors. Overall temporal patterns, as well as day-night and weekday-weekend patterns, were characterized and compared for all variables. Noise levels were correlated with car, truck, and bus traffic and with air pollutants. We observed strong day-night and weekday-weekend variation in noise and air pollutants and correlations between pollutants varied by noise frequency. Medium and high frequency noise were generally more strongly correlated with traffic and traffic-related pollutants than low frequency noise and the correlation with medium and high frequency noise was generally stronger at night. Correlations with nighttime high frequency noise were particularly high for car traffic (Spearman rho=0.84), nitric oxide (0.73) and nitrogen dioxide (0.83). Wind speed and direction mediated relationships between pollutants and noise. Noise levels are

[Air pollution, cardiovascular risk and hypertension].

Science.gov (United States)

Soldevila Bacardit, N; Vinyoles Bargalló, E; Agudo Ugena, J; Camps Vila, L

2018-04-24

Air pollution is a worrying factor and has an impact on public health. Multiple studies relate exposure to air pollutants with an increase in cardiovascular events, cardiovascular mortality and mortality for all causes. A relationship has also been demonstrated between increased pollution and high blood pressure, as well as a higher prevalence of hypertension. Pollutants that play a more relevant role in this association are particulate matters, nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide. The objective of this review is to understand the mechanisms involved in this increase and to find the most recent publications that relate pollution, cardiovascular risk and hypertension. Copyright © 2018 SEH-LELHA. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Air pollution control in practice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baum, F.

1988-01-01

The book offers a comprehensive treatment of the subject, from air pollution monitoring and effects on human and animal health, on plants and materials, to pollution reduction measures, practical applications, and legal regulations. It intends to give the air pollution expert a basis for developing practicable solutions. Apart from the 'classic' pollutants, also radioactive air pollution is gone into. (DG) With 366 figs., 190 tabs [de

Effects of air pollution on human health

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Heimann, H

1961-01-01

An appreciable amount of knowledge exists about the effects of community air pollution upon human health. This knowledge comes in part from direct studies of the air pollution health problem and in part from investigations done for other purposes. It is equally apparent that there are many aspects of the subject of the health effects of air pollution on which sound information is lacking. Many years undoubtedly will pass before we have the answers to all the questions involved. Man-made air pollution could be entirely eliminated, but the price that civilization would be required to pay for this would be exorbitant by any standards, whether monetary or otherwise. It is unreasonable to contemplate that we could put a stop to all combustion, the chief source of man-made air pollution. It is logical, however, to consider that the clarification of the air on a qualitatively and quantitatively selective basis is feasible, and in some cases, highly desirable. This can be done, for example, by selectively arresting the contaminants at their source. 404 references.

Indoor air pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spengler, J.D.

1985-01-01

Although official efforts to control air pollution have traditionally focused on outdoor air, it is now apparent that elevated contaminant concentrations are common inside some private and public buildings. Concerns about potential public health problems due to indoor air pollution are based on evidence that urban residents typically spend more than 90 percent of their time indoors, concentrations of some contaminants are higher indoors than outdoors, and for some pollutants personal exposures are not characterized adequately by outdoor measurements. Among the more important indoor contaminants associated with health or irritation effects are passive tobacco smoke, radon decay products, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, formaldehyde, asbestos fibers, microorganisms and aeroallergens. Efforts to assess health risks associated with indoor air pollution are limited by insufficient information about the number of people exposed, the pattern and severity of exposures, and the health consequences of exposures. An overall strategy should be developed to investigate indoor exposures, health effects, control options, and public policy alternatives

Air Pollution Forecasts: An Overview.

Science.gov (United States)

Bai, Lu; Wang, Jianzhou; Ma, Xuejiao; Lu, Haiyan

2018-04-17

Air pollution is defined as a phenomenon harmful to the ecological system and the normal conditions of human existence and development when some substances in the atmosphere exceed a certain concentration. In the face of increasingly serious environmental pollution problems, scholars have conducted a significant quantity of related research, and in those studies, the forecasting of air pollution has been of paramount importance. As a precaution, the air pollution forecast is the basis for taking effective pollution control measures, and accurate forecasting of air pollution has become an important task. Extensive research indicates that the methods of air pollution forecasting can be broadly divided into three classical categories: statistical forecasting methods, artificial intelligence methods, and numerical forecasting methods. More recently, some hybrid models have been proposed, which can improve the forecast accuracy. To provide a clear perspective on air pollution forecasting, this study reviews the theory and application of those forecasting models. In addition, based on a comparison of different forecasting methods, the advantages and disadvantages of some methods of forecasting are also provided. This study aims to provide an overview of air pollution forecasting methods for easy access and reference by researchers, which will be helpful in further studies.

Air Pollution Forecasts: An Overview

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lu Bai

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Air pollution is defined as a phenomenon harmful to the ecological system and the normal conditions of human existence and development when some substances in the atmosphere exceed a certain concentration. In the face of increasingly serious environmental pollution problems, scholars have conducted a significant quantity of related research, and in those studies, the forecasting of air pollution has been of paramount importance. As a precaution, the air pollution forecast is the basis for taking effective pollution control measures, and accurate forecasting of air pollution has become an important task. Extensive research indicates that the methods of air pollution forecasting can be broadly divided into three classical categories: statistical forecasting methods, artificial intelligence methods, and numerical forecasting methods. More recently, some hybrid models have been proposed, which can improve the forecast accuracy. To provide a clear perspective on air pollution forecasting, this study reviews the theory and application of those forecasting models. In addition, based on a comparison of different forecasting methods, the advantages and disadvantages of some methods of forecasting are also provided. This study aims to provide an overview of air pollution forecasting methods for easy access and reference by researchers, which will be helpful in further studies.

Air Pollution Forecasts: An Overview

Science.gov (United States)

Bai, Lu; Wang, Jianzhou; Lu, Haiyan

2018-01-01

Air pollution is defined as a phenomenon harmful to the ecological system and the normal conditions of human existence and development when some substances in the atmosphere exceed a certain concentration. In the face of increasingly serious environmental pollution problems, scholars have conducted a significant quantity of related research, and in those studies, the forecasting of air pollution has been of paramount importance. As a precaution, the air pollution forecast is the basis for taking effective pollution control measures, and accurate forecasting of air pollution has become an important task. Extensive research indicates that the methods of air pollution forecasting can be broadly divided into three classical categories: statistical forecasting methods, artificial intelligence methods, and numerical forecasting methods. More recently, some hybrid models have been proposed, which can improve the forecast accuracy. To provide a clear perspective on air pollution forecasting, this study reviews the theory and application of those forecasting models. In addition, based on a comparison of different forecasting methods, the advantages and disadvantages of some methods of forecasting are also provided. This study aims to provide an overview of air pollution forecasting methods for easy access and reference by researchers, which will be helpful in further studies. PMID:29673227

Pigeons home faster through polluted air

OpenAIRE

Zhongqiu Li; Franck Courchamp; Daniel T. Blumstein

2016-01-01

Air pollution, especially haze pollution, is creating health issues for both humans and other animals. However, remarkably little is known about how animals behaviourally respond to air pollution. We used multiple linear regression to analyse 415 pigeon races in the North China Plain, an area with considerable air pollution, and found that while the proportion of pigeons successfully homed was not influenced by air pollution, pigeons homed faster when the air was especially polluted. Our resu...

Air pollution and population health: a global challenge.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Bingheng; Kan, Haidong

2008-03-01

"Air pollution and population health" is one of the most important environmental and public health issues. Economic development, urbanization, energy consumption, transportation/motorization, and rapid population growth are major driving forces of air pollution in large cities, especially in megacities. Air pollution levels in developed countries have been decreasing dramatically in recent decades. However, in developing countries and in countries in transition, air pollution levels are still at relatively high levels, though the levels have been gradually decreasing or have remained stable during rapid economic development. In recent years, several hundred epidemiological studies have emerged showing adverse health effects associated with short-term and long-term exposure to air pollutants. Time-series studies conducted in Asian cities also showed similar health effects on mortality associated with exposure to particulate matter (PM), sulfur dioxide (SO(2)), nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)) and ozone (O(3)) to those explored in Europe and North America. The World Health Organization (WHO) published the "WHO Air Quality Guidelines (AQGs), Global Update" in 2006. These updated AQGs provide much stricter guidelines for PM, NO(2), SO(2) and O(3). Considering that current air pollution levels are much higher than the WHO-recommended AQGs, interim targets for these four air pollutants are also recommended for member states, especially for developing countries in setting their country-specific air quality standards. In conclusion, ambient air pollution is a health hazard. It is more important in Asian developing countries within the context of pollution level and population density. Improving air quality has substantial, measurable and important public health benefits.

Air pollution - health and management

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Klug, W; Runca, E; Suess, M J [eds.

1984-01-01

The proceedings of a joint workshop of the World Health Organization and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis are presented. The workshop was to review the interaction between man's industrial and urban activities and the environment, and the relationship between ambient air quality and human health, and to examine the effectiveness of proper management on the control and abatement of air pollution. The discussion topics included atmospheric processes and respective modelling, air pollution impact on human health, effects of air pollutants on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, air pollution episode cycles and management of control. A selected list of 11ASA and WHO/EURO publications related to air pollution is included. Separate abstracts were prepared for 15 papers in this book.

Parental stress and air pollution increase childhood asthma in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Deng, Qihong; Deng, Linjing; Lu, Chan; Li, Yuguo; Norbäck, Dan

2018-08-01

Although air pollution and social stress may independently increase childhood asthma, little is known on their synergistic effect on asthma, particularly in China with high levels of stress and air pollution. To examine associations between exposure to a combination of parental stress and air pollution and asthma prevalence in children. We conducted a cohort study of 2406 preschool children in Changsha (2011-2012). A questionnaire was used to collect children's lifetime prevalence of asthma and their parental stress. Parental socioeconomic and psychosocial stresses were respectively defined in terms of housing size and difficulty concentrating. Children's exposure to ambient air pollutants was estimated using concentrations measured at monitoring stations. Associations between exposure to parental stress and air pollution and childhood asthma were estimated by multiple logistic regression models using odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). Life time prevalence of asthma in preschool children (6.7%) was significantly associated with parental socioeconomic and psychosocial stresses with OR (95% CI) respectively 1.48 (1.02-2.16) and 1.64 (1.00-2.71). Asthma was also associated with exposure to air pollutants, with adjusted OR (95% CI) during prenatal and postnatal periods respectively 1.43 (1.10-1.86) and 1.35 (1.02-1.79) for SO 2 and 1.61 (1.19-2.18) and 1.76 (1.19-2.61) for NO 2 . The association with air pollution was significant only in children exposed to high parental stress, the association with parental stress was significant only in children exposed to high air pollution, and the association was the strongest in children exposed to a combination of parental stress and air pollution. Sensitivity analysis showed that the synergistic effects of parental stress and air pollution on childhood asthma were stronger in boys. Parental stress and air pollution were synergistically associated with increased childhood asthma, indicating a common biological

High-Energy Electron Beam Application to Air Pollutants Removal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ighigeanu, D.; Martin, D.; Manaila, E.; Craciun, G.; Calinescu, I.

2009-01-01

The advantage of electron beam (EB) process in pollutants removal is connected to its high efficiency to transfer high amount of energy directly into the matter under treatment. Disadvantage which is mostly related to high investment cost of accelerator may be effectively overcome in future as the result of use accelerator new developments. The potential use of medium to high-energy high power EB accelerators for air pollutants removal is demonstrated in [1]. The lower electrical efficiencies of accelerators with higher energies are partially compensated by the lower electron energy losses in the beam windows. In addition, accelerators with higher electron energies can provide higher beam powers with lower beam currents [1]. The total EB energy losses (backscattering, windows and in the intervening air space) are substantially lower with higher EB incident energy. The useful EB energy is under 50% for 0.5 MeV and about 95% above 3 MeV. In view of these arguments we decided to study the application of high energy EB for air pollutants removal. Two electron beam accelerators are available for our studies: electron linear accelerators ALIN-10 and ALID-7, built in the Electron Accelerator Laboratory, INFLPR, Bucharest, Romania. Both accelerators are of traveling-wave type, operating at a wavelength of 10 cm. They utilize tunable S-band magnetrons, EEV M 5125 type, delivering 2 MW of power in 4 μ pulses. The accelerating structure is a disk-loaded tube operating in the 2 mode. The optimum values of the EB peak current IEB and EB energy EEB to produce maximum output power PEB for a fixed pulse duration EB and repetition frequency fEB are as follows: for ALIN-10: EEB = 6.23 MeV; IEB =75 mA; PEB 164 W (fEB = 100 Hz, EB = 3.5 s) and for ALID-7: EEB 5.5 MeV; IEB = 130 mA; PEB = 670 W (fEB = 250 Hz, EB = 3.75 s). This paper presents a special designed installation, named SDI-1, and several representative results obtained by high energy EB application to SO 2 , NOx and VOCs

Air Quality in Lanzhou, a Major Industrial City in China: Characteristics of Air Pollution and Review of Existing Evidence from Air Pollution and Health Studies

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yaqun; Li, Min; Bravo, Mercedes A.; Jin, Lan; Nori-Sarma, Amruta; Xu, Yanwen; Guan, Donghong; Wang, Chengyuan; Chen, Mingxia; Wang, Xiao; Tao, Wei; Qiu, Weitao; Zhang, Yawei

2015-01-01

Air pollution contributes substantially to global health burdens; however, less is known about pollution patterns in China and whether they differ from those elsewhere. We evaluated temporal and spatial heterogeneity of air pollution in Lanzhou, an urban Chinese city (April 2009–December 2012), and conducted a systematic review of literature on air pollution and health in Lanzhou. Average levels were 141.5, 42.3, and 47.2 µg/m3 for particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ≤10 µm (PM10), NO2, and SO2, respectively. Findings suggest some seasonality, particularly for SO2, with higher concentrations during colder months relative to warmer months, although a longer time frame of data is needed to evaluate seasonality fully. Correlation coefficients generally declined with distance between monitors, while coefficients of divergence increased with distance. However, these trends were not statistically significant. PM10 levels exceeded Chinese and other health-based standards and guidelines. The review identified 13 studies on outdoor air pollution and health. Although limited, the studies indicate that air pollution is associated with increased risk of health outcomes in Lanzhou. These studies and the high air pollution levels suggest potentially serious health consequences. Findings can provide guidance to future epidemiological studies, monitor placement programs, and air quality policies. PMID:25838615

DNA damage in buccal mucosa cells of pre-school children exposed to high levels of urban air pollutants.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elisabetta Ceretti

Full Text Available Air pollution has been recognized as a human carcinogen. Children living in urban areas are a high-risk group, because genetic damage occurring early in life is considered able to increase the risk of carcinogenesis in adulthood. This study aimed to investigate micronuclei (MN frequency, as a biomarker of DNA damage, in exfoliated buccal cells of pre-school children living in a town with high levels of air pollution. A sample of healthy 3-6-year-old children living in Brescia, Northern Italy, was investigated. A sample of the children's buccal mucosa cells was collected during the winter months in 2012 and 2013. DNA damage was investigated using the MN test. Children's exposure to urban air pollution was evaluated by means of a questionnaire filled in by their parents that included items on various possible sources of indoor and outdoor pollution, and the concentration of fine particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5 and NO2 in the 1-3 weeks preceding biological sample collection. 181 children (mean age ± SD: 4.3 ± 0.9 years were investigated. The mean ± SD MN frequency was 0.29 ± 0.13%. A weak, though statistically significant, association of MN with concentration of air pollutants (PM10, PM2.5 and NO2 was found, whereas no association was apparent between MN frequency and the indoor and outdoor exposure variables investigated via the questionnaire. This study showed a high MN frequency in children living in a town with heavy air pollution in winter, higher than usually found among children living in areas with low or medium-high levels of air pollution.

Air Pollution in Museum Buildings

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ryhl-Svendsen, Morten

2017-01-01

This paper reviews the main air pollutants relevant for preservation of cultural heritage objects. Air pollutants may originate from outdoor or indoor sources. Indoor sources include the emission of corrosive vapors from construction materials used for museum display settings. Air pollution may...

Air pollution and vegetation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Numata, M

1975-01-01

Although the direct effects of each air pollutant have been fairly well studied for specific species of plants used as indicators, studies on the synecological level have not been done. Clement's communities can be used as indicators. The effects of air pollution should be studied as one in a complex of factors. The characteristic features of biological indicators are described in detail with emphasis on applying the results to human beings in polluted environments. The methods of determining the effects of pollution are described, using a community phytometer and remote sensing methods. Directly connecting the level of air pollution to the wilting of trees in general is dangerous unless it is a matter of an acute episode.

PHOTOCHEMICAL AIR POLLUTION IN THE NORTH OF PORTUGAL: A HIGH TROPOSHERIC OZONE EPISODE

Science.gov (United States)

Monteiro, A.; Carvalho, A.; Tchepel, O.; Ferreira, J.; Martins, H.; Miranda, A.; Borrego, C.; Saavedra, S.; Rodríguez, A.; Souto, J. A.

2009-12-01

Very high concentrations of ozone are continuously measured at the monitoring station at Lamas d’Olo, located at the North of Portugal,. A particular high photochemical episode occurred between 11 and 13 of July 2005, registering ozone hourly maximum values above 350 µg.m-3. This ozone-rich episode is investigated in this paper, in order to identify its origin and formation. Besides the analysis of both meteorological and air quality monitoring datasets, a numerical modelling approach, based on MM5-CAMx system, was used to simulate the dispersion and transport (horizontal and vertical) of the photochemical pollutants and its precursors. A cross spectrum analysis of the meteorological and air quality time series was performed, in the frequency domain, to establish the relationships between ozone data measured at Lamas d’Olo with air quality data from neighbourhood stations and meteorological parameters. Results point out different behaviour/contribution between the analysed sites. Moreover, different contributions of the u and v wind component on the ozone concentration fluctuations were found suggesting the presence a mountain breeze circulation and a north synoptic transport. The preliminary modelling results pointed out that the vertical transport of pollutants are responsible for the measured high concentrations, combined with particular meteorological conditions, related to the planetary boundary layer (PBL) development. The pollutants transported and existent at high vertical levels are captured/trapped when the PBL height reaches its daily maximum, and extremely high ozone ground level concentrations are consequently measured.

Health effects associated with passenger vehicles: monetary values of air pollution.

Science.gov (United States)

Marzouk, Mohamed; Madany, Magdy

2012-01-01

Air pollution is regarded as one of the highest priorities in environmental protection in both developed and developing countries. High levels of air pollution have adverse effects on human health that might cause premature death. This study presents the monetary value estimates for the adverse human health effects resulted from ambient air pollution. It aids decision makers to set priorities in the public health relevance of pollution abatement. The main driver of policymaker is the need to reduce the avoidable cardiopulmonary morbidity and mortality from pollutant exposures. The monetary valuation involves 2 steps: (i) relate levels of pollutants to mortality and morbidity (concentration-response relationships) and (ii) apply unit economic values. Cost of air pollution associated with passenger vehicles running over a major traffic bridge (6th of October Elevated Highway) is presented as a case study to demonstrate the use of monetary value of air pollution. The study proves that the cost of air pollution is extremely high and should not be overlooked.

Air pollution: a smoking gun for cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Wei; Qian, Chao-Nan; Zeng, Yi-Xin

2014-04-01

Once considered a taboo topic or stigma, cancer is the number one public health enemy in the world. Once a product of an almost untouchable industry, tobacco is indisputably recognized as a major cause of cancer and a target for anticancer efforts. With the emergence of new economic powers in the world, especially in highly populated countries such as China, air pollution has rapidly emerged as a smoking gun for cancer and has become a hot topic for public health debate because of the complex political, economic, scientific, and technologic issues surrounding the air pollution problem. This editorial and the referred articles published in this special issue of the Chinese Journal of Cancer discuss these fundamental questions. Does air pollution cause a wide spectrum of cancers? Should air pollution be considered a necessary evil accompanying economic transformation in developing countries? Is an explosion of cancer incidence coming to China and how soon will it arrive? What must be done to prevent this possible human catastrophe? Finally, the approaches for air pollution control are also discussed.

Determinants of perceived air pollution annoyance and association between annoyance scores and air pollution (PM 2.5, NO 2) concentrations in the European EXPOLIS study

Science.gov (United States)

Rotko, Tuulia; Oglesby, Lucy; Künzli, Nino; Carrer, Paolo; Nieuwenhuijsen, Mark J.; Jantunen, Matti

Apart from its traditionally considered objective impacts on health, air pollution can also have perceived effects, such as annoyance. The psychological effects of air pollution may often be more important to well-being than the biophysical effects. Health effects of perceived annoyance from air pollution are so far unknown. More knowledge of air pollution annoyance levels, determinants and also associations with different air pollution components is needed. In the European air pollution exposure study, EXPOLIS, the air pollution annoyance as perceived at home, workplace and in traffic were surveyed among other study objectives. Overall 1736 randomly drawn 25-55-yr-old subjects participated in six cities (Athens, Basel, Milan, Oxford, Prague and Helsinki). Levels and predictors of individual perceived annoyances from air pollution were assessed. Instead of the usual air pollution concentrations at fixed monitoring sites, this paper compares the measured microenvironment concentrations and personal exposures of PM 2.5 and NO 2 to the perceived annoyance levels. A considerable proportion of the adults surveyed was annoyed by air pollution. Female gender, self-reported respiratory symptoms, downtown living and self-reported sensitivity to air pollution were directly associated with high air pollution annoyance score while in traffic, but smoking status, age or education level were not significantly associated. Population level annoyance averages correlated with the city average exposure levels of PM 2.5 and NO 2. A high correlation was observed between the personal 48-h PM 2.5 exposure and perceived annoyance at home as well as between the mean annoyance at work and both the average work indoor PM 2.5 and the personal work time PM 2.5 exposure. With the other significant determinants (gender, city code, home location) and home outdoor levels the model explained 14% (PM 2.5) and 19% (NO 2) of the variation in perceived air pollution annoyance in traffic. Compared to

High-Resolution Air Pollution Mapping with Google Street View Cars : Exploiting Big Data

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Apte, Joshua S; Messier, Kyle P; Gani, Shahzad; Brauer, Michael; Kirchstetter, Thomas W; Lunden, Melissa M; Marshall, Julian D; Portier, Christopher J; Vermeulen, Roel C H; Hamburg, Steven P

2017-01-01

Air pollution affects billions of people worldwide, yet ambient pollution measurements are limited for much of the world. Urban air pollution concentrations vary sharply over short distances (≪1 km) owing to unevenly distributed emission sources, dilution, and physicochemical transformations.

Air pollution and respiratory illness

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Indra, G. [DIET, Uttamasolapuram, Salem (India)

2005-07-01

This presentation provides an overview of air pollution and impacts on public health. It provides a definition of pollution according to the Oxford English dictionary and categorizes the different types of pollution according to air, water, land and noise. It discusses air pollution and its pollutants (gaseous and particulate pollutants) as well as the diameter of the pollutant (dust, smoke, and gas). The paper also illustrates the formation of acid rain and discusses the amount of pollutants in the atmosphere per year. It presents occupational diseases, discusses radio active pollutants, respiratory illnesses as well as pollution prevention and control. The paper concluded that more research is needed to obtain information on ways to reduce the quantity of pollutants being discharged from special processes. 3 refs., 2 figs., 2 tabs.

Effects of air pollution on plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seidman, G.

1965-01-01

Weather, automobile exhaust, waste dumps and industrial activities are major factors in the creation of air pollution problems. The first indication of an air pollution problem is often the injury that appears on comparatively sensitive vegetation. Sulfur dioxide causes both acute and chronic plant injury. Plants especially sensitive to SO/sub 2/ are alfalfa, cosmos, sweet pea, bachelor's button, and blackberry. Fluoride causes characteristic injury on plants. Plants sensitive to fluoride injury are gladiolus, azalea, tulip, and young needles of pine. Ethylene damage to plants was initially noted in greenhouses using artificial gas for heating. Orchids and carnations are sensitive to ethylene. Ozone is highly reactive and causes typical spotting injury to the upper surface of leaves. PAN causes injury to vegetation, especially petunia and lettuce. Other pollutants also cause plant injury. Mercury vapor, chlorine gas, ammonia, H/sub 2/S, CO, and nitrogen oxides are minor hazards. Susceptibility of vegetation to air pollution depends on various things such as variety of plants, amount of moisture available to the plants, temperature, and amount of sunlight during the period of air pollution. 8 references.

INDOOR AIR POLLUTION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahmet Soysal

2007-06-01

Full Text Available The existance of hazardious materials including biological, chemical, and physical agents such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, radon, volotile organic compounds, microorganisms in houses and the other non-industrilized buildings have been defined as “indoor air pollution”. Indoor air pollutants could possible arised from inside or outside environment and categorized into six subgroups. Almost 80% Turkish population have living in the urban areas and people in the cities have spending approximetely 90% of their time in the closed enviroments, health problems could increased due to indoor air pollution. Moreover, currently there is no specific regulation on this area. [TAF Prev Med Bull 2007; 6(3.000: 221-226

INDOOR AIR POLLUTION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahmet Soysal

2007-06-01

Full Text Available The existance of hazardious materials including biological, chemical, and physical agents such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, radon, volotile organic compounds, microorganisms in houses and the other non-industrilized buildings have been defined as “indoor air pollution”. Indoor air pollutants could possible arised from inside or outside environment and categorized into six subgroups. Almost 80% Turkish population have living in the urban areas and people in the cities have spending approximetely 90% of their time in the closed enviroments, health problems could increased due to indoor air pollution. Moreover, currently there is no specific regulation on this area. [TAF Prev Med Bull. 2007; 6(3: 221-226

Monitoring Gaseous and Particulate Air Pollutants near Major ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

High traffic volume and traffic congestion on Nigerian roads have led to increase in the concentration of pollutants in the air t posing health risks for human population. This study investigates air quality due to vehicular emissions in some busy roads in Abeokuta metropolis, Nigeria. Air pollutants such as CO, CO2, NO, NO2, ...

Air pollution: impact and prevention.

Science.gov (United States)

Sierra-Vargas, Martha Patricia; Teran, Luis M

2012-10-01

Air pollution is becoming a major health problem that affects millions of people worldwide. In support of this observation, the World Health Organization estimates that every year, 2.4 million people die because of the effects of air pollution on health. Mitigation strategies such as changes in diesel engine technology could result in fewer premature mortalities, as suggested by the US Environmental Protection Agency. This review: (i) discusses the impact of air pollution on respiratory disease; (ii) provides evidence that reducing air pollution may have a positive impact on the prevention of disease; and (iii) demonstrates the impact concerted polices may have on population health when governments take actions to reduce air pollution. © 2012 The Authors. Respirology © 2012 Asian Pacific Society of Respirology.

Cardiovascular effects of air pollution.

Science.gov (United States)

Bourdrel, Thomas; Bind, Marie-Abèle; Béjot, Yannick; Morel, Olivier; Argacha, Jean-François

2017-11-01

Air pollution is composed of particulate matter (PM) and gaseous pollutants, such as nitrogen dioxide and ozone. PM is classified according to size into coarse particles (PM 10 ), fine particles (PM 2.5 ) and ultrafine particles. We aim to provide an original review of the scientific evidence from epidemiological and experimental studies examining the cardiovascular effects of outdoor air pollution. Pooled epidemiological studies reported that a 10μg/m 3 increase in long-term exposure to PM 2.5 was associated with an 11% increase in cardiovascular mortality. Increased cardiovascular mortality was also related to long-term and short-term exposure to nitrogen dioxide. Exposure to air pollution and road traffic was associated with an increased risk of arteriosclerosis, as shown by premature aortic and coronary calcification. Short-term increases in air pollution were associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction, stroke and acute heart failure. The risk was increased even when pollutant concentrations were below European standards. Reinforcing the evidence from epidemiological studies, numerous experimental studies demonstrated that air pollution promotes a systemic vascular oxidative stress reaction. Radical oxygen species induce endothelial dysfunction, monocyte activation and some proatherogenic changes in lipoproteins, which initiate plaque formation. Furthermore, air pollution favours thrombus formation, because of an increase in coagulation factors and platelet activation. Experimental studies also indicate that some pollutants have more harmful cardiovascular effects, such as combustion-derived PM 2.5 and ultrafine particles. Air pollution is a major contributor to cardiovascular diseases. Promotion of safer air quality appears to be a new challenge in cardiovascular disease prevention. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

The Interplay of Climate Change and Air Pollution on Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Orru, H; Ebi, K L; Forsberg, B

2017-12-01

Air pollution significantly affects health, causing up to 7 million premature deaths annually with an even larger number of hospitalizations and days of sick leave. Climate change could alter the dispersion of primary pollutants, particularly particulate matter, and intensify the formation of secondary pollutants, such as near-surface ozone. The purpose of the review is to evaluate the recent evidence on the impacts of climate change on air pollution and air pollution-related health impacts and identify knowledge gaps for future research. Several studies modelled future ozone and particulate matter concentrations and calculated the resulting health impacts under different climate scenarios. Due to climate change, ozone- and fine particle-related mortalities are expected to increase in most studies; however, results differ by region, assumed climate change scenario and other factors such as population and background emissions. This review explores the relationships between climate change, air pollution and air pollution-related health impacts. The results highly depend on the climate change scenario used and on projections of future air pollution emissions, with relatively high uncertainty. Studies primarily focused on mortality; projections on the effects on morbidity are needed.

Polluted air--outdoors and indoors.

Science.gov (United States)

Myers, I; Maynard, R L

2005-09-01

Many air pollutants which are considered important in ambient (outdoor) air are also found, sometimes at higher levels, in indoor air. With demanding standards having been set for many of these pollutants, both in the workplace and ambient air, consideration of the problems posed by indoor pollution is gaining pace. Studies on exposure to pollutants found in the indoor domestic environment are increasing and are contributing to an already significant compilation of datasets. Improvement in monitoring techniques has helped this process. Documented reports of fatalities from carbon monoxide poisonings are still worrying. However, studies on health effects of non-fatal, long term, low dose, indoor exposure to carbon monoxide and other pollutants, are still inconclusive and too infrequently documented. Of particular concern are the levels of air pollutants found in the domestic indoor environment in developing countries, despite simple interventions such as vented stoves having shown their value. Exposure to biomass smoke is still a level that would be considered unacceptable on health grounds in developed countries. As in the occupational environment, steps need to be taken to control the risks from exposure to the harmful constituents of indoor air in the home. However, the difficulty regarding regulation of the domestic indoor environment is its inherent privacy. Monitoring levels of pollutants in the home and ensuring regulations are adhered to, would likely prove difficult, especially when individual behaviour patterns and activities have the greatest influence on pollutant levels in indoor air. To this end, the Department of Health is developing guidance on indoor air pollution to encourage the reduction of pollutant levels in indoor domestic air. The importance of the effects of domestic indoor air on health and its contribution to the health of the worker are increasingly appreciated. Occupational physicians, by training and interest, are well placed to extend

the role of industry in air pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kdeih, Naji

1998-01-01

Industry is among the main sources of air pollution in Lebanon. Industrial plants emits dangerous effluents affecting on human health and on population living in industrial zones. Personnel within industries ignore the dangerous effect of substances they use in their work and the toxic effect of gaseous, liquid and solid wastes produced and their impact on health and on environment. A major attention should be paid by Lebanese government to avoid the increasing of atmospheric pollution and must encourage the monitoring of air pollution and its effect on human target organs in the influenced zones. Within industries air is contaminated by gases, vapor, dusts in high rates. Attention has to be focused to the diseases due to breathing diseases, Asbestos, arterial high blood pressure, stress, digestive diseases and other

Air pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feugier, A.

1996-01-01

The air pollution results from the combustion of petroleum products, natural gas, coal, wastes and transports. Some compounds are considered as particularly pollutants: the carbon monoxide, the nitrogen oxides, the tropospheric ozone and the sulfur dioxides. Their environmental and biological effects are described. The present political guide lines concerns the combustion plants, the ozone, the wastes incineration and the vehicles emissions. The aim is at some future date to control the air quality, to reduce the volatile organic compounds emissions and to limit the sulfur rate of some petroleum products. (O.L.)

Lead (Pb) Air Pollution

Science.gov (United States)

... Regional Offices Labs and Research Centers Lead (Pb) Air Pollution Contact Us Share As a result of EPA's ... and protect aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Lead (Pb) Air Pollution Basic Information How does lead get in the ...

Air pollution and tree growth

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Scurfield, G

1960-01-01

The problem of air pollution is reviewed with emphasis on its origin and its effects on trees and shrubs. These effects are described from two points of view: the effects of general air pollution, and also the effects of specific pollutants. The considerable mixing, dilution and interaction that pollutants undergo in the air often renders it exceedingly difficult to assign pollution damage to any specific chemical or physical entity. Moreover, it is often impossible to assign responsibility for damage to any particular source. The constituents of general air pollution may be subdivided into those potentially incapable, and those potentially capable, of entering the plant either through the leaf stomata or indirectly by way of the soil. Specific pollutants cause damage directly, as well as indirectly from the chemical reactions that occur in the polluted atmosphere. Sulfur dioxide is discussed in detail in relation to tree and shrub damage, with numerous examples of plant injuries.

Allergic diseases and air pollution.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Suh-Young; Chang, Yoon-Seok; Cho, Sang-Heon

2013-07-01

The prevalence of allergic diseases has been increasing rapidly, especially in developing countries. Various adverse health outcomes such as allergic disease can be attributed to rapidly increasing air pollution levels. Rapid urbanization and increased energy consumption worldwide have exposed the human body to not only increased quantities of ambient air pollution, but also a greater variety of pollutants. Many studies clearly demonstrate that air pollutants potently trigger asthma exacerbation. Evidence that transportation-related pollutants contribute to the development of allergies is also emerging. Moreover, exposure to particulate matter, ozone, and nitrogen dioxide contributes to the increased susceptibility to respiratory infections. This article focuses on the current understanding of the detrimental effects of air pollutants on allergic disease including exacerbation to the development of asthma, allergic rhinitis, and eczema as well as epigenetic regulation.

Can the Air Pollution Index be used to communicate the health risks of air pollution?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Li; Lin, Guo-Zhen; Liu, Hua-Zhang; Guo, Yuming; Ou, Chun-Quan; Chen, Ping-Yan

2015-01-01

The validity of using the Air Pollution Index (API) to assess health impacts of air pollution and potential modification by individual characteristics on air pollution effects remain uncertain. We applied distributed lag non-linear models (DLNMs) to assess associations of daily API, specific pollution indices for PM 10 , SO 2 , NO 2 and the weighted combined API (APIw) with mortality during 2003–2011 in Guangzhou, China. An increase of 10 in API was associated with a 0.88% (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.50, 1.27%) increase of non-accidental mortality at lag 0–2 days. Harvesting effects appeared after 2 days’ exposure. The effect estimate of API over lag 0–15 days was statistically significant and similar with those of pollutant-specific indices and APIw. Stronger associations between API and mortality were observed in the elderly, females and residents with low educational attainment. In conclusion, the API can be used to communicate health risks of air pollution. - Highlights: • The cumulative effects of API on mortality over lag 0–15 days remained significant. • The indices for three specific pollutants had similar associations with mortality. • The effects of API were modified by age, gender and educational attainment. • Our findings can help to communicate health risks of air pollution to the public. - The Air Pollution Index communicates health risks of air pollution

Local scale air pollution forecasting by artificial intelligence techniques and assess the pollution-related social effects

OpenAIRE

Gong, Bing; Ordieres-Meré, Joaquín

2016-01-01

Since the air pollution can cause serious health problem, the concerns about forecasting air pollution timely and accurately arise by researchers in order to alert the public avoiding high level pollution and help the government make decisions. In our research, we take Hong Kong (finished research) and the cities in Mexico (finishing) and Mainland China (starting), especially the high pollutant areas such as Mexico City and Beijing, as study cases. Meanwhile, various types of arti...

Advances in Understanding Air Pollution and Cardiovascular Diseases: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis and Air Pollution (MESA Air)

Science.gov (United States)

Kaufman, Joel D.; Spalt, Elizabeth W.; Curl, Cynthia L.; Hajat, Anjum; Jones, Miranda R.; Kim, Sun-Young; Vedal, Sverre; Szpiro, Adam A.; Gassett, Amanda; Sheppard, Lianne; Daviglus, Martha L.; Adar, Sara D.

2016-01-01

The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis and Air Pollution (MESA Air) leveraged the platform of the MESA cohort into a prospective longitudinal study of relationships between air pollution and cardiovascular health. MESA Air researchers developed fine-scale, state-of-the-art air pollution exposure models for the MESA Air communities, creating individual exposure estimates for each participant. These models combine cohort-specific exposure monitoring, existing monitoring systems, and an extensive database of geographic and meteorological information. Together with extensive phenotyping in MESA—and adding participants and health measurements to the cohort—MESA Air investigated environmental exposures on a wide range of outcomes. Advances by the MESA Air team included not only a new approach to exposure modeling but also biostatistical advances in addressing exposure measurement error and temporal confounding. The MESA Air study advanced our understanding of the impact of air pollutants on cardiovascular disease and provided a research platform for advances in environmental epidemiology. PMID:27741981

Responses of plants to air pollution

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Mudd, J. Brian; Kozlowski, T. T

1975-01-01

.... KOZLOWSKI Pollution, 1975 ELROY L. RICE. Allelopathy, (Eds.). Fire and Ecosystems, 1974 (Eds.). Responses of Plants to Air Responses of Plants to Air PollutionRESPONSES OF PLANTS TO AIR POLLUTION E...

Air pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

2008-01-01

Air pollution has accompanied and developed with the industrial age, since its beginnings. This very complete review furnishes the toxicological data available for the principal pollutants and assesses the epidemiologic studies thus far conducted. It also describes European regulations and international commitments for the reduction of emissions. (author)

Respiratory health effects of air pollution: update on biomass smoke and traffic pollution.

Science.gov (United States)

Laumbach, Robert J; Kipen, Howard M

2012-01-01

Mounting evidence suggests that air pollution contributes to the large global burden of respiratory and allergic diseases, including asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pneumonia, and possibly tuberculosis. Although associations between air pollution and respiratory disease are complex, recent epidemiologic studies have led to an increased recognition of the emerging importance of traffic-related air pollution in both developed and less-developed countries, as well as the continued importance of emissions from domestic fires burning biomass fuels, primarily in the less-developed world. Emissions from these sources lead to personal exposures to complex mixtures of air pollutants that change rapidly in space and time because of varying emission rates, distances from source, ventilation rates, and other factors. Although the high degree of variability in personal exposure to pollutants from these sources remains a challenge, newer methods for measuring and modeling these exposures are beginning to unravel complex associations with asthma and other respiratory tract diseases. These studies indicate that air pollution from these sources is a major preventable cause of increased incidence and exacerbation of respiratory disease. Physicians can help to reduce the risk of adverse respiratory effects of exposure to biomass and traffic air pollutants by promoting awareness and supporting individual and community-level interventions. Copyright © 2012 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Indoor Air Pollution

OpenAIRE

Kirk R. Smith

2003-01-01

Outdoor air pollution in developing-country cities is difficult to overlook. Indoor air pollution caused by burning such traditional fuels as wood, crop residues, and dung is less evident, yet it is responsible for a significant part of country and global disease burdens. The main groups affected are poor women and children in rural areas and urban slums as they go about their daily activi...

Effects of air pollution on the skin: A review.

Science.gov (United States)

Puri, Poonam; Nandar, Shashi Kumar; Kathuria, Sushruta; Ramesh, V

2017-01-01

The increase in air pollution over the years has had major effects on the human skin. Various air pollutants such as ultraviolet radiation, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds, oxides, particulate matter, ozone and cigarette smoke affect the skin as it is the outermost barrier. Air pollutants damage the skin by inducing oxidative stress. Although human skin acts as a biological shield against pro-oxidative chemicals and physical air pollutants, prolonged or repetitive exposure to high levels of these pollutants may have profound negative effects on the skin. Exposure to ultraviolet radiation has been associated with extrinsic skin aging and skin cancers. Cigarette smoke contributes to premature aging and an increase in the incidence of psoriasis, acne and skin cancers. It is also implicated in allergic skin conditions such as atopic dermatitis and eczema. Polyaromatic hydrocarbons are associated with extrinsic skin aging, pigmentation, cancers and acneiform eruptions. Volatile organic compounds have been associated with atopic dermatitis. Given the increasing levels of air pollution and its detrimental effects on the skin, it is advisable to use strategies to decrease air pollution.

Air pollution and respiratory infection in children

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Douglas, J W.B.; Waller, R E

1966-01-01

Air pollution, as estimated by domestic coal consumption was categorized into 4 groups; very low, low, moderate, and high. The predicted pollution categories were later compared with measured smoke and SO/sub 2/ concentrations and found to be as expected. The smoke concentration was found to be 67, 138, 217, and 281 ..mu..g/m/sup 3/ while the SO/sub 2/ concentration was 90, 130, 191, and 257 ..mu..g/m/sup 3/ in the very low, low, moderate, and high pollution groups respectively. These values excluded the greater London area which had somewhat lower smoke but similar SO/sub 2/ concentrations. The air pollution had no effect on upper-respiratory illness in British children but had a highly significant effect on lower-respiratory illness. The percent of children experiencing the first lower-respiratory tract infection during the first 9 months of life in the 4 pollution groups were 7.2 in the very low, 11.4 in the low, 16.5 in the moderate and 17.1 in the high.

Air pollution control at a DOE facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Curn, B.L.

1995-11-01

The Department of Energy (DOE) plutonium production program Produced some of the greatest scientific and engineering accomplishments of all time. It is remarkable to consider the accomplishments of the Manhattan Project. The Reactor on the Hanford Site, the first production reactor in the world, began operation only 13 months after the start of construction. The DOE nuclear production program was also instrumental in pioneering other fields such as health physics an radiation monitoring. The safety record of these installations is remarkable considering that virtually every significant accomplishment was on the technological threshold of the time. One other area that the DOE Facilities pioneered was the control of radioactive particles and gases emitted to the atmosphere. The high efficiency particulate air filter (HEPA) was a development that provided high collection efficiencies of particulates to protect workers and the public. The halogen and noble gases also were of particular concern. Radioactive iodine is captured by adsorption on activated carbon or synthetic zeolites. Besides controlling radioncuclide air pollution, DOE facilities are concerned with other criteria pollutants and hazardous air pollutant emissions. The Hanford Site encompasses all those air pollution challenges

Regulation of air pollution from wood-burning stoves

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bjørner, Thomas Bue; Brandt, Jørgen; Hansen, Lars Gårn

Air pollution is a major global challenge. Emissions from residential wood-burning stoves make a surprisingly large contribution to total air pollution related health costs. In Denmark, emissions from wood-burning stoves are calculated to cause almost 400 premature deaths each year within Denmark...... and additionally about 300 premature deaths in other parts of Europe. In this article, we present an integrated assessment of the net social benefit of different schemes for regulating wood-burning stoves including bans and taxes. The assessment uses high resolution air pollution emission inventory...

Generalized additive model of air pollution to daily mortality

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, J.; Yang, H.E.

2005-01-01

The association of air pollution with daily mortality due to cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, and old age (65 or older) in Seoul, Korea was investigated in 1999 using daily values of TSP, PM10, O 3 , SO 2 , NO 2 , and CO. Generalized additive Poisson models were applied to allow for the highly flexible fitting of daily trends in air pollution as well as nonlinear association with meteorological variables such as temperature, humidity, and wind speed. To estimate the effect of air pollution and weather on mortality, LOESS smoothing was used in generalized additive models. The findings suggest that air pollution levels affect significantly the daily mortality. (orig.)

Population Dynamics and Air Pollution

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Flachs, Esben Meulengracht; Sørensen, Jan; Bønløkke, Jacob

2013-01-01

Objective. To explore how three different assumptions on demographics affect the health impact of Danish emitted air pollution in Denmark from 2005 to 2030, with health impact modeled from 2005 to 2050. Methods. Modeled air pollution from Danish sources was used as exposure in a newly developed......) a static year 2005 population, (2) morbidity and mortality fixed at the year 2005 level, or (3) an expected development. Results. The health impact of air pollution was estimated at 672,000, 290,000, and 280,000 lost life years depending on demographic assumptions and the corresponding social costs at 430.......4 M€, 317.5 M€, and 261.6 M€ through the modeled years 2005–2050. Conclusion. The modeled health impact of air pollution differed widely with the demographic assumptions, and thus demographics and assumptions on demographics played a key role in making health impact assessments on air pollution....

INDOOR AIR POLLUTION

OpenAIRE

Ahmet Soysal; Yucel Demiral

2007-01-01

The existance of hazardious materials including biological, chemical, and physical agents such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, radon, volotile organic compounds, microorganisms in houses and the other non-industrilized buildings have been defined as “indoor air pollution”. Indoor air pollutants could possible arised from inside or outside environment and categorized into six subgroups. Almost 80% Turkish population have living in the urban areas...

The Siberian High and Arctic Sea Ice: Long-term Climate Change and Impacts on Air Pollution during Wintertime in China

Science.gov (United States)

Long, X.; Zhao, S.; Feng, T.; Tie, X.; Li, G.

2017-12-01

China has undergone severe air pollution during wintertime as national industrialization and urbanization have been increasingly developed in the past three decades. It has been suggested that high emission and adverse weather patterns contribute to wintertime air pollution. Recent studies propose that climate change and Arctic sea ice loss likely lead to extreme haze events in winter. Here we use two reanalysis and observational datasets to present the trends of Siberian High (SH) intensity over Eurasia, and Arctic temperature and sea ice. The results show the Arctic region of Asia is becoming warming accompanied by a rapid decline of sea ice while Eurasia is cooling and SH intensity is gradually enhancing. Wind patterns induced by these changes cause straight westerly prevailing over Eurasia at the year of weak SH while strengthened northerly winds at the year of strong SH. Therefore, we utilize regional dynamical and chemical WRF-Chem model to determine the impact of SH intensity difference on wintertime air pollution in China. As a result, enhancing northerly winds at the year of strong SH rapidly dilute and transport air pollution, causing a decline of 50 - 400 µg m-3 PM2.5 concentrations relative to that at the year of weak SH. We also assess the impact of emission reduction to half the current level on air pollution. The results show that emission reduction by 50% has an equivalent impact as the variability of SH intensity. This suggests that climate change over Eurasia has largely offset the negative impact of emission on air pollution and it is urgently needed to take measures to mitigate air pollution. In view of current high emission scenario in China, it will be a long way to effectively mitigate, or ultimately prevent wintertime air pollution.

Atmospheric Chemistry and Air Pollution

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jeffrey S. Gaffney

2003-01-01

Full Text Available Atmospheric chemistry is an important discipline for understanding air pollution and its impacts. This mini-review gives a brief history of air pollution and presents an overview of some of the basic photochemistry involved in the production of ozone and other oxidants in the atmosphere. Urban air quality issues are reviewed with a specific focus on ozone and other oxidants, primary and secondary aerosols, alternative fuels, and the potential for chlorine releases to amplify oxidant chemistry in industrial areas. Regional air pollution issues such as acid rain, long-range transport of aerosols and visibility loss, and the connections of aerosols to ozone and peroxyacetyl nitrate chemistry are examined. Finally, the potential impacts of air pollutants on the global-scale radiative balances of gases and aerosols are discussed briefly.

Manual for THOR-AirPAS - air pollution assessment system

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Steen Solvang; Ketzel, Matthias; Brandt, Jørgen

The report provides an outline of the THOR-AirPAS - air pollution assessment system and a brief manual for getting started with the air quality models and input data included in THOR-AirPAS.......The report provides an outline of the THOR-AirPAS - air pollution assessment system and a brief manual for getting started with the air quality models and input data included in THOR-AirPAS....

Air pollution and its impact on human health in mega cities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ali, I.

1999-01-01

One of the major problems faced by the over crowded mega-cities of the world in general and that in third world is the alarming levels of air pollution causing damage to the health of its inhabitants. In Cairo estimated lives lost annually due to air pollution varies between 4000 to 16000 while Delhi has been rated as the most polluted city in the world. Karachi now a mega-city typically represents pollution status of the third world. Major cause of pollution is more than 0.62 millions vehicles on the roads. The pollution due to industries is localized and mainly affects the health of the workers. Measurement carried out for the selected areas along the roads carrying high density traffic show a very high pollution level (CO, 3 to 10 ppm; CO/sub 2/,170 to 350 ppm; HC 0.274 to 0.360 vol. %; particulate matter 67.0 to 565.5 ug/m/sup 3/. A parallel hospital survey to correlate air borne disease with air pollution indicates that over 16600 to 22977 patients suffered from air borne diseases while 6377 from bacterial infection. Analysis showed that 70% of the patients suffering from airborne disease come from the surveyed areas with high level pollution. Cancer is shifting from old age to middle age group indicating deteriorating air environment. Ratio of male to female patients is 2:1, which is indicative of hazardous ambient air quality outside to which men are exposed more than women. The paper discusses in depth the air pollution and its impact on human health in mega cities with Karachi as a case study. (author)

Outdoor air pollution and sperm quality.

Science.gov (United States)

Lafuente, Rafael; García-Blàquez, Núria; Jacquemin, Bénédicte; Checa, Miguel Angel

2016-09-15

Exposure to air pollution has been clearly associated with a range of adverse health effects, including reproductive toxicity, but its effects on male semen quality are still unclear. We performed a systematic review (up to June 2016) to assess the impact of air pollutants on sperm quality. We included 17 semi-ecological, panel, and cohort studies, assessing outdoor air pollutants, such as PM2.5, PM10, NOx, SO2, and O3, and their effects on DNA fragmentation, sperm count, sperm motility, and sperm morphology. Thirteen studies assessed air pollution exposure measured environmentally, and six used biomarkers of air pollution exposure (two did both). We rated the studies using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale and assessed with the exposure method. Taking into account these factors and the number of studies finding significant results (positive or negative), the evidence supporting an effect of air pollution on DNA fragmentation is weak but suggestive, on sperm motility is limited and probably inexistent, on lower sperm count is inconclusive, and on sperm morphology is very suggestive. Because of the diversity of air pollutants and sperm parameters, and the studies' designs, we were unable to perform a meta-analysis. In summary, most studies concluded that outdoor air pollution affects at least one of the four semen quality parameters included in the review. However, results lack consistency, and furthermore, studies were not comparable. Studies using standardized air pollution and semen measures are required to obtain more reliable conclusions. CRD42015007175. Copyright © 2016 American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Ambient air pollution and semen quality.

Science.gov (United States)

Nobles, Carrie J; Schisterman, Enrique F; Ha, Sandie; Kim, Keewan; Mumford, Sunni L; Buck Louis, Germaine M; Chen, Zhen; Liu, Danping; Sherman, Seth; Mendola, Pauline

2018-05-01

Ambient air pollution is associated with systemic increases in oxidative stress, to which sperm are particularly sensitive. Although decrements in semen quality represent a key mechanism for impaired fecundability, prior research has not established a clear association between air pollution and semen quality. To address this, we evaluated the association between ambient air pollution and semen quality among men with moderate air pollution exposure. Of 501 couples in the LIFE study, 467 male partners provided one or more semen samples. Average residential exposure to criteria air pollutants and fine particle constituents in the 72 days before ejaculation was estimated using modified Community Multiscale Air Quality models. Generalized estimating equation models estimated the association between air pollutants and semen quality parameters (volume, count, percent hypo-osmotic swollen, motility, sperm head, morphology and sperm chromatin parameters). Models adjusted for age, body mass index, smoking and season. Most associations between air pollutants and semen parameters were small. However, associations were observed for an interquartile increase in fine particulates ≤2.5 µm and decreased sperm head size, including -0.22 (95% CI -0.34, -0.11) µm 2 for area, -0.06 (95% CI -0.09, -0.03) µm for length and -0.09 (95% CI -0.19, -0.06) µm for perimeter. Fine particulates were also associated with 1.03 (95% CI 0.40, 1.66) greater percent sperm head with acrosome. Air pollution exposure was not associated with semen quality, except for sperm head parameters. Moderate levels of ambient air pollution may not be a major contributor to semen quality. Published by Elsevier Inc.

A novel method to construct an air quality index based on air pollution profiles.

Science.gov (United States)

Thach, Thuan-Quoc; Tsang, Hilda; Cao, Peihua; Ho, Lai-Ming

2018-01-01

Air quality indices based on the maximum of sub-indices of pollutants are easy to produce and help quantify the degree of air pollution. However, they discount the additive effects of multiple pollutants and are only sensitive to changes in highest sub-index. We propose a simple and concise method to construct an air quality index that takes into account additive effects of multiple pollutants and evaluate the extent to which this index predicts health effects. We obtained concentrations of four criteria pollutants: particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter ≤ 10μm (PM 10 ), sulphur dioxide (SO 2 ), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ) and ozone (O 3 ) and daily admissions to Hong Kong hospitals for cardiovascular and respiratory diseases for all ages and those 65 years or older for years 2001-2012. We derived sub-indices of the four criteria pollutants, calculated by normalizing pollutant concentrations to their respective short-term WHO Air Quality Guidelines (WHO AQG). We aggregated the sub-indices using the root-mean-power function with an optimal power to form an overall air quality index. The optimal power was determined by minimizing the sum of over- and under-estimated days. We then assessed associations between the pollution bands of the index and cardiovascular and respiratory admissions using a time-stratified case-crossover design adjusted for ambient temperature, relative humidity and influenza epidemics. Further, we conducted case-crossover analyses using the Hong Kong air quality data with the respective standards and classification of pollution bands of the China Air Quality Index (AQI), the United Kingdom Daily AQI (DAQI), and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) AQI. The mean concentrations of PM 10 and SO 2 based on maximum 3-h mean exceeded the WHO AQG by 37% and 50%, respectively. We identified the combined condition of observed high-pollution days as either at least one pollutant > 1.5×WHO AQG or at least two pollutants > 1.0�

Reconsidering the Relationship between Air Pollution and Deprivation.

Science.gov (United States)

Bailey, Nick; Dong, Guanpeng; Minton, Jon; Pryce, Gwilym

2018-03-29

This paper critically examines the relationship between air pollution and deprivation. We argue that focusing on a particular economic or social model of urban development might lead one to erroneously expect all cities to converge towards a particular universal norm. A naive market sorting model, for example, would predict that poor households will eventually be sorted into high pollution areas, leading to a positive relationship between air pollution and deprivation. If, however, one considers a wider set of theoretical perspectives, the anticipated relationship between air pollution and deprivation becomes more complex and idiosyncratic. Specifically, we argue the relationship between pollution and deprivation can only be made sense of by considering processes of risk perception, path dependency, gentrification and urbanization. Rather than expecting all areas to eventually converge to some universal norm, we should expect the differences in the relationship between air pollution and deprivation across localities to persist. Mindful of these insights, we propose an approach to modeling which does not impose a geographically fixed relationship. Results for Scotland reveal substantial variations in the observed relationships over space and time, supporting our argument.

Air pollution in the Slovak Republic, 2001

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mitosinkova, M.; Kozakovic, L.; Zavodsky, D.; Sajtakova, E.; Mareckova, K.; Pukancikova, K.

2003-01-01

A report on air quality and contribution of individual sources on its pollution in the Slovak Republic in 2001 is presented. This report consists of two parts: (1) Ambient air and (2) Emission. Ambient air part is divided into the following chapters: Regional air pollution and quality of precipitation; Local air pollution; Atmospheric ozone. Emission part is divided into the following chapters: Emission and air pollution source inventory, Greenhouse gas emissions

Ambient air pollution and thrombosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Robertson, Sarah; Miller, Mark R

2018-01-03

Air pollution is a growing public health concern of global significance. Acute and chronic exposure is known to impair cardiovascular function, exacerbate disease and increase cardiovascular mortality. Several plausible biological mechanisms have been proposed for these associations, however, at present, the pathways are incomplete. A seminal review by the American Heart Association (2010) concluded that the thrombotic effects of particulate air pollution likely contributed to their effects on cardiovascular mortality and morbidity. The aim of the current review is to appraise the newly accumulated scientific evidence (2009-2016) on contribution of haemostasis and thrombosis towards cardiovascular disease induced by exposure to both particulate and gaseous pollutants.Seventy four publications were reviewed in-depth. The weight of evidence suggests that acute exposure to fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) induces a shift in the haemostatic balance towards a pro-thrombotic/pro-coagulative state. Insufficient data was available to ascertain if a similar relationship exists for gaseous pollutants, and very few studies have addressed long-term exposure to ambient air pollution. Platelet activation, oxidative stress, interplay between interleukin-6 and tissue factor, all appear to be potentially important mechanisms in pollution-mediated thrombosis, together with an emerging role for circulating microvesicles and epigenetic changes.Overall, the recent literature supports, and arguably strengthens, the contention that air pollution contributes to cardiovascular morbidity by promoting haemostasis. The volume and diversity of the evidence highlights the complexity of the pathophysiologic mechanisms by which air pollution promotes thrombosis; multiple pathways are plausible and it is most likely they act in concert. Future research should address the role gaseous pollutants play in the cardiovascular effects of air pollution mixture and direct comparison of potentially

Can the Air Pollution Index be used to communicate the health risks of air pollution?

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Li; Lin, Guo-Zhen; Liu, Hua-Zhang; Guo, Yuming; Ou, Chun-Quan; Chen, Ping-Yan

2015-10-01

The validity of using the Air Pollution Index (API) to assess health impacts of air pollution and potential modification by individual characteristics on air pollution effects remain uncertain. We applied distributed lag non-linear models (DLNMs) to assess associations of daily API, specific pollution indices for PM10, SO2, NO2 and the weighted combined API (APIw) with mortality during 2003-2011 in Guangzhou, China. An increase of 10 in API was associated with a 0.88% (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.50, 1.27%) increase of non-accidental mortality at lag 0-2 days. Harvesting effects appeared after 2 days' exposure. The effect estimate of API over lag 0-15 days was statistically significant and similar with those of pollutant-specific indices and APIw. Stronger associations between API and mortality were observed in the elderly, females and residents with low educational attainment. In conclusion, the API can be used to communicate health risks of air pollution. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Federal Air Pollution Program.

Science.gov (United States)

National Air Pollution Control Administration (DHEW), Washington, DC.

Described is the Federal air pollution program as it was in 1967. The booklet is divided into these major topics: History of the Federal Program; Research; Assistance to State and Local Governments; Abatement and Prevention of Air Pollution; Control of Motor Vehicle Pollution; Information and Education; and Conclusion. Federal legislation has…

Air pollution: Impact and prevention

OpenAIRE

SIERRA-VARGAS, MARTHA PATRICIA; TERAN, LUIS M

2012-01-01

ABSTRACT Air pollution is becoming a major health problem that affects millions of people worldwide. In support of this observation, the World Health Organization estimates that every year, 2.4 million people die because of the effects of air pollution on health. Mitigation strategies such as changes in diesel engine technology could result in fewer premature mortalities, as suggested by the US Environmental Protection Agency. This review: (i) discusses the impact of air pollution on respirat...

Stochastic Modeling of Traffic Air Pollution

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thoft-Christensen, Palle

2014-01-01

In this paper, modeling of traffic air pollution is discussed with special reference to infrastructures. A number of subjects related to health effects of air pollution and the different types of pollutants are briefly presented. A simple model for estimating the social cost of traffic related air...... and using simple Monte Carlo techniques to obtain a stochastic estimate of the costs of traffic air pollution for infrastructures....... pollution is derived. Several authors have published papers on this very complicated subject, but no stochastic modelling procedure have obtained general acceptance. The subject is discussed basis of a deterministic model. However, it is straightforward to modify this model to include uncertain parameters...

Urban air pollution; La pollution de l'air dans la ville

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-07-01

The theme of this congress concerns air pollution in urban areas. Cities are accumulation of populations and economic activities, and then pollutants activities. The first articles are devoted to pollutants and their effects on health. Then come articles relative to measurements and modeling. Finally, the traffic in city and the automobile pollution are examined. Transportation systems as well technology in matter of gas emissions are reviewed. (N.C.)

Air Pollution and Industry.

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, R. D., Ed.

This book is an authoritative reference and practical guide designed to help the plant engineer identify and solve industrial air pollution problems in order to be able to meet current air pollution regulations. Prepared under the editorial supervision of an experienced chemical engineer, with each chapter contributed by an expert in his field,…

Air pollution and brain damage.

Science.gov (United States)

Calderón-Garcidueñas, Lilian; Azzarelli, Biagio; Acuna, Hilda; Garcia, Raquel; Gambling, Todd M; Osnaya, Norma; Monroy, Sylvia; DEL Tizapantzi, Maria Rosario; Carson, Johnny L; Villarreal-Calderon, Anna; Rewcastle, Barry

2002-01-01

Exposure to complex mixtures of air pollutants produces inflammation in the upper and lower respiratory tract. Because the nasal cavity is a common portal of entry, respiratory and olfactory epithelia are vulnerable targets for toxicological damage. This study has evaluated, by light and electron microscopy and immunohistochemical expression of nuclear factor-kappa beta (NF-kappaB) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), the olfactory and respiratory nasal mucosae, olfactory bulb, and cortical and subcortical structures from 32 healthy mongrel canine residents in Southwest Metropolitan Mexico City (SWMMC), a highly polluted urban region. Findings were compared to those in 8 dogs from Tlaxcala, a less polluted, control city. In SWMMC dogs, expression of nuclear neuronal NF-kappaB and iNOS in cortical endothelial cells occurred at ages 2 and 4 weeks; subsequent damage included alterations of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), degenerating cortical neurons, apoptotic glial white matter cells, deposition of apolipoprotein E (apoE)-positive lipid droplets in smooth muscle cells and pericytes, nonneuritic plaques, and neurofibrillary tangles. Persistent pulmonary inflammation and deteriorating olfactory and respiratory barriers may play a role in the neuropathology observed in the brains of these highly exposed canines. Neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's may begin early in life with air pollutants playing a crucial role.

Air Pollution, Causes and Cures.

Science.gov (United States)

Manufacturing Chemists Association, Washington, DC.

This commentary on sources of air pollution and air purification treatments is accompanied by graphic illustrations. Sources of carbon monoxide, sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, and hydrocarbons found in the air are discussed. Methods of removing these pollutants at their source are presented with cut-away diagrams of the facilities and technical…

Air pollution and acid rains: status, effects, links with other forms of air pollution; Pollution de l`air et ``pluies acide`` etat des lieux, effets, liens avec d`autres formes de pollution de l`air

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Elichegaray, C. [Agence de l`Environnement et de la Maitrise de l`Energie, 75 - Paris (France)

1997-12-31

The evolution of acid rain pollution since 1970 is reviewed; it is shown that, broadly speaking, the acid rain issue is decreasing compared to other forms of long range air pollution, at least in Western Europe. The growing issue is the increasing photochemical pollution and its effects on health, ecosystems and climate. Nevertheless, acid rains are still a major concern in various parts of the world (North America for example) and certain parts of France (Ardennes, Landes, parts of Massif Central) exhibit a very high potential sensitivity to acid falls

RESEARCH AREA -- ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE CONTROL (AIR POLLUTION TECHNOLOGY BRANCH, AIR POLLUTION PREVENTION AND CONTROL DIVISION, NRMRL)

Science.gov (United States)

The Air Pollution Technology Branch (APTB) of NRMRL's Air Pollution Prevention and Control Division in Research Triangle Park, NC, has conducted several research projects for evaluating the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to improve the control of pollution control systems an...

Adverse respiratory effects of outdoor air pollution in the elderly.

Science.gov (United States)

Bentayeb, M; Simoni, M; Baiz, N; Norback, D; Baldacci, S; Maio, S; Viegi, G; Annesi-Maesano, I

2012-09-01

Compared to the rest of the population, the elderly are potentially highly susceptible to the effects of outdoor air pollution due to normal and pathological ageing. The purpose of the present review was to gather data on the effects on respiratory health of outdoor air pollution in the elderly, on whom data are scarce. These show statistically significant short-term and chronic adverse effects of various outdoor air pollutants on cardiopulmonary morbidity and mortality in the elderly. When exposed to air pollution, the elderly experience more hospital admissions for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and higher COPD mortality than others. Previous studies also indicate that research on the health effects of air pollution in the elderly has been affected by methodological problems in terms of exposure and health effect assessments. Few pollutants have been considered, and exposure assessment has been based mostly on background air pollution and more rarely on objective measurements and modelling. Significant progress needs to be made through the development of 'hybrid' models utilising the strengths of information on exposure in various environments to several air pollutants, coupled with daily activity exposure patterns. Investigations of chronic effects of air pollution and of multi-pollutant mixtures are needed to better understand the role of air pollution in the elderly. Lastly, smoking, occupation, comorbidities, treatment and the neighbourhood context should be considered as confounders or modifiers of such a role. In this context, the underlying biological, physiological and toxicological mechanisms need to be explored to better understand the phenomenon through a multidisciplinary approach.

The association between air pollution and mortality in Thailand.

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Yuming; Li, Shanshan; Tawatsupa, Benjawan; Punnasiri, Kornwipa; Jaakkola, Jouni J K; Williams, Gail

2014-07-01

Bayesian statistical inference with a case-crossover design was used to examine the effects of air pollutants {Particulate matter pollutants had significant short-term impacts on non-accidental mortality. An increase of 10 μg/m(3) in PM10, 10 ppb in O₃, 1 ppb in SO₂ were associated with a 0.40% (95% posterior interval (PI): 0.22, 0.59%), 0.78% (95% PI: 0.20, 1.35%) and 0.34% (95% PI: 0.17, 0.50%) increase of non-accidental mortality, respectively. O₃ air pollution is significantly associated with cardiovascular mortality, while PM10 is significantly related to respiratory mortality. In general, the effects of all pollutants on all mortality types were higher in summer and winter than those in the rainy season. This study highlights the effects of exposure to air pollution on mortality risks in Thailand. Our findings support the Thailand government in aiming to reduce high levels of air pollution.

Air pollution and mortality in Barcelona.

OpenAIRE

Sunyer, J; Castellsagué, J; Sáez, M; Tobias, A; Antó, J M

1996-01-01

STUDY OBJECTIVES: Studies conducted in Barcelona reported a short term relation between daily air pollutant values and emergency department admissions for exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases and asthma. Air pollution in Barcelona is mainly generated by vehicle exhaust and is below the World Health Organization air quality guidelines. The acute relation between air pollution and mortality was assessed. DESIGN: Daily variations in total mortality, mortality in subjects older ...

The price of air pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hiemstra-Holtkamp, I.V.L.

2006-01-01

The mortality in the Netherlands as a result of exposure to particulates is 18,000 per year. Less known is the high number of cases of sickness cased by air pollution and related cost for the Dutch society [nl

Transportation, Air Pollution, and Climate Change

Science.gov (United States)

... Centers Contact Us Share Transportation, Air Pollution, and Climate Change Overview Learn about pollutants from vehicles and engines that cause harmful health effects and climate change. Overview of air pollution from transportation Key issues, ...

Ambient air pollution and low birth weight

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Westergaard, Nadja; Gehring, Ulrike; Slama, Rémy

2017-01-01

(TLBW, restriction (IUGR), and suggest that some subgroups of pregnant women who are smoking, of low or high body-mass index (BMI), low socioeconomic status (SES) or asthma are more vulnerable towards...... on the association between ambient air pollution and TLBW. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) for TLBW associated with exposure to ambient air pollution were in one study higher among women who smoked during pregnancy, as compared to the OR of non-smoking women, while in the other study the association was in the opposite...... direction. The association of ambient air pollution and TLBW were higher among women characterized by extreme BMI (two studies) and low SES compared to non-obese women or women of higher SES (four studies), respectively. Only one study reported the estimated effects among asthmatic and non-asthmatic women...

High-resolution modelling of health impacts from air pollution using the integrated model system EVA

Science.gov (United States)

Brandt, Jørgen; Andersen, Mikael S.; Bønløkke, Jakob; Christensen, Jesper H.; Geels, Camilla; Hansen, Kaj M.; Jensen, Steen S.; Ketzel, Matthias; Plejdrup, Marlene S.; Sigsgaard, Torben; Silver, Jeremy D.

2014-05-01

A high-resolution assessment of health impacts from air pollution and related external cost has been conducted for Denmark using the integrated EVA model system. The EVA system has been further developed by implementing an air quality model with a 1 km x 1 km resolution covering the whole of Denmark. New developments of the integrated model system will be presented as well as results for health impacts and related external costs over several decades. Furthermore, the sensitivity of health impacts to model resolution will be studied. We have developed an integrated model system EVA (Economic Valuation of Air pollution), based on the impact-pathway chain, to assess the health impacts and health-related economic externalities of air pollution resulting from specific emission sources or sectors. The system is used to support policymaking with respect to emission control. In Brandt et al. (2013a; 2013b), the EVA system was used to assess the impacts in Europe and Denmark from the past, present and future total air pollution levels as well as the contribution from the major anthropogenic emission sectors. The EVA system was applied using the hemispheric chemistry-transport model, the Danish Eulerian Hemispheric Model (DEHM), with nesting capability for higher resolution over Europe (50 km x 50 km) and Northern Europe (16.7 km x 16.7 km). In this study an Urban Background Model (UBM) has been further developed to cover the whole of Denmark with a 1 km x 1 km resolution and the model has been implemented as a part of the integrated model system, EVA. The EVA system is based on the impact-pathway methodology. The site-specific emissions will result (via atmospheric transport and chemistry) in a concentration distribution, which together with detailed population data, are used to estimate the population-level exposure. Using exposure-response functions and economic valuations, the exposure is transformed into impacts on human health and related external costs. In this study

Outdoor air Pollution

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Forbes, PBC

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This chapter focuses on the air pollutants which are generally found in the troposphere and does not provide detail on specific areas where atmospheric pollutants and atmospheric chemistry may differ from that generally found, such as in the arctic...

Reconsidering the Relationship between Air Pollution and Deprivation

Science.gov (United States)

Bailey, Nick; Dong, Guanpeng; Minton, Jon; Pryce, Gwilym

2018-01-01

This paper critically examines the relationship between air pollution and deprivation. We argue that focusing on a particular economic or social model of urban development might lead one to erroneously expect all cities to converge towards a particular universal norm. A naive market sorting model, for example, would predict that poor households will eventually be sorted into high pollution areas, leading to a positive relationship between air pollution and deprivation. If, however, one considers a wider set of theoretical perspectives, the anticipated relationship between air pollution and deprivation becomes more complex and idiosyncratic. Specifically, we argue the relationship between pollution and deprivation can only be made sense of by considering processes of risk perception, path dependency, gentrification and urbanization. Rather than expecting all areas to eventually converge to some universal norm, we should expect the differences in the relationship between air pollution and deprivation across localities to persist. Mindful of these insights, we propose an approach to modeling which does not impose a geographically fixed relationship. Results for Scotland reveal substantial variations in the observed relationships over space and time, supporting our argument. PMID:29596380

Reconsidering the Relationship between Air Pollution and Deprivation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nick Bailey

2018-03-01

Full Text Available This paper critically examines the relationship between air pollution and deprivation. We argue that focusing on a particular economic or social model of urban development might lead one to erroneously expect all cities to converge towards a particular universal norm. A naive market sorting model, for example, would predict that poor households will eventually be sorted into high pollution areas, leading to a positive relationship between air pollution and deprivation. If, however, one considers a wider set of theoretical perspectives, the anticipated relationship between air pollution and deprivation becomes more complex and idiosyncratic. Specifically, we argue the relationship between pollution and deprivation can only be made sense of by considering processes of risk perception, path dependency, gentrification and urbanization. Rather than expecting all areas to eventually converge to some universal norm, we should expect the differences in the relationship between air pollution and deprivation across localities to persist. Mindful of these insights, we propose an approach to modeling which does not impose a geographically fixed relationship. Results for Scotland reveal substantial variations in the observed relationships over space and time, supporting our argument.

Neurotoxicity of traffic-related air pollution.

Science.gov (United States)

Costa, Lucio G; Cole, Toby B; Coburn, Jacki; Chang, Yu-Chi; Dao, Khoi; Roqué, Pamela J

2017-03-01

The central nervous system is emerging as an important target for adverse health effects of air pollution, where it may contribute to neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders. Air pollution comprises several components, including particulate matter (PM) and ultrafine particulate matter (UFPM), gases, organic compounds, and metals. An important source of ambient PM and UFPM is represented by traffic-related air pollution, primarily diesel exhaust (DE). Human epidemiological studies and controlled animal studies have shown that exposure to air pollution, and to traffic-related air pollution or DE in particular, may lead to neurotoxicity. In particular, air pollution is emerging as a possible etiological factor in neurodevelopmental (e.g. autism spectrum disorders) and neurodegenerative (e.g. Alzheimer's disease) disorders. The most prominent effects caused by air pollution in both humans and animals are oxidative stress and neuro-inflammation. Studies in mice acutely exposed to DE (250-300μg/m 3 for 6h) have shown microglia activation, increased lipid peroxidation, and neuro-inflammation in various brain regions, particularly the hippocampus and the olfactory bulb. An impairment of adult neurogenesis was also found. In most cases, the effects of DE were more pronounced in male mice, possibly because of lower antioxidant abilities due to lower expression of paraoxonase 2. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Air pollution in the Slovak Republic, 2004

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mitosinkova, M.; Kozakovic, L.; Zavodsky, D.; Sajtakova, E.; Szemesova, J.; Pukancikova, K.

2006-01-01

A report on air quality and contribution of individual sources on its pollution in the Slovak Republic in 2004 is presented. This report consists of two parts: (1) Pollutants part and (2) Emission part. Pollutants part is divided into the following chapters: Regional air pollution and quality of precipitation; Local air pollution; Atmospheric ozone. Emission part is divided into the following chapters: Inventory control of emissions and sources of pollution, Emission of greenhouse gases

Air pollution in the Slovak Republic, 2003

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mitosinkova, M.; Kozakovic, L.; Zavodsky, D.; Sajtakova, E.; Szemesova, J.; Pukancikova, K.

2005-01-01

A report on air quality and contribution of individual sources on its pollution in the Slovak Republic in 2003 is presented. This report consists of two parts: (1) Pollutants part and (2) Emission part. Pollutants part is divided into the following chapters: Regional air pollution and quality of of precipitation; Local air pollution; Atmospheric ozone. Emission part is divided into the following chapters: Inventory control of emissions and sources of pollution, Emission of greenhouse gases

Air pollution and human mortality

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lave, L B [Carnegie-Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA (USA). Dept. of Economics; Seskin, E P [Department of Commerce, Washington, DC (USA). Environmental and Nonmarket Economics Div.

1979-11-01

Investigations have been made on the quantitative relationship between air pollution and human mortality. While primary focus has been on suspended particulates and sulfates from stationary sources of pollution, the evidence relating to air pollutants attributed to mobile sources was also examined. Using statistical analyses for a large number of US metropolitan areas, it was concluded that the benefits associated with a substantial abatement of air pollution from stationary sources are greater than the costs of such abatement. In contrast, the situation for mobile sources-chiefly cars and trucks is less clear-cut. That is, the costs of implementing the currently mandated US standards for automobile emissions probably exeed their potential health benefits.

The Impact of Multi-pollutant Clusters on the Association between Fine Particulate Air Pollution and Microvascular Function

Science.gov (United States)

Ljungman, Petter L.; Wilker, Elissa H.; Rice, Mary B.; Austin, Elena; Schwartz, Joel; Gold, Diane R.; Koutrakis, Petros; Benjamin, Emelia J.; Vita, Joseph A.; Mitchell, Gary F.; Vasan, Ramachandran S.

2016-01-01

Background Prior studies including the Framingham Heart Study have suggested associations between single components of air pollution and vascular function; however, underlying mixtures of air pollution may have distinct associations with vascular function. Methods We used a k-means approach to construct five distinct pollution mixtures from elemental analyses of particle filters, air pollution monitoring data, and meteorology. Exposure was modeled as an interaction between fine particle mass (PM2.5), and concurrent pollution cluster. Outcome variables were two measures of microvascular function in the fingertip in the Framingham Offspring and Third Generation cohorts from 2003-2008. Results In 1,720 participants, associations between PM2.5 and baseline pulse amplitude tonometry differed by air pollution cluster (interaction p value 0.009). Higher PM2.5 on days with low mass concentrations but high proportion of ultrafine particles from traffic was associated with 18% (95% CI 4.6%; 33%) higher baseline pulse amplitude per 5 μg/m3 and days with high contributions of oil and wood combustion with 16% (95% CI 0.2%; 34%) higher baseline pulse amplitude. We observed no variation in associations of PM2.5 with hyperemic response to ischemia observed across air pollution clusters. Conclusions PM2.5 exposure from air pollution mixtures with large contributions of local ultrafine particles from traffic, heating oil and wood combustion was associated with higher baseline pulse amplitude but not PAT ratio. Our findings suggest little association between acute exposure to air pollution clusters reflective of select sources and hyperemic response to ischemia, but possible associations with excessive small artery pulsatility with potentially deleterious microvascular consequences. PMID:26562062

Lidar Monitoring of Mexico City's Atmosphere During High Air Pollution Episodes

Science.gov (United States)

Quick, C. R., Jr.; Archuleta, F. L.; Hof, D. E.; Karl, R. R., Jr.; Tiee, J. J., Jr.; Eichinger, W. E.; Holtkamp, D. B.; Tellier, L.

1992-01-01

Over the last two decades, Mexico City, like many large industrial and populous urban areas, has developed a serious air pollution problem, especially during the winter months when there are frequent temperature inversions and weak winds. The deteriorating air quality is the result of several factors. The basin within which Mexico City lies in Mexico's center of political, administrative and economic activity, generating 34 percent of the gross domestic product and 42 percent of the industrial revenue, and supporting a population which is rapidly approaching the 20 million mark. The basin is surrounded by mountains on three sides which end up preventing rapid dispersal of pollutants. Emissions from the transportation fleet (more than 3 million vehicles) are one of the primary pollution sources, and most are uncontrolled. Catalytic converters are just now working their way into the fleet. The Mexico City Air Quality Research Initiative in an international collaboration project between the Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Mexican Petroleum Institute are dedicated to the investigation of the air quality problem in Mexico City. The main objective of the project is to identify and assess the cost and benefits of major options being proposed to improve the air quality. The project is organized into three main activity areas: (1) modeling and simulation; (2) characterization and measurements; and (3) strategic evaluation.

Australians are not equally protected from industrial air pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dobbie, B; Green, D

2015-01-01

Australian air pollution standards are set at national and state levels for a number of chemicals harmful to human health. However, these standards do not need to be met when ad hoc pollution licences are issued by state environment agencies. This situation results in a highly unequal distribution of air pollution between towns and cities, and across the country. This paper examines these pollution regulations through two case studies, specifically considering the ability of the regulatory regime to protect human health from lead and sulphur dioxide pollution in the communities located around smelters. It also considers how the proposed National Clean Air Agreement, once enacted, might serve to reduce this pollution equity problem. Through the case studies we show that there are at least three discrete concerns relating to the current licencing system. They are: non-onerous emission thresholds for polluting industry; temporal averaging thresholds masking emission spikes; and ineffective penalties for breaching licence agreements. In conclusion, we propose a set of new, legally-binding national minimum standards for industrial air pollutants must be developed and enforced, which can only be modified by more (not less) stringent state licence arrangements. (letter)

Air Pollution and Otitis Media in Children: A Systematic Review of Literature

Science.gov (United States)

Tham, Rachel; Perret, Jennifer L.; Bloom, Michael S.; Dong, Guanghui; Waidyatillake, Nilakshi; Bui, Dinh; Morgan, Geoffrey G.; Jalaludin, Bin; Lodge, Caroline J.

2018-01-01

Young children are particularly vulnerable to otitis media (OM) which globally affects over 80% of children below the age of 3 years. Although there is convincing evidence for an association between environmental tobacco smoke exposure and OM in children, the relationship with ambient air pollution is not clear. We aimed to systematically review the literature on the relationship between ambient air pollution exposure and OM in children. A systematic search was performed in PubMed and EMBASE databases. Of 934 references identified, 24 articles were included. There is an increasing body of evidence supporting an association between higher ambient air pollution exposure and a higher risk of OM in children. While NO2 showed the most consistent association with OM, other specific pollutants showed inconsistent associations. Studies were mainly conducted in high/middle income countries with limited evidence from low-income countries. Although there was a general consensus that higher air pollution exposure is associated with a greater prevalence of OM, the evidence for associations with specific pollutants is inconsistent. More well-designed studies on associations between specific air pollutants as risk factors for OM are warranted, especially in low income countries with high air pollution levels. PMID:29401661

Air Pollution and Otitis Media in Children: A Systematic Review of Literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Bowatte, Gayan; Tham, Rachel; Perret, Jennifer L; Bloom, Michael S; Dong, Guanghui; Waidyatillake, Nilakshi; Bui, Dinh; Morgan, Geoffrey G; Jalaludin, Bin; Lodge, Caroline J; Dharmage, Shyamali C

2018-02-03

Young children are particularly vulnerable to otitis media (OM) which globally affects over 80% of children below the age of 3 years. Although there is convincing evidence for an association between environmental tobacco smoke exposure and OM in children, the relationship with ambient air pollution is not clear. We aimed to systematically review the literature on the relationship between ambient air pollution exposure and OM in children. A systematic search was performed in PubMed and EMBASE databases. Of 934 references identified, 24 articles were included. There is an increasing body of evidence supporting an association between higher ambient air pollution exposure and a higher risk of OM in children. While NO₂ showed the most consistent association with OM, other specific pollutants showed inconsistent associations. Studies were mainly conducted in high/middle income countries with limited evidence from low-income countries. Although there was a general consensus that higher air pollution exposure is associated with a greater prevalence of OM, the evidence for associations with specific pollutants is inconsistent. More well-designed studies on associations between specific air pollutants as risk factors for OM are warranted, especially in low income countries with high air pollution levels.

Applied research on air pollution using nuclear-related analytical techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-01-01

A co-ordinated research programme (CRP) on applied research on air pollution using nuclear-related techniques is a global CRP which will run from 1992-1996, and will build upon the experience gained by the Agency from the laboratory support that it has been providing for several years to BAPMoN - the Background Air Pollution Monitoring Network programme organized under the auspices of the World Meterological Organization. The purpose of this CRP is to promote the use of nuclear analytical techniques in air pollution studies, e.g. NAA, XFR, and PIXE for the analysis of toxic and other trace elements in suspended particulate matter (including air filter samples), rainwater and fog-water samples, and in biological indicators of air pollution (e.g. lichens and mosses). The main purposes of the core programme are i) to support the use of nuclear and nuclear-related analytical techniques for practically-oriented research and monitoring studies on air pollution ii) to identify major sources of air pollution affecting each of the participating countries with particular reference to toxic heavy metals, and iii) to obtain comparative data on pollution levels in areas of high pollution (e.g. a city centre or a populated area downwind of a large pollution source) and low pollution (e.g. rural areas). This document reports the discussions held during the first Research Co-ordination Meeting (RCM) for the CRP which took place at the IAEA Headquarters in Vienna. Refs, figs and tabs

Clinical effects of air pollution on the central nervous system; a review.

Science.gov (United States)

Babadjouni, Robin M; Hodis, Drew M; Radwanski, Ryan; Durazo, Ramon; Patel, Arati; Liu, Qinghai; Mack, William J

2017-09-01

The purpose of this review is to describe recent clinical and epidemiological studies examining the adverse effects of urban air pollution on the central nervous system (CNS). Air pollution and particulate matter (PM) are associated with neuroinflammation and reactive oxygen species (ROS). These processes affect multiple CNS pathways. The conceptual framework of this review focuses on adverse effects of air pollution with respect to neurocognition, white matter disease, stroke, and carotid artery disease. Both children and older individuals exposed to air pollution exhibit signs of cognitive dysfunction. However, evidence on middle-aged cohorts is lacking. White matter injury secondary to air pollution exposure is a putative mechanism for neurocognitive decline. Air pollution is associated with exacerbations of neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. Increases in stroke incidences and mortalities are seen in the setting of air pollution exposure and CNS pathology is robust. Large populations living in highly polluted environments are at risk. This review aims to outline current knowledge of air pollution exposure effects on neurological health. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Is smog innocuous? Air pollution and cardiovascular disease

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sundeep Mishra

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Air pollution is a significant environmental and health hazard. Earlier studies had examined the adverse health effects associated with short- and long-term exposure to particulate matter on respiratory disease. However, later studies demonstrated that was actually cardiovascular disease that accounted for majority of mortality. Furthermore, it was not gaseous pollutants like oxides of nitrate, sulfur, carbon mono-oxide or ozone but the particulate matter or PM, of fine or coarse size (PM2.5 and PM10 which was linearly associated with mortality; PM2.5 with long term and PM10 with short term. Several cardiovascular diseases are associated with pollution; acute myocardial infarction, heart failure, cardiac arrhythmias, atherosclerosis and cardiac arrest. The ideal way to address this problem is by adhering to stringent environmental standards of pollutants but some individual steps like choosing to stay indoors (on high pollution days, reducing outdoor air permeation to inside, purifying indoor air using air filters, and also limiting outdoor physical activity near source of air pollution can help. Nutritional anti-oxidants like statins or Mediterranean diet, and aspirin have not been associated with reduced risk but specific nutritional agents like broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower or brussels sprouts, fish oil supplement may help. Use of face-mask has been controversial but may be useful if particulate matter load is higher.

Is smog innocuous? Air pollution and cardiovascular disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Mishra, Sundeep

Air pollution is a significant environmental and health hazard. Earlier studies had examined the adverse health effects associated with short- and long-term exposure to particulate matter on respiratory disease. However, later studies demonstrated that was actually cardiovascular disease that accounted for majority of mortality. Furthermore, it was not gaseous pollutants like oxides of nitrate, sulfur, carbon mono-oxide or ozone but the particulate matter or PM, of fine or coarse size (PM 2.5 and PM 10 ) which was linearly associated with mortality; PM 2.5 with long term and PM 10 with short term. Several cardiovascular diseases are associated with pollution; acute myocardial infarction, heart failure, cardiac arrhythmias, atherosclerosis and cardiac arrest. The ideal way to address this problem is by adhering to stringent environmental standards of pollutants but some individual steps like choosing to stay indoors (on high pollution days), reducing outdoor air permeation to inside, purifying indoor air using air filters, and also limiting outdoor physical activity near source of air pollution can help. Nutritional anti-oxidants like statins or Mediterranean diet, and aspirin have not been associated with reduced risk but specific nutritional agents like broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower or brussels sprouts, fish oil supplement may help. Use of face-mask has been controversial but may be useful if particulate matter load is higher. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Ships, ports and particulate air pollution - an analysis of recent studies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mueller Daniel

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract The duration of use is usually significantly longer for marine vessels than for roadside vehicles. Therefore, these vessels are often powered by relatively old engines which may propagate air pollution. Also, the quality of fuel used for marine vessels is usually not comparable to the quality of fuels used in the automotive sector and therefore, port areas may exhibit a high degree of air pollution. In contrast to the multitude of studies that addressed outdoor air pollution due to road traffic, only little is known about ship-related air pollution. Therefore the present article aims to summarize recent studies that address air pollution, i.e. particulate matter exposure, due to marine vessels. It can be stated that the data in this area of research is still largely limited. Especially, knowledge on the different air pollutions in different sea areas is needed.

Technology of Measuring equipment for Air Pollution. Development of Mobile Air Pollution monitoring system (LIDAR)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cha, Hyung Ki; Song, Ky Seok; Rhee, Young Joo; Kim, Duck Hyun; Yang, Ki Ho; Lee, Jong Min; Cha, Byung Heon; Lee, Kang Soo

1999-01-01

Most air pollution monitoring technologies accompany a time-consuming sample treatment process and provides pollution information only for a local area. Thus, they have a critical restriction in monitoring time-dependent pollution variation effectively over the wide range of area both in height and in width. LIDAR (Light detection and ranging) is a new technology to overcome such drawbacks of the existing pollution monitoring technologies and has long been investigated in the advanced countries. The goal of this project is to develop the mobile air pollution monitoring system and to apply the system to the detection of various pollutants, such as ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide and aerosols

Technology of Measuring equipment for Air Pollution. Development of Mobile Air Pollution monitoring system (LIDAR)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cha, Hyung Ki; Song, Ky Seok; Rhee, Young Joo; Kim, Duck Hyun; Yang, Ki Ho; Lee, Jong Min; Cha, Byung Heon; Lee, Kang Soo

1999-01-01

Most air pollution monitoring technologies accompany a time-consuming sample treatment process and provides pollution information only for a local area. Thus, they have a critical restriction in monitoring time-dependent pollution variation effectively over the wide range of area both in height and in width. LIDAR (Light detection and ranging) is a new technology to overcome such drawbacks of the existing pollution monitoring technologies and has long been investigated in the advanced countries. The goal of this project is to develop the mobile air pollution monitoring system and to apply the system to the detection of various pollutants, such as ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide and aerosols.

Urban air pollution in Latin America and the Caribbean

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Romieu, I.; Weitzenfeld, H.; Finkelman, J.

1991-01-01

Urban air pollution has become an increasing problem in Latin America and the Caribbean. One reason is the rapid expansion in the size of the urban population. This phenomenon is associated with an increase in the number of vehicles and in energy utilization which, in addition to industrial processes often concentrated in the cities, are the primary sources of air pollution i n Latin American cities. The air quality standards established in such countries are frequently exceeded although control programs have been implemented. The urban areas more affected by anthropogenic pollutant emissions are Sao Paulo, Brazil; Santiago, Chile; and Mexico City. In Latin America, the population of cities with high priority air pollution problems include approximately 81 million people or 26.5 percent of the total urban population of Latin America, corresponding to 30 million children (<15 years), 47 million adults (15-59 years) and 4 million elderly people (≥60 years) who are exposed to air pollutant levels that exceed World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for adequate health protection

Agricultural and forest means to reduce damage caused by air pollution

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Knabe, W

1971-01-01

Agriculture and forestry may try to reduce damage caused by air pollution by the following means: under heavy pollution sensitive crops can be replaced by more tolerant ones through changes in land use; at lower grades of air pollution the kind of land use may be maintained by planting relatively tolerant species and strains; breeding of plant material which is more tolerant than the present average is necessary to meet future requirements; certain damage may be decreased by soil amelioration, fertilization and watering of plants; the impact of certain air pollutants can be reduced by planting shelterbelts and by silvicultural means which affect the structure of a stand; and a strict control of insect pests and plant diseases is of special value in air polluted regions. Any special case has to be handled individually. It has to be asked whether one of the means mentioned above will be successful and in what area it should be applied. Several methods for the delineation of polluted regions are listed. Agricultural and forest means to adapt to a given situation of air pollution is gaining increasing importance because of the large areas with a medium high level of pollution, even if the general prospects of success are not regarded as very high.

Traffic-related air pollution - the health effects scrutinized

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nijland, M.E.

2013-01-01

Numerous studies have been published on the health effects associated with exposure to air pollution. Air pollution is acknowledged as a public health risk and air quality regulations are set for specific air pollutants to protect human health. A major pollutant, well known for its adverse health

Impacts of Air Pollution on Health in Eastern China: Implications for future air pollution and energy policies

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, X.; Mauzerall, D.

2004-12-01

Our objective is to establish the link between energy consumption and technologies, air pollution and resulting impacts on public health in eastern China. We quantify the impacts that air pollution in the Shandong region of eastern China has on public health in 2000 and quantify the benefits in improved air quality and health that could be obtained by 2020, relative to business-as-usual, through the implementation of new energy technology. We first develop a highly-resolved emission inventory for the year 2000 for the Shandong region of China including emissions from large point, area, mobile and biogenic sources. We use the Sparse Matrix Operator Kernel Emissions Modeling System (SMOKE) to process emissions from this inventory for use in the Community Multi-scale Air Quality modeling system (CMAQ) which we drive with the NCAR/PSU MM5 meso-scale meteorology model. We evaluate the inventory by comparing CMAQ results with available measurements of PM10 and SO2 from air pollution indices (APIs) reported in various Chinese municipalities during 2002-2004. We use epidemiological dose-response functions to quantify health impacts and values of a statistical life (VSL) and years-of-life-lost (YLL) to establish a range for the monetary value of these impacts. To examine health impacts and their monetary value, we focus explicitly on Zaozhuang, a coal-intensive city in the Shandong region of eastern China, and quantify the mortalities and morbidities resulting from air pollutants emitted from this city in 2000, and in 2020 using business-as-usual, best-available control technology, and advanced coal gasification technology scenarios. In all scenarios most health damages arise from exposure to particulate matter. We find that total health damages due to year 2000 anthropogenic emissions from Zaozhuang accounted for 4-10% of its GDP. If all health damages resulting from coal use were internalized in the market price of coal, the year 2000 price would have doubled. With no new

Urban air pollution; La pollution de l'air dans la ville

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-07-01

The theme of this congress concerns air pollution in urban areas. Cities are accumulation of populations and economic activities, and then pollutants activities. The first articles are devoted to pollutants and their effects on health. Then come articles relative to measurements and modeling. Finally, the traffic in city and the automobile pollution are examined. Transportation systems as well technology in matter of gas emissions are reviewed. (N.C.)

Air pollution problem in the United States

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Heimann, H

1964-10-01

Air pollution in the United States as a problem affecting health, as well as man's enjoyment of his property, was first noted in 1912 in the reports of the investigators at the Mellon Institute of the University of Pittsburgh. The Selby copper smelter incident in 1915 was among the first episodic air pollution events documented. The US Public Health Service studied carbon monoxide buildup in vehicular tunnels in 1928 and 1929. the Donora (Pennsylvania) pollution episode, where 17 people died, occurred in 1949. It and the onset of smog conditions in the Los Angeles area really initiated broad public awareness of air pollution as a public health hazard in the USA. The symptoms of air pollution-related injuries are discussed, the role of the US Public Health Service in dealing with air pollution, and the effect of the Clean Air Act of 1963 are discussed. 26 references.

Air Pollution and Environmental Justice Awareness

Science.gov (United States)

Bouvier-Brown, N. C.

2014-12-01

Air pollution is not equally dispersed in all neighborhoods and this raises many social concerns, such as environmental justice. "Real world" data, whether extracted from online databases or collected in the field, can be used to demonstrate air quality patterns. When students explore these trends, they not only learn about atmospheric chemistry, but they also become socially aware of any inequities. This presentation outlines specific ways to link air pollution and environmental justice suitable for an undergraduate upper division Air Pollution or Atmospheric Chemistry course.

Air pollution damage to plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Daly, G T

1974-01-01

The effects of the most important air pollutants on plants are described in detail. The include: smoke and particulates, sulfur dioxide, fluorides, peroxyacetyl nitrate, nitrogen oxides, and ozone. An attempt is made to show that plant injury by air pollution can be recognized and evaluated in the presence of effects from insect, fungal, bacterial, viral pathogens and the symptoms of nutrient and enviromental stress. All plants are more or less affected by toxic gases and metals absorbed from the air. For each plant and each pollutant there is a critical concentration above which damage occurs, and below which growth is normal.

[Air pollution and cardiovascular disease in Trondheim].

Science.gov (United States)

Mannsåker, Bård; Vikan, Torkel; Holme, Jonas

2004-05-20

There is some evidence linking air pollution to cardiovascular morbidity. Our aim was to examine whether there is a correlation between air pollution and cardiovascular morbidity in the city of Trondheim, Norway. We compared the mean daily number of admissions for cardiovascular disease to the St. Olav University hospital on days with relatively low and high levels of PM10 (1993-2001), PM2,5, NO, NO2, SO2, O3, toluene and paraxylene (1998-2001). A time series analysis was carried out to see how day-to-day variations in concentrations of air pollutants correlated with the number of hospitalizations for cardiovascular disease. In the bivariate analysis, the mean daily number of hospitalizations was found to be significantly higher (p < 0.05) on days with NO and NO2 levels above the 80 th percentile (57.6 microg/m3 and 43.1 microg/m3, respectively) than on days with pollutant levels below the 20th percentile (11.3 microg/m3 and 16.9 microg/m3, respectively). Time series analysis did not show any statistically significant correlation between day-to-day variations in air pollution and hospital admissions for cardiovascular disease. The findings regarding NO2 and NO indicate that exposure to gases and/or ultra-small particles from diesel exhaust may influence cardiovascular morbidity.

Air Pollution and Human Health

Science.gov (United States)

Lave, Lester B.; Seskin, Eugene P.

1970-01-01

Reviews studies statistically relating air pollution to mortality and morbidity rates for respiratory, and cardiovascular diseases, cancer and infant mortality. Some data recalculated. Estimates 50 percent air pollution reduction will save 4.5 percent (2080 million dollars per year) of all economic loss (hospitalization, income loss) associated…

Intercontinental Transport of Air Pollution

Science.gov (United States)

Rogers, David; Whung, Pai-Yei; Einaudi, Franco (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

The development of the global economy goes beyond raising our standards of living. We are in an ear of increasing environmental as well as economic interdependence. Long-range transport of anthropogenic atmospheric pollutants such as ozone, ozone precursors, airborne particles, heavy metals (such as mercury) and persistent organic pollutants are the four major types of pollution that are transported over intercontinental distances and have global environmental effects. The talk includes: 1) an overview of the international agreements related to intercontinental transport of air pollutants, 2) information needed for decision making, 3) overview of the past research on intercontinental transport of air pollutants - a North American's perspective, and 4) future research needs.

Public Communication on Urban Air Pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Otra, C.; Sala, R.

2014-01-01

The aim of this study was to analyze the state of public information in the field of air pollution in Spain. We conducted semi-structured interviews with members of public agencies, technical experts, scientists, and members of non governmental associations together with a documentary analysis of air pollution documents (plans, reports, etc.). We tried to characterize the information actions on air quality carried out in Spanish cities during the last years. In the results section we first analyze the ideas, concerns and considerations that underlie the actions of public information on air pollution, as well as the main challenges of public communication on this subject, according to the documents and the different experts consulted. We analyze the various contents of information transmitted nowadays (on levels of pollution, health impacts and mitigation or protection actions), as well as the mechanisms by which it is communicated, both continuously and in the case of threshold overcoming episodes. We also review the different media used to communicate air pollution information (Internet, mobile applications and other forms) and other issues such as information audiences, or the perceived impacts of information provided. Finally, the implications for more diverse and effective public involvement strategies in air pollution are discussed. (Author)

Air pollution control regulation. [Japan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sogabe, K

1975-05-01

The Basic Law for Environmental Pollution Control is reviewed. The fundamental ideology of pollution control, range of pollution control, environmental standards, and national policy concerning pollution control are discussed. The content of the Air Pollution Control Law is summarized. The purpose of the Air Pollution Control Law, a list of substances regulated by the law, the type of facilities regulated by the law, control standards, type of control means, and emission standards for flue gas (sulfur oxides, particulate matters, and toxic substances) are described. The environmental standard for each pollutant and the target date for achieving the environmental standard are also given. The list of cities where the 7-rank K value control regulation for SOx is enforced is given. The procedure for registration in compliance with the law is also described.

Part 5. Public health and air pollution in Asia (PAPA): a combined analysis of four studies of air pollution and mortality.

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, C M; Vichit-Vadakan, N; Vajanapoom, N; Ostro, B; Thach, T Q; Chau, P Y K; Chan, E K P; Chung, R Y N; Ou, C Q; Yang, L; Peiris, J S M; Thomas, G N; Lam, T H; Wong, T W; Hedley, A J; Kan, H; Chen, B; Zhao, N; London, S J; Song, G; Chen, G; Zhang, Y; Jiang, L; Qian, Z; He, Q; Lin, H M; Kong, L; Zhou, D; Liang, S; Zhu, Z; Liao, D; Liu, W; Bentley, C M; Dan, J; Wang, B; Yang, N; Xu, S; Gong, J; Wei, H; Sun, H; Qin, Z

2010-11-01

adjustments in methods to optimize the fit of health-effects models to each city's data set. It provides the basis for generating reproducible results in each city and for meta-estimates from combined data. By establishing a common methodology, factors that might influence the differences in results from previous studies can more easily be explored. Administrative support was provided to ensure that the highest quality data were used in the analysis. It is anticipated that the PAPA results will contribute to the international scientific discussion of how to conduct and interpret time-series studies of air pollution and will stimulate the development of high-quality routine systems for recording daily deaths and hospital admissions for time-series analysis. Mortality data were retrieved from routine databases with underlying causes of death coded using the World Health Organization (WHO) International Classification of Diseases, 9th revision or 10th revision (ICD-9, ICD-10). Air quality measurements included nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter air monitoring stations that were located throughout the metropolitan areas of the four cities and that met the standards of procedures for quality assurance and quality control carried out by local government units in each city. Using the Common Protocol, an optimized core model was established for each city to assess the effects of each of the four air pollutants on daily mortality using generalized linear modeling with adjustments for time trend, seasonality, and other time-varying covariates by means of a natural-spline smoothing function. The models were adjusted to suit local situations by correcting for influenza activity, autocorrelation, and special weather conditions. Researchers in Hong Kong, for example, used influenza activity based on frequency of respiratory mortality; researchers in Hong Kong and Shanghai used autoregressive terms for daily outcomes at lag days; and

Multi-year simulations of air pollution in two cities

Science.gov (United States)

Zink, Katrin; Berchet, Antoine; Emmenegger, Lukas; Brunner, Dominik

2016-04-01

As more and more people are living in urban areas world wide, air quality monitoring and forecasting at the city scale becomes increasingly critical. Due to the proximity to sources and the complex, fine-scale structure of the flow and turbulence in the built environment, air pollutant concentrations vary strongly in cities both spatially and temporally. Studies assessing the effect of air pollution on human health would greatly benefit from accurate knowledge of individual exposure, but given the high variability of concentrations and the mobility of the population, this is a marvellous task requiring highly-resolved, city-wide information on air pollutant concentrations. The Swiss Nano-Tera project OpenSense II addresses these issues using statistical and physical modeling of air pollution at very high resolution combined with long-term air pollution measurements and mobile networks of low-cost sensors. In the framework of this project, we have set up the nested meteorology and dispersion model system GRAMM/GRAL the cities of Lausanne and Zurich and improved several computational aspects of the system. Using the mesoscale model GRAMM, we simulate the flow in a larger domain around the two cities at 100 m resolution taking the complex topography and influences of different land cover on surface-atmosphere exchange of heat and momentum into account. These flow fields serve as initial and boundary conditions for the nested model GRAL, which simulates the flow inside the city at building-resolving scale (5 m resolution) based on the Reynolds-Averaged-Navier-Stokes equations, and computes the transport and dispersion of air pollutants in a Lagrangian framework. For computational efficiency, both GRAMM and GRAL simulations are run for a fixed catalog of 1008 weather situations varying in terms of background wind speed, direction and stability. Hourly time-series of meteorology and air pollutants are constructed from these steady-state solutions by selecting, for each

Indoor Air Pollution in Non Ac Passenger Bus

Science.gov (United States)

El Husna, Iksiroh; Unzilatirrizqi, Rizal D. Yan El; Karyanto, Yudi; Sunoko, Henna R.

2018-02-01

Passenger buses have been one of favorite means of transportation in Indonesia due to its affordability and flexibility. Intensity of human activities during the trip in the buses have a potential of causing indoor air pollution (polusi udara dalam ruang; PUDR). The indoor air pollution has an impact of 1000-time bigger than outdoor air pollution (polusi udara luar ruang; PULR) on lung. This study aimed to find out indoor air pollution rate of non air conditioned buses using an approach to biological agent pollutant source. The study applied an analysis restricted to microorganisms persistence as one of the sources of the indoor air pollution. The media were placed in different parts of the non AC buses. This study revealed that fungs were found in the non AC buses. They became contaminants and developed pathogenic bacteria that caused air pollution.

Indoor Air Pollution in Non Ac Passenger Bus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

El Husna Iksiroh

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Passenger buses have been one of favorite means of transportation in Indonesia due to its affordability and flexibility. Intensity of human activities during the trip in the buses have a potential of causing indoor air pollution (polusi udara dalam ruang; PUDR. The indoor air pollution has an impact of 1000-time bigger than outdoor air pollution (polusi udara luar ruang; PULR on lung. This study aimed to find out indoor air pollution rate of non air conditioned buses using an approach to biological agent pollutant source. The study applied an analysis restricted to microorganisms persistence as one of the sources of the indoor air pollution. The media were placed in different parts of the non AC buses. This study revealed that fungs were found in the non AC buses. They became contaminants and developed pathogenic bacteria that caused air pollution.

Teaching Air Pollution in an Authentic Context

Science.gov (United States)

Mandrikas, Achilleas; Stavrou, Dimitrios; Skordoulis, Constantine

2017-04-01

This paper describes a teaching-learning sequence (TLS) about air pollution and the findings resulting from its implementation by pre-service elementary teachers (PET) currently undergraduate students of the Department of Primary Education in the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece. The TLS focused on the relation of air pollution with wind and topography in local conditions. An authentic context was provided to the students based on daily up-to-date meteorological data via the Internet in order to estimate air pollution. The results are encouraging given that PET can correlate wind and concentration of air pollutants through reading specialized angular diagrams and weather maps, can recognize the correlation of topography in the concentration of air pollutants, and can describe temperature inversion. However, the PET demonstrated clear difficulties in ability of orientation, in wind naming, and in interpretation of symbols on weather map. Finally, the implications on teaching air pollution are discussed.

Air Pollution and Otitis Media in Children: A Systematic Review of Literature

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gayan Bowatte

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Young children are particularly vulnerable to otitis media (OM which globally affects over 80% of children below the age of 3 years. Although there is convincing evidence for an association between environmental tobacco smoke exposure and OM in children, the relationship with ambient air pollution is not clear. We aimed to systematically review the literature on the relationship between ambient air pollution exposure and OM in children. A systematic search was performed in PubMed and EMBASE databases. Of 934 references identified, 24 articles were included. There is an increasing body of evidence supporting an association between higher ambient air pollution exposure and a higher risk of OM in children. While NO2 showed the most consistent association with OM, other specific pollutants showed inconsistent associations. Studies were mainly conducted in high/middle income countries with limited evidence from low-income countries. Although there was a general consensus that higher air pollution exposure is associated with a greater prevalence of OM, the evidence for associations with specific pollutants is inconsistent. More well-designed studies on associations between specific air pollutants as risk factors for OM are warranted, especially in low income countries with high air pollution levels.

ARAMIS a regional air quality model for air pollution management: evaluation and validation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Solar, M. R.; Gamez, P.; Olid, M.

2015-07-01

The aim of this research was to better understand the dynamics of air pollutants and to forecast the air quality over regional areas in order to develop emission abatement strategies for air pollution and adverse health effects. To accomplish this objective, we developed and applied a high resolution Eulerian system named ARAMIS (A Regional Air Quality Modelling Integrated System) over the north-east of Spain (Catalonia), where several pollutants exceed threshold values for the protection of human health. The results indicate that the model reproduced reasonably well observed concentrations, as statistical values fell within Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommendations and European (EU) regulations. Nevertheless, some hourly O{sub 3} exceedances in summer and hourly peaks of NO{sub 2} in winter were underestimated. Concerning PM10 concentrations less accurate model levels were obtained with a moderate trend towards underestimation during the day. (Author)

ARAMIS a regional air quality model for air pollution management: evaluation and validation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Soler, M.R.; Gamez, P.; Olid, M.

2015-07-01

The aim of this research was to better understand the dynamics of air pollutants and to forecast the air quality over regional areas in order to develop emission abatement strategies for air pollution and adverse health effects. To accomplish this objective, we developed and applied a high resolution Eulerian system named ARAMIS (A Regional Air Quality Modelling Integrated System) over the north-east of Spain (Catalonia), where several pollutants exceed threshold values for the protection of human health. The results indicate that the model reproduced reasonably well observed concentrations, as statistical values fell within Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommendations and European (EU) regulations. Nevertheless, some hourly O3 exceedances in summer and hourly peaks of NO2 in winter were underestimated. Concerning PM10 concentrations less accurate model levels were obtained with a moderate trend towards underestimation during the day. (Author)

Decomposing Air Pollutant Emissions in Asia: Determinants and Projections

OpenAIRE

Rafaj, P.; Amann, M.

2018-01-01

High levels of air pollution pose an urgent social and public health challenge in many Asian regions. This study evaluates the role of key factors that determined the changes in emission levels in China, India and Japan over the past 25 years. While emissions of air pollutants have been declining in Japan since the 1990s, China and India have experienced a rapid growth in pollution levels in recent years. Around 2005, control measures for sulfur emissions started to deliver expected reduction...

Two-way effect modifications of air pollution and air temperature on total natural and cardiovascular mortality in eight European urban areas.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Kai; Wolf, Kathrin; Breitner, Susanne; Gasparrini, Antonio; Stafoggia, Massimo; Samoli, Evangelia; Andersen, Zorana Jovanovic; Bero-Bedada, Getahun; Bellander, Tom; Hennig, Frauke; Jacquemin, Bénédicte; Pekkanen, Juha; Hampel, Regina; Cyrys, Josef; Peters, Annette; Schneider, Alexandra

2018-07-01

Although epidemiological studies have reported associations between mortality and both ambient air pollution and air temperature, it remains uncertain whether the mortality effects of air pollution are modified by temperature and vice versa. Moreover, little is known on the interactions between ultrafine particles (diameter ≤ 100 nm, UFP) and temperature. We investigated whether the short-term associations of particle number concentration (PNC in the ultrafine range (≤100 nm) or total PNC ≤ 3000 nm, as a proxy for UFP), particulate matter ≤ 2.5 μm (PM 2.5 ) and ≤ 10 μm (PM 10 ), and ozone with daily total natural and cardiovascular mortality were modified by air temperature and whether air pollution levels affected the temperature-mortality associations in eight European urban areas during 1999-2013. We first analyzed air temperature-stratified associations between air pollution and total natural (nonaccidental) and cardiovascular mortality as well as air pollution-stratified temperature-mortality associations using city-specific over-dispersed Poisson additive models with a distributed lag nonlinear temperature term in each city. All models were adjusted for long-term and seasonal trend, day of the week, influenza epidemics, and population dynamics due to summer vacation and holidays. City-specific effect estimates were then pooled using random-effects meta-analysis. Pooled associations between air pollutants and total and cardiovascular mortality were overall positive and generally stronger at high relatively compared to low air temperatures. For example, on days with high air temperatures (>75th percentile), an increase of 10,000 particles/cm 3 in PNC corresponded to a 2.51% (95% CI: 0.39%, 4.67%) increase in cardiovascular mortality, which was significantly higher than that on days with low air temperatures (air pollution (>50th percentile), both heat- and cold-related mortality risks increased. Our findings showed that

Air pollution: a potentially modifiable risk factor for lung cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Fajersztajn, Laís; Veras, Mariana; Barrozo, Ligia Vizeu; Saldiva, Paulo

2013-09-01

Economic growth and increased urbanization pose a new risk for cancer development: the exposure of high numbers of people to ambient air pollution. Epidemiological evidence that links air pollution to mortality from lung cancer is robust. An ability to produce high-quality scientific research that addresses these risks and the ability of local health authorities to understand and respond to these risks are basic requirements to solve the conflict between economic development and the preservation of human health. However, this is currently far from being achieved. Thus, this Science and Society article addresses the possibilities of expanding scientific networking to increase awareness of the risk of lung cancer that is promoted by air pollution.

What can individuals do to reduce personal health risks from air pollution?

Science.gov (United States)

Laumbach, Robert; Meng, Qingyu; Kipen, Howard

2015-01-01

In many areas of the world, concentrations of ambient air pollutants exceed levels associated with increased risk of acute and chronic health problems. While effective policies to reduce emissions at their sources are clearly preferable, some evidence supports the effectiveness of individual actions to reduce exposure and health risks. Personal exposure to ambient air pollution can be reduced on high air pollution days by staying indoors, reducing outdoor air infiltration to indoors, cleaning indoor air with air filters, and limiting physical exertion, especially outdoors and near air pollution sources. Limited evidence suggests that the use of respirators may be effective in some circumstances. Awareness of air pollution levels is facilitated by a growing number of public air quality alert systems. Avoiding exposure to air pollutants is especially important for susceptible individuals with chronic cardiovascular or pulmonary disease, children, and the elderly. Research on mechanisms underlying the adverse health effects of air pollution have suggested potential pharmaceutical or chemopreventive interventions, such as antioxidant or antithrombotic agents, but in the absence of data on health outcomes, no sound recommendations can be made for primary prevention. Health care providers and their patients should carefully consider individual circumstances related to outdoor and indoor air pollutant exposure levels and susceptibility to those air pollutants when deciding on a course of action to reduce personal exposure and health risks from ambient air pollutants. Careful consideration is especially warranted when interventions may have unintended negative consequences, such as when efforts to avoid exposure to air pollutants lead to reduced physical activity or when there is evidence that dietary supplements, such as antioxidants, have potential adverse health effects. These potential complications of partially effective personal interventions to reduce exposure or

Air pollution monitoring in downtown Rome, Italy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brocco, D; Petricca, M; Polesi, R [Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Rome (Italy). Ist. sull' Inquinamento Atmosferico Assessorato Ambiente, Rome (Italy). Amministrazione Provinciale

1992-09-01

This paper tables air pollution data indicating concentrations of sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxides, carbon monoxide, ozone, non-methane hydrocarbons (NMTHC) and particulate matter measured in downtown Rome during the period, April 1990 - March 1991. These data are analyzed according to National Air Quality Standards. Correlations are developed for nitrous oxide, NMTHC and ozone concentration trends as a function of solar radiation intensity. Analysis of the data reveals that the concentrations of the primary pollutants, carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxide, were very high in the winter months when building heating systems were operating under stable weather conditions. In many cases, the concentrations of carbon monoxide exceeded ambient air quality standards. The paper also discusses the need for the development of limits for NMTHC concentrations and including these limits in the Air Quality Standards.

Health risk assessment of China’s main air pollutants

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jian Sun

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background With the rapid development of China’s economy, air pollution has attracted public concern because of its harmful effects on health. Methods The source apportioning of air pollution, the spatial distribution characteristics, and the relationship between atmospheric contamination, and the risk of exposure were explored. The in situ daily concentrations of the principal air pollutants (PM2.5, PM10, SO2, NO2, CO and O3 were obtained from 188 main cities with many continuous air-monitoring stations across China (2014 and 2015. Results The results indicate positive correlations between PM2.5 and SO2 (R 2 = 0.395/0.404, P  0.05 for both 2014 and 2015. Additionally, a significant relationship between SO2, NO2, and CO was discovered using regression analysis (P < 0.0001, indicating that the origin of air pollutants is likely to be vehicle exhaust, coal consumption, and biomass open-burning. For the spatial pattern of air pollutants, we found that the highest concentration of SO2, NO2, and CO were mainly distributed in north China (Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei regions, Shandong, Shanxi and Henan provinces, part of Xinjiang and central Inner Mongolia (2014 and 2015. Conclusions The highest concentration and risk of PM2.5 was observed in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei economic belts, and Shandong, Henan, Shanxi, Hubei and Anhui provinces. Nevertheless, the highest concentration of O3 was irregularly distributed in most areas of China. A high-risk distribution of PM10, SO2 and NO2 was also observed in these regions, with the high risk of PM10 and NO2 observed in the Hebei and Shandong province, and high-risk of PM10 in Urumchi. The high-risk of NO2 distributed in Beijing-Yangtze River Delta region-Pearl River Delta region-central. Although atmospheric contamination slightly improved in 2015 compared to 2014, humanity faces the challenge of reducing the environmental and public health effects of air pollution by altering the present

Air pollution control in India

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jain, S.K.

1995-01-01

Prior to rapid spurt in industrialization in India, people were used to inhale pure air containing about 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen and some carbon dioxide. But afterwards this composition of pure air was disturbed as a result of increased economic activities. Air, now a days also contains sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides etc., etc. which are extremely harmful for human health. Virulence of air pollution was realised in late eighties after Bhopal Gas Tragedy (BGT) and an effective air quality management started taking shape in India afterwards. The basic components of air quality management are legislation and regulations, emission inventory, air quality standards and monitoring, air dispersion models and installation of pollution control equipment which are being discussed in this paper. (author). 15 refs., 5 tabs

Effect of using low-polluting building materials and increasing ventilation on perceived indoor air quality

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wargocki, P.; Zuczek, P. (International Centre for Indoor Environment and Energy, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, DTU, Kgs. Lyngby (DK)); Knudsen, Henrik N. (Danish Building Research Institute, Aalborg Univ., Hoersholm (DK))

2007-07-01

The potential of improving perceived air quality indoors was quantified when low-polluting materials are used and when building ventilation is increased. This was done by studying the relationships between ventilation rate and the perceived indoor air quality. A sensory panel assessed the air quality in test rooms ventilated with realistic outdoor air supply rates, where combinations of high- and low-polluting wall, floor and ceiling materials were set up. These materials were ranked as high- and low-polluting using sensory assessments of air quality in small-scale glass chambers, where they were tested individually. Substituting materials ranked as high-polluting with materials ranked as lower-polluting improved the perceived air quality in the test rooms. This improvement was greater than what was achieved by a realistic increase of the ventilation rate in the test rooms. Thus reducing pollution emitted from building materials that affects the perceived air quality has a considerable potential of limiting the energy for ventilation without compromising indoor air quality. (au)

Influence of Social-economic Activities on Air Pollutants in Beijing, China

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Xiaolu; Zheng, Wenfeng; Yin, Lirong; Yin, Zhengtong; Song, Lihong; Tian, Xia

2017-08-01

With the rapid economic development, the serious air pollution in Beijing attracts increasing attention in the last decade. Seen as one whole complex and grey system, the causal relationship between the social development and the air pollution in Beijing has been quantitatively analyzed in this paper. By using the grey relational model, the aim of this study is to explore how the socio-economic and human activities affect on the air pollution in the city of Beijing, China. Four air pollutants, as the particulate matter with size 2.5 micrometers or less (PM2.5), particulate matter with size 10 micrometers or less (PM10), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen dioxide (NOx), are selected as the indicators of air pollution. Additionally, fifteen socio-economic indicators are selected to account for the regional socio-economic characteristics (economy variables, energy consumption variables, pollution emissions variables, environment and construction activity variables). The results highlight that all variables are associated with the concentrations of the four selected air pollutants, but with notable differences between the air pollutants. Most of the socio-economic indicators, such as industrial output, total energy consumption are highly correlated with PM2.5, while PM10, SO2, and NOx present in general moderate correlations with most of the socio-economic variables. Contrary to other studies and reports this study reveals that vehicles and life energy do not have the strongest effect on air pollution in Beijing. This study provides useful information to reduce air pollution and support decision-making for sustainable development.

Influence of Social-economic Activities on Air Pollutants in Beijing, China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Li Xiaolu

2017-08-01

Full Text Available With the rapid economic development, the serious air pollution in Beijing attracts increasing attention in the last decade. Seen as one whole complex and grey system, the causal relationship between the social development and the air pollution in Beijing has been quantitatively analyzed in this paper. By using the grey relational model, the aim of this study is to explore how the socio-economic and human activities affect on the air pollution in the city of Beijing, China. Four air pollutants, as the particulate matter with size 2.5 micrometers or less (PM2.5, particulate matter with size 10 micrometers or less (PM10, sulfur dioxide (SO2 and nitrogen dioxide (NOx, are selected as the indicators of air pollution. Additionally, fifteen socio-economic indicators are selected to account for the regional socio-economic characteristics (economy variables, energy consumption variables, pollution emissions variables, environment and construction activity variables. The results highlight that all variables are associated with the concentrations of the four selected air pollutants, but with notable differences between the air pollutants. Most of the socio-economic indicators, such as industrial output, total energy consumption are highly correlated with PM2.5, while PM10, SO2, and NOx present in general moderate correlations with most of the socio-economic variables. Contrary to other studies and reports this study reveals that vehicles and life energy do not have the strongest effect on air pollution in Beijing. This study provides useful information to reduce air pollution and support decision-making for sustainable development.

Cordon Pricing Considering Air Pollutants Emission

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shahriar Afandizadeh

2016-04-01

Full Text Available This paper considers the issue of air pollutants emission for the optimal and sustainable determination of cordon location, toll level, and price of park and ride (P&R. Although air pollutants emission decreases within the cordon by the implementation of cordon pricing scheme, it may increase outside the cordon and the whole network. Hence, air pollutants emission may only transfer from inside of the cordon to its outside. Therefore, in this paper, a multi-objective bi-level optimization model is developed. A solution algorithm is also presented based on the second version of strength Pareto evolutionary algorithm (SPEA2. The results reveal that this multi-objective model can be a useful tool for the sustainable and optimal design of the cordon and P&R scheme. In addition, cordon pricing is a multi-objective problem. Therefore, it is necessary to consider air pollutants emission. By choosing another non-dominated result in the solution space, air pollutants emission outside the cordon and the whole network can be reduced without a significant reduction in social welfare.

Air Pollution Modeling at Road Sides Using the Operational Street Pollution Model-A Case Study in Hanoi, Vietnam

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hung, Ngo Tho; Ketzel, Matthias; Jensen, Steen Solvang

2010-01-01

In many metropolitan areas, traffic is the main source of air pollution. The high concentrations of pollutants in streets have the potential to affect human health. Therefore, estimation of air pollution at the street level is required for health impact assessment. This task has been carried out...... in many developed countries by a combination of air quality measurements and modeling. This study focuses on how to apply a dispersion model to cities in the developing world, where model input data and data from air quality monitoring stations are limited or of varying quality. This research uses...... the operational street pollution model (OSPM) developed by the National Environmental Research Institute in Denmark for a case study in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. OSPM predictions from five streets were evaluated against air pollution measurements of nitrogen oxides (NO), sulfur dioxide (SO2), carbon monoxide...

Evaluation of 5 Air Criteria Pollutants; Tehran, Iran

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mazaheri Tehrani A. MSc,

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Aims Tehran’s uncontrolled expansion, which promoted housing, public utilities, industries and increase of vehicles caused the problem of air pollution. Necessary information about air quality in different places and different times is the first step of combating the air pollution. The purpose of this study was to investigate the annual, monthly and hourly average of 5 criteria air pollutants (PM10, O3, NO2, SO2, CO of Tehran City, Iran. Instrument & Methods The hourly concentrations of PM10, O3, NO2, SO2, CO were obtained from 21 air quality-measuring stations of Tehran City, Iran, during April 2012 to March 2013. Data were presented by descriptive statistics in the form of mean and standard deviation. Findings CO concentration was not changed during the period of study. Nitrogen dioxide increased in spring and winter. Sulfur dioxide was not changed in the first six months of the year but its concentration increased in winter. Trend of changes of floating particles showed increasing the concentration of this pollutant in May 2012 and January 2013. Ozone concentration increased in the warm seasons and decreased in the cold seasons. Conclusion PM10, O3, NO2, SO2 and CO has high concentrations and cold periods of the year are more polluted than the warm periods in Tehran City, Iran.

Public Health and Air Pollution in Asia (PAPA): a multicity study of short-term effects of air pollution on mortality.

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Chit-Ming; Vichit-Vadakan, Nuntavarn; Kan, Haidong; Qian, Zhengmin

2008-09-01

Although the deleterious effects of air pollution from fossil fuel combustion have been demonstrated in many Western nations, fewer studies have been conducted in Asia. The Public Health and Air Pollution in Asia (PAPA) project assessed the effects of short-term exposure to air pollution on daily mortality in Bangkok, Thailand, and in three cities in China: Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Wuhan. Poisson regression models incorporating natural spline smoothing functions were used to adjust for seasonality and other time-varying covariates that might confound the association between air pollution and mortality. Effect estimates were determined for each city and then for the cities combined using a random effects method. In individual cities, associations were detected between most of the pollutants [nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, particulate matter air pollution than those in Western industrial nations because they spend more time outdoors and less time in air conditioning. Although the social and environmental conditions may be quite different, it is reasonable to apply estimates derived from previous health effect of air pollution studies in the West to Asia.

Air pollution and floristic biodiversity; Pollution atmospherique et biodiversite floristique

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grub, A.; Bungener, P.; Contat, F.; Nussbaum, S.; Endtner, V.; Fuhrer, J. [Station Federale de Recherches en Agroecologie et Agriculture (FAL), Liebefeld-Berne (Switzerland). Institut de Recherches en Protection de l' Environnement et en Agriculture (IUL)

1999-06-01

The number of reports on negative effects of air pollution on biodiversity is increasing. Here, examples from the literature are presented which concern effects of fluoride, deposition of nitrogen, and ozone. Today, nitrogen loads and levels of tropospheric ozone seem to be most relevant forms of air pollution affecting species diversity of the flora. Results from recent investigations of ozone effects at Liebefeld indicate that the loss of floristic diversity in permanent meadows is possible because of the high relative sensitivity of some typical species. Further studies will be necessary to validate the results obtained from experiment with single plants at the level of the intact plant community in the field, and to identify the critical level of ozone to protect the floristic biodiversity of meadows. (authors)

A review of urban air pollution monitoring and exposure assessment methods

OpenAIRE

Xie, Xingzhe; Semanjski, Ivana; Gautama, Sidharta; Tsiligianni, Evaggelia; Deligiannis, Nikos; Rajan, Raj; Pasveer, Frank; Philips, Wilfried

2017-01-01

The impact of urban air pollution on the environments and human health has drawn increasing concerns from researchers, policymakers and citizens. To reduce the negative health impact, it is of great importance to measure the air pollution at high spatial resolution in a timely manner. Traditionally, air pollution is measured using dedicated instruments at fixed monitoring stations, which are placed sparsely in urban areas. With the development of low-cost micro-scale sensing technology in the...

The role of micronutrients in the response to air pollutants ...

Science.gov (United States)

People living in regions of low socioeconomic status are thought to be prone to higher exposures to environmental pollutants, poor nutrition, and numerous preventable diseases and infections. Poverty correlates with pollution and malnutrition, however limited studies examined their interrelationship. The well-studied, deleterious health effects attributed to environmental pollutants and poor nutrition may act in combination to produce more severe adverse health outcomes than any one factor alone. Deficiency in specific nutrients render the body more susceptible to injury which may influence the pathways that serve as the mechanistic responses to air pollutants. This review (1) explores specific micronutrients that are of global concern, (2) explains how these nutrients may impact the body’s response to ambient air pollution, and (3) provides guidance on designing animal models of nutritional deficiency. It is likely that those individuals who reside in regions of high ambient air pollution are similarly malnourished. Therefore, it is important that research identifies specific nutrients of concern and their impact in identified regions of high ambient air pollution. The purpose of the current paper is to (1) provide an understanding of the known nutrients of concern worldwide. Selected nutrients will be discussed in depth in the following sections based on information from the World Health Organization, World Food Programme data, and also demonstrate risk of

A new air quality monitoring and early warning system: Air quality assessment and air pollutant concentration prediction.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Zhongshan; Wang, Jian

2017-10-01

Air pollution in many countries is worsening with industrialization and urbanization, resulting in climate change and affecting people's health, thus, making the work of policymakers more difficult. It is therefore both urgent and necessary to establish amore scientific air quality monitoring and early warning system to evaluate the degree of air pollution objectively, and predict pollutant concentrations accurately. However, the integration of air quality assessment and air pollutant concentration prediction to establish an air quality system is not common. In this paper, we propose a new air quality monitoring and early warning system, including an assessment module and forecasting module. In the air quality assessment module, fuzzy comprehensive evaluation is used to determine the main pollutants and evaluate the degree of air pollution more scientifically. In the air pollutant concentration prediction module, a novel hybridization model combining complementary ensemble empirical mode decomposition, a modified cuckoo search and differential evolution algorithm, and an Elman neural network, is proposed to improve the forecasting accuracy of six main air pollutant concentrations. To verify the effectiveness of this system, pollutant data for two cities in China are used. The result of the fuzzy comprehensive evaluation shows that the major air pollutants in Xi'an and Jinan are PM 10 and PM 2.5 respectively, and that the air quality of Xi'an is better than that of Jinan. The forecasting results indicate that the proposed hybrid model is remarkably superior to all benchmark models on account of its higher prediction accuracy and stability. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Health effects associated with exposure to ambient air pollution.

Science.gov (United States)

Samet, Jonathan; Krewski, Daniel

2007-02-01

The World Health Organization has identified ambient air pollution as a high public health priority, based on estimates of air pollution related death and disability-adjusted life years derived in its Global Burden of Disease initiative. The NERAM Colloquium Series on Health and Air Quality was initiated to strengthen the linkage between scientists, policymakers, and other stakeholders by reviewing the current state of science, identifying policy-relevant gaps and uncertainties in the scientific evidence, and proposing a path forward for research and policy to improve air quality and public health. The objective of this paper is to review the current state of science addressing the impacts of air pollution on human health. The paper is one of four background papers prepared for the 2003 NERAM/AirNet Conference on Strategies for Clean Air and Health, the third meeting in the international Colloquium Series. The review is based on the framework and findings of the U.S. National Research Committee (NRC) on Research Priorities for Airborne Particulate Matter and addresses key questions underlying air quality risk management policy decisions.

Air pollution control. 3. ed.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baumbach, G.; Baumann, K.; Droescher, F.; Gross, H.; Steisslinger, B.

1994-01-01

Controlling the pollution of the air is an interdisciplinary problem. This introduction reaches from the origin of hazardous substances via their extension and conversion in the atmosphere, their effects of men, animals, plants and goods up to reduction methods for the various sources. Measuring techniques are one of the main points of interest, as it plays a key role in detecting hazardous substances and monitoring reduction measures. A survey of the history shows the historical dimension of the subject. The prescriptions relating to air pollution control give an impression of the present situation of air pollution control. Currently existing problems such as waste gases from motor vehicles, SO 2 transports, ozone in the ambient air, newly detected sorts of damage to the forests, emission reduction in the burning of fossile fuels, polychloried dibenzodioxins and furanes are dealt with. (orig.). 232 figs [de

Brain inflammation and Alzheimer's-like pathology in individuals exposed to severe air pollution.

Science.gov (United States)

Calderón-Garcidueñas, Lilian; Reed, William; Maronpot, Robert R; Henríquez-Roldán, Carlos; Delgado-Chavez, Ricardo; Calderón-Garcidueñas, Ana; Dragustinovis, Irma; Franco-Lira, Maricela; Aragón-Flores, Mariana; Solt, Anna C; Altenburg, Michael; Torres-Jardón, Ricardo; Swenberg, James A

2004-01-01

Air pollution is a complex mixture of gases (e.g., ozone), particulate matter, and organic compounds present in outdoor and indoor air. Dogs exposed to severe air pollution exhibit chronic inflammation and acceleration of Alzheimer's-like pathology, suggesting that the brain is adversely affected by pollutants. We investigated whether residency in cities with high levels of air pollution is associated with human brain inflammation. Expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX2), an inflammatory mediator, and accumulation of the 42-amino acid form of beta-amyloid (Abeta42), a cause of neuronal dysfunction, were measured in autopsy brain tissues of cognitively and neurologically intact lifelong residents of cities having low (n:9) or high (n:10) levels of air pollution. Genomic DNA apurinic/apyrimidinic sites, nuclear factor-kappaB activation and apolipoprotein E genotype were also evaluated. Residents of cities with severe air pollution had significantly higher COX2 expression in frontal cortex and hippocampus and greater neuronal and astrocytic accumulation of Abeta42 compared to residents in low air pollution cities. Increased COX2 expression and Abeta42 accumulation were also observed in the olfactory bulb. These findings suggest that exposure to severe air pollution is associated with brain inflammation and Abeta42 accumulation, two causes of neuronal dysfunction that precede the appearance of neuritic plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease.

Air pollution and lichens

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ferry, B W; Baddeley, M S; Hawksworth, D L [eds.

1973-01-01

This volume reflects the particular concern of many biologists for the effects of air pollution and illustrates the special values of lichens as plants suitable for such studies. It brings together contributions from many experts in this field and includes much previously unpublished data, as well as up-to-date review chapters. Emphasis is placed on the logical progression from field observational studies to critical laboratory investigations aimed at elucidating the modes of action of various air pollutants on the living tissues of lichens. The action of such pollutants on vascular plants is also discussed. It is the editors' intention that the book be both a reference volume and an encouragement for further wor

Experimental technique of calibration of symmetrical air pollution ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Based on the inherent property of symmetry of air pollution models, a Symmetrical Air Pollution. Model ... process is in compliance with air pollution regula- ..... Ground simulation is achieved through MATLAB package which is based on least-.

Air pollution and population health: a global challenge

OpenAIRE

Chen, Bingheng; Kan, Haidong

2008-01-01

“Air pollution and population health” is one of the most important environmental and public health issues. Economic development, urbanization, energy consumption, transportation/motorization, and rapid population growth are major driving forces of air pollution in large cities, especially in megacities. Air pollution levels in developed countries have been decreasing dramatically in recent decades. However, in developing countries and in countries in transition, air pollution levels are still...

Acute effects of air pollution on asthma hospitalization in Shanghai, China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cai, Jing; Zhao, Ang; Zhao, Jinzhuo; Chen, Renjie; Wang, Weibing; Ha, Sandie; Xu, Xiaohui; Kan, Haidong

2014-01-01

Air pollution has been accepted as an important contributor to asthma development and exacerbation. However, the evidence is limited in China. In this study, we investigated the acute effect of air pollution on asthma hospitalization in Shanghai, China. We applied over-dispersed generalized additive model adjusted for weather conditions, day of the week, long-term and seasonal trends. An interquartile range increase in the moving average concentrations of PM 10 , SO 2 , NO 2 and BC on the concurrent day and previous day corresponded to 1.82%, 6.41%, 8.26% and 6.62% increase of asthmatic hospitalization, respectively. The effects of SO 2 and NO 2 were robust after adjustment for PM 10 . The associations appeared to be more evident in the cool season than in the warm season. Our results contribute to the limited data in the scientific literature on acute effects of air pollution on asthma in high exposure settings, which are typical in developing countries. - Highlights: • Few prior studies in China examine the effect of air pollution on asthma. • We found acute effect of air pollution on asthma hospitalization in Shanghai. • Our results contribute to limited data on air pollution and asthma in China. - Ambient air pollution increases the risk of asthma hospitalization in Shanghai, China

Air pollution and sick-leaves. A case study using air pollution data from Oslo

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hansen, A.C.; Selte, H.K.

2000-01-01

During the last decade an increasing amount of studies have investigated the relationship between air pollution and human health effects. In this study we investigate how these effects in turn induce reduced labour productivity in terms of sick-leaves, which is an important factor in assessment of air pollution costs in urban areas. For this purpose we employ a logit model along with data on sick-leaves from a large office in Oslo and different air pollutants. Our results indicate that sick-leaves are significantly associated with particulate matter (PM 1 0), while the associations with SO 2 and NO 2 are more ambiguous. We also try to estimate the induced social costs in terms of lost labour productivity and increased governmental expenditures, although these estimates are more uncertain. 17 refs

Indoor air pollution and cognitive function among older Mexican adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Saenz, Joseph L; Wong, Rebeca; Ailshire, Jennifer A

2018-01-01

A growing body of research suggests exposure to high levels of outdoor air pollution may negatively affect cognitive functioning in older adults, but less is known about the link between indoor sources of air pollution and cognitive functioning. We examine the association between exposure to indoor air pollution and cognitive function among older adults in Mexico, a developing country where combustion of biomass for domestic energy remains common. Data come from the 2012 Wave of the Mexican Health and Aging Study. The analytic sample consists of 13 023 Mexican adults over age 50. Indoor air pollution is assessed by the reported use of wood or coal as the household's primary cooking fuel. Cognitive function is measured with assessments of verbal learning, verbal recall, attention, orientation and verbal fluency. Ordinary least squares regression is used to examine cross-sectional differences in cognitive function according to indoor air pollution exposure while accounting for demographic, household, health and economic characteristics. Approximately 16% of the sample reported using wood or coal as their primary cooking fuel, but this was far more common among those residing in the most rural areas (53%). Exposure to indoor air pollution was associated with poorer cognitive performance across all assessments, with the exception of verbal recall, even in fully adjusted models. Indoor air pollution may be an important factor for the cognitive health of older Mexican adults. Public health efforts should continue to develop interventions to reduce exposure to indoor air pollution in rural Mexico. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Population Dynamics and Air Pollution: The Impact of Demographics on Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Esben Meulengracht Flachs

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Objective. To explore how three different assumptions on demographics affect the health impact of Danish emitted air pollution in Denmark from 2005 to 2030, with health impact modeled from 2005 to 2050. Methods. Modeled air pollution from Danish sources was used as exposure in a newly developed health impact assessment model, which models four major diseases and mortality causes in addition to all-cause mortality. The modeling was at the municipal level, which divides the approximately 5.5 M residents in Denmark into 99 municipalities. Three sets of demographic assumptions were used: (1 a static year 2005 population, (2 morbidity and mortality fixed at the year 2005 level, or (3 an expected development. Results. The health impact of air pollution was estimated at 672,000, 290,000, and 280,000 lost life years depending on demographic assumptions and the corresponding social costs at 430.4 M€, 317.5 M€, and 261.6 M€ through the modeled years 2005–2050. Conclusion. The modeled health impact of air pollution differed widely with the demographic assumptions, and thus demographics and assumptions on demographics played a key role in making health impact assessments on air pollution.

Air pollution from motor vehicle emissions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Petrushevska, Ljubica

1996-01-01

This paper presents some aspects of air pollution from motor vehicle emissions as: characteristic primary and secondary pollutants, dependence of the motor vehicle emission from the engine type; the relationship of typical engine emission and performance to air-fuel ratio, transport of pollutants from mobile sources of emissions, as well as some world experiences in the control approaches for exhaust emissions. (author)

Air Pollution Primer.

Science.gov (United States)

National Tuberculosis and Respiratory Disease Association, New York, NY.

As the dangers of polluted air to the health and welfare of all individuals became increasingly evident and as the complexity of the causes made responsibility for solutions even more difficult to fix, the National Tuberculosis and Respiratory Disease Association felt obligated to give greater emphasis to its clean air program. To this end they…

Air pollution and mortality: A history

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, H. R.

Mortality is the most important health effect of ambient air pollution and has been studied the longest. The earliest evidence relates to fog episodes but with the development of more precise methods of investigation it is still possible to discern short-term temporal associations with daily mortality at the historically low levels of air pollution that now exist in most developed countries. Another early observation was that mortality was higher in more polluted areas. This has been confirmed by modern cohort studies that account for other potential explanations for such associations. There does not appear to be a threshold of effect within the ambient range of concentrations. Advances in the understanding of air pollution and mortality have been driven by the combined development of methods and biomedical concepts. The most influential methodological developments have been in time-series techniques and the establishment of large cohort studies, both of which are underpinned by advances in data processing and statistical analysis. On the biomedical side two important developments can be identified. One has been the application of the concept of multifactorial disease causation to explaining how air pollution may affect mortality at low levels and why thresholds are not obvious at the population level. The other has been an increasing understanding of how air pollution may plausibly have pathophysiological effects that are remote from the lung interface with ambient air. Together, these advances have had a profound influence on policies to protect public health. Throughout the history of air pollution epidemiology, mortality studies have been central and this will continue because of the widespread availability of mortality data on a large population scale and the weight that mortality carries in estimating impacts for policy development.

Household air pollution and its effects on health.

Science.gov (United States)

Apte, Komalkirti; Salvi, Sundeep

2016-01-01

Household air pollution is a leading cause of disability-adjusted life years in Southeast Asia and the third leading cause of disability-adjusted life years globally. There are at least sixty sources of household air pollution, and these vary from country to country. Indoor tobacco smoking, construction material used in building houses, fuel used for cooking, heating and lighting, use of incense and various forms of mosquito repellents, use of pesticides and chemicals used for cleaning at home, and use of artificial fragrances are some of the various sources that contribute to household air pollution. Household air pollution affects all stages of life with multi-systemic health effects, and its effects are evident right from pre-conception to old age. In utero exposure to household air pollutants has been shown to have health effects which resonate over the entire lifetime. Exposures to indoor air pollutants in early childhood also tend to have repercussions throughout life. The respiratory system bears the maximum brunt, but effects on the cardiovascular system, endocrine system, and nervous system are largely underplayed. Household air pollutants have also been implicated in the development of various types of cancers. Identifying household air pollutants and their health implications helps us prepare for various health-related issues. However, the real challenge is adopting changes to reduce the health effects of household air pollution and designing innovative interventions to minimize the risk of further exposure. This review is an attempt to understand the various sources of household air pollution, the effects on health, and strategies to deal with this emergent risk factor of global mortality and morbidity.

Clean Air Slots Amid Atmospheric Pollution

Science.gov (United States)

Hobbs, Peter V.

2002-01-01

This article investigates the mechanism for those layers in the atmosphere that are free of air borne pollution even though the air above and below them carry pollutants. Atmospheric subsidence is posed as a mechanism for this phenomenon.

Climate change impacts on human exposures to air pollution ...

Science.gov (United States)

This is an abstract for a presentations at the Annual Conference of the International Society on Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology. This presentation will serve as an introduction to the symposium. As we consider the potential health impacts of a warming planet, the relationships between climate change and air pollutants become increasingly important to understand. These relationships are complex and highly variable, causing a variety of environmental impacts at local, regional and global scales. Human exposures and health impacts for air pollutants have the potential to be altered by changes in climate through multiple factors that drive population exposures to these pollutants. Research on this topic will provide both state and local governments with the tools and scientific knowledge base to undertake any necessary adaptation of the air pollution regulations and/or public health management systems in the face of climate change.

Air Pollution and Human Health in Kolkata, India: A Case Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Md. Senaul Haque

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Urban air quality in most megacities has been found to be critical and Kolkata Metropolitan City is no exception to this. An analysis of ambient air quality in Kolkata was done by applying the Exceedance Factor (EF method, where the presence of listed pollutants’ (RPM, SPM, NO2, and SO2 annual average concentration are classified into four different categories; namely critical, high, moderate, and low pollution. Out of a total of 17 ambient air quality monitoring stations operating in Kolkata, five fall under the critical category, and the remaining 12 locations fall under the high category of NO2 concentration, while for RPM, four record critical, and 13 come under the high pollution category. The causes towards the high concentration of pollutants in the form of NO2 and RPM have been identified in earlier studies as vehicular emission (51.4%, followed by industrial sources (24.5% and dust particles (21.1%. Later, a health assessment was undertaken with a structured questionnaire at some nearby dispensaries which fall under areas with different ambient air pollution levels. Three dispensaries have been surveyed with 100 participants. It shows that respondents with respiratory diseases (85.1% have outnumbered waterborne diseases (14.9% and include acute respiratory infections (ARI (60%, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD (7.8%, upper track respiratory infection (UTRI (1.2%, Influenza (12.7%, and acid fast bacillus (AFB (3.4%. Although the pollution level has been recorded as critical, only 39.3% of the respondents have felt that outdoor (air pollution has affected their health.

Interaction between Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and other important health conditions and measurable air pollution

Science.gov (United States)

Blagev, D. P.; Mendoza, D. L.; Rea, S.; Sorensen, J.

2015-12-01

Adverse health effects have been associated with urban pollutant exposure arising from close proximity to highly-emitting sources and atmospheric mixing. The relative air pollution exposure dose and time effects on various diseases remains unknown. This study compares the increased risk of health complications when patients are exposed to short term high-levels of air pollution vs. longer term exposure to lower levels of air pollution. We used the electronic medical record of an integrated hospital system based in Utah, Intermountain Healthcare, to identify a cohort of patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) who were seen between 2009-2014. We determined patient demographics as well as comorbidity data and healthcare utilization. To determine the approximate air pollution dose and time exposure, we used the Hestia highly-resolved emissions inventory for Salt Lake County, Utah in conjunction with emissions based on the National Emissions Inventory (NEI). Hourly emissions of CO2 and criteria air pollutants were gridded at a 0.002o x 0.002o resolution for the study years. The resulting emissions were transported using the CALPUFF and AERMOD dispersion models to estimate air pollutant concentrations at an hourly 0.002o x 0.002oresolution. Additionally, pollutant concentrations were estimated at each patient's home and work address to estimate exposure. Multivariate analysis adjusting for patient demographics, comorbidities and severity of COPD was performed to determine association between air pollution exposure and the risk of hospitalization or emergency department (ED) visit for COPD exacerbation and an equivalency estimate for air pollution exposure was developed. We noted associations with air pollution levels for each pollutant and hospitalizations and ED visits for COPD and other patient comorbidities. We also present an equivalency estimate for dose of air pollution exposure and health outcomes. This analysis compares the increased risk of

Outdoor air pollution and respiratory health in Asia.

Science.gov (United States)

Chung, Kian Fan; Zhang, Junfeng; Zhong, Nanshan

2011-10-01

With the rapid economic development occurring in the last decade in many countries of Asia, the level of air pollution has increased from both industrial and motor vehicle emissions. Compared with Europe and North America, the potential health effects of this increasing air pollution in Asia remain largely unmeasured. Recent data published by the Health Effects Institute from some major cities in India and China reveal that a 10 µg/m(3) increase in PM(10) was associated with an increase in mortality of 0.6% in daily all-natural cause mortality, with higher risks being found at extremes of high temperatures and in the lowest economically advantaged population. Other Asian studies have confirmed the link between hospital admissions for the worsening of COPD and the increase in asthma prevalence to levels of outdoor air pollutants. Although potential health effects appear to be similar to already-published Western data, it is important that further studies be carried out in Asia that will inform the public and the authorities of the necessity to curb levels of outdoor air pollutants to acceptable levels. © 2011 The Authors. Respirology © 2011 Asian Pacific Society of Respirology.

Air Pollution Exposure—A Trigger for Myocardial Infarction?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Niklas Berglind

2010-03-01

Full Text Available The association between ambient air pollution exposure and hospitalization for cardiovascular events has been reported in several studies with conflicting results. A case-crossover design was used to investigate the effects of air pollution in 660 first-time myocardial infarction cases in Stockholm in 1993–1994, interviewed shortly after diagnosis using a standard protocol. Air pollution data came from central urban background monitors. No associations were observed between the risk for onset of myocardial infarction and two-hour or 24-hour air pollution exposure. No evidence of susceptible subgroups was found. This study provides no support that moderately elevated air pollution levels trigger first-time myocardial infarction.

Analysis on policies text of air pollution control in Beijing

Science.gov (United States)

ZHANG, Yujuan; WANG, Wen; ZHANG, Wei

2017-04-01

Air pollution is one of the most serious environmental problems, and it is also the inevitable result of the extensive economic development mode. The matter of air pollution in Beijing is becoming more and more serious since 2010, which has a great impact on the normal social production, living and human health. These hazards have been highly valued by the whole society. More than 30 years have been pasted since controlling the air pollution and the system of policies was relatively complete. These policies have improved the quality of atmospheric and prevented environment further deterioration. The policies performance is not obvious. It is urgent trouble to improve policy performance. This paper analyzes the 103 policies text of air pollution control in Beijing, and researches status, history and problems, and put forward suggestions on policy improvement and innovation at last.

Effects of canyon geometry on the distribution of traffic-related air pollution in a large urban area: Implications of a multi-canyon air pollution dispersion model

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Xiangwen; Liu, Junfeng; Ban-Weiss, George A.; Zhang, Jiachen; Huang, Xin; Ouyang, Bin; Popoola, Olalekan; Tao, Shu

2017-09-01

Street canyons are ubiquitous in urban areas. Traffic-related air pollutants in street canyons can adversely affect human health. In this study, an urban-scale traffic pollution dispersion model is developed considering street distribution, canyon geometry, background meteorology, traffic assignment, traffic emissions and air pollutant dispersion. In the model, vehicle exhausts generated from traffic flows first disperse inside street canyons along the micro-scale wind field generated by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model. Then, pollutants leave the street canyon and further disperse over the urban area. On the basis of this model, the effects of canyon geometry on the distribution of NOx and CO from traffic emissions were studied over the center of Beijing. We found that an increase in building height leads to heavier pollution inside canyons and lower pollution outside canyons at pedestrian level, resulting in higher domain-averaged concentrations over the area. In addition, canyons with highly even or highly uneven building heights on each side of the street tend to lower the urban-scale air pollution concentrations at pedestrian level. Further, increasing street widths tends to lead to lower pollutant concentrations by reducing emissions and enhancing ventilation simultaneously. Our results indicate that canyon geometry strongly influences human exposure to traffic pollutants in the populated urban area. Carefully planning street layout and canyon geometry while considering traffic demand as well as local weather patterns may significantly reduce inhalation of unhealthy air by urban residents.

Air pollution problem in the Mexico City metropolitan zone: Photochemical pollution

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Alvarez, H.B.; Alvarez, P.S.; Echeverria, R.S.; Jardon, R.T. [Centro de Ciencias de la Atmosfera (Mexico). Seccion de Contaminacion Ambiental

1997-12-31

Mexico City Metropolitan Zone (MCMZ) represents an example of a megacity where the air pollution problem has reached an important evolution in a very short time, causing a risk in the health of a population of more than 20 million inhabitants. The atmospheric pollution problem in the MCMZ, began several decades ago, but it increased drastically in the middle of the 80`s. It is important to recognize that in the 60`s, 70`s and the first half of the 80`s the main pollutants were sulfur dioxide and total suspended particles. However since the second half of the 80`s until now, ozone is the most important air pollutant besides of the suspended particles (PM{sub 10}) and other toxic pollutants (1--8). The purpose of this paper is to discuss the evolution of the ozone atmospheric pollution problem in the MCMZ, as well as to analyze the results of several implemented air pollution control strategies.

Chronic air pollution and social deprivation as modifiers of the association between high temperature and daily mortality.

Science.gov (United States)

Benmarhnia, Tarik; Oulhote, Youssef; Petit, Claire; Lapostolle, Annabelle; Chauvin, Pierre; Zmirou-Navier, Denis; Deguen, Séverine

2014-06-18

Heat and air pollution are both associated with increases in mortality. However, the interactive effect of temperature and air pollution on mortality remains unsettled. Similarly, the relationship between air pollution, air temperature, and social deprivation has never been explored. We used daily mortality data from 2004 to 2009, daily mean temperature variables and relative humidity, for Paris, France. Estimates of chronic exposure to air pollution and social deprivation at a small spatial scale were calculated and split into three strata. We developed a stratified Poisson regression models to assess daily temperature and mortality associations, and tested the heterogeneity of the regression coefficients of the different strata. Deaths due to ambient temperature were calculated from attributable fractions and mortality rates were estimated. We found that chronic air pollution exposure and social deprivation are effect modifiers of the association between daily temperature and mortality. We found a potential interactive effect between social deprivation and chronic exposure with regards to air pollution in the mortality-temperature relationship. Our results may have implications in considering chronically polluted areas as vulnerable in heat action plans and in the long-term measures to reduce the burden of heat stress especially in the context of climate change.

The role of air pollutants in atopic dermatitis.

Science.gov (United States)

Ahn, Kangmo

2014-11-01

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic relapsing inflammatory skin disease and a growing health concern, especially in children, because of its high prevalence and associated low quality of life. Genetic predisposition, environmental triggers, or interactions between them contribute to the pathophysiology of AD. Therefore, it is very important to identify and control risk factors from the environment in susceptible subjects for successful treatment and prevention. Both indoor and outdoor air pollution, which are of increasing concern with urbanization, are well-known environmental risk factors for asthma, whereas there is relatively little evidence in AD. This review highlights epidemiologic and experimental data on the role of air pollution in patients with AD. Recent evidence suggests that a variety of air pollutants, such as environmental tobacco smoke, volatile organic compounds, formaldehyde, toluene, nitrogen dioxide, and particulate matter, act as risk factors for the development or aggravation of AD. These air pollutants probably induce oxidative stress in the skin, leading to skin barrier dysfunction or immune dysregulation. However, these results are still controversial because of the low number of studies, limitations in study design, inaccurate assessment of exposure and absorption, and many other issues. Further research about the adverse effects of air pollution on AD will help to expand our understanding and to establish a better strategy for the prevention and management of AD. Copyright © 2014 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Ozone as an air pollutant

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Berg, Rolf W.

1996-01-01

A Danish new book on ozone as an air pollutant has been reviewed. The Book is "Ozon som luftforurening" by Jes Fenger, Published by "Danmarks Miljøundersøgelser, 1995.......A Danish new book on ozone as an air pollutant has been reviewed. The Book is "Ozon som luftforurening" by Jes Fenger, Published by "Danmarks Miljøundersøgelser, 1995....

Mapping real-time air pollution health risk for environmental management: Combining mobile and stationary air pollution monitoring with neural network models.

Science.gov (United States)

Adams, Matthew D; Kanaroglou, Pavlos S

2016-03-01

Air pollution poses health concerns at the global scale. The challenge of managing air pollution is significant because of the many air pollutants, insufficient funds for monitoring and abatement programs, and political and social challenges in defining policy to limit emissions. Some governments provide citizens with air pollution health risk information to allow them to limit their exposure. However, many regions still have insufficient air pollution monitoring networks to provide real-time mapping. Where available, these risk mapping systems either provide absolute concentration data or the concentrations are used to derive an Air Quality Index, which provides the air pollution risk for a mix of air pollutants with a single value. When risk information is presented as a single value for an entire region it does not inform on the spatial variation within the region. Without an understanding of the local variation residents can only make a partially informed decision when choosing daily activities. The single value is typically provided because of a limited number of active monitoring units in the area. In our work, we overcome this issue by leveraging mobile air pollution monitoring techniques, meteorological information and land use information to map real-time air pollution health risks. We propose an approach that can provide improved health risk information to the public by applying neural network models within a framework that is inspired by land use regression. Mobile air pollution monitoring campaigns were conducted across Hamilton from 2005 to 2013. These mobile air pollution data were modelled with a number of predictor variables that included information on the surrounding land use characteristics, the meteorological conditions, air pollution concentrations from fixed location monitors, and traffic information during the time of collection. Fine particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide were both modelled. During the model fitting process we reserved

End-user perspective of low-cost sensors for outdoor air pollution monitoring

OpenAIRE

Rai, Aakash C.; Kumar, Prashant; Pilla, Francesco; Skouloudis, Andreas N.; Di Sabatino, Silvana; Ratti, Carlo; Yasar, Ansar; Rickerby, David

2017-01-01

Low-cost sensor technology can potentially revolutionise the area of air pollution monitoring by providing high-density spatiotemporal pollution data. Such data can be utilised for supplementing traditional pollution monitoring, improving exposure estimates, and raising community awareness about air pollution. However, data quality remains a major concern that hinders the widespread adoption of low-cost sensor technology. Unreliable data may mislead unsuspecting users and potentially lead to ...

Measurement of air pollutant emissions from Lome, Cotonou and Accra

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, James; Vaughan, Adam; Nelson, Bethany; Young, Stuart; Evans, Mathew; Morris, Eleanor; Ladkin, Russel

2017-04-01

High concentrations of airborne pollutants (e.g. the oxides of nitrogen, sulphur dioxide and carbon monoxide) in existing and evolving cities along the Guinea Coast cause respiratory diseases with potentially large costs to human health and the economic capacity of the local workforce. It is important to understand the rate of emission of such pollutants in order to model current and future air quality and provide guidance to the potential outcomes of air pollution abatement strategies. Often dated technologies and poor emission control strategies lead to substantial uncertainties in emission estimates calculated from vehicle and population number density statistics. The unreliable electrical supply in cities in the area has led to an increased reliance on small-scale diesel powered generators and these potentially present a significant source of emissions. The uncontrolled open incineration of waste adds a further very poorly constrained emission source within the cities. The DACCIWA (Dynamics-Aerosol-Chemistry-Cloud Interactions in West Africa) project involved a field campaign which used highly instrumented aircraft capable of in situ measurements of a range of air pollutants. Seven flights using the UK British Antarctic Survey's Twin Otter aircraft specifically targeted air pollution emissions from cities in West Africa (4 x Accra, Ghana; 2 x Lome, Togo and 1 x Cotonou, Benin). Measurements of NO, NO2, SO2, CO, CH4 and CO2 were made at multiple altitudes upwind and downwind of the cities, with the mass balance technique used to calculate emission rates. These are then compared to the Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR) estimates. Ultimately the data will be used to inform on and potentially improve the emission estimates, which in turn should lead to better forecasting of air pollution in West African cities and help guide future air pollution abatement strategy.

Health Effects of Air Pollution: A Historical Review and Present Status.

Science.gov (United States)

Shima, Masayuki

2017-01-01

During the 1960s, the concentrations of air pollutants, particularly that of sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), were extremely high in many industrial cities in Japan, and the prevalence of bronchial asthma and chronic bronchitis increased among residents living in the cities. To evaluate the effects of air pollution on respiratory diseases, many epidemiological studies were conducted, and the findings played an important role in the regulatory control of air pollution. After 1970, the concentration of SO 2 has decreased markedly, and its adverse health effects have been minimized. On the other hand, the increasing automobile traffic in Japan has caused considerable increases in concentrations of air pollutants, such as nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM). The large-scale epidemiological studies conducted in Japan showed that traffic-related air pollution was associated with the development of asthma in school children and the persistence of asthmatic symptoms in preschool children. In recent years, however, the concentrations of NOx and PM have gradually decreased, since control measures based on the Automobile NOx/PM law were enforced in 2001. At present, the adverse health effects of airborne fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) and photochemical oxidants have become a major concern. These air pollutants consist of not only emissions from primary sources but also secondary formations in air, and have spread worldwide. Both short- and long-term exposure to these air pollutants are reported to increase the risk of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases in the population. Therefore, global efforts are necessary to reduce the health risk of these air pollutants.

A Unified Spatiotemporal Modeling Approach for Predicting Concentrations of Multiple Air Pollutants in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis and Air Pollution

Science.gov (United States)

Olives, Casey; Kim, Sun-Young; Sheppard, Lianne; Sampson, Paul D.; Szpiro, Adam A.; Oron, Assaf P.; Lindström, Johan; Vedal, Sverre; Kaufman, Joel D.

2014-01-01

Background: Cohort studies of the relationship between air pollution exposure and chronic health effects require predictions of exposure over long periods of time. Objectives: We developed a unified modeling approach for predicting fine particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, oxides of nitrogen, and black carbon (as measured by light absorption coefficient) in six U.S. metropolitan regions from 1999 through early 2012 as part of the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis and Air Pollution (MESA Air). Methods: We obtained monitoring data from regulatory networks and supplemented those data with study-specific measurements collected from MESA Air community locations and participants’ homes. In each region, we applied a spatiotemporal model that included a long-term spatial mean, time trends with spatially varying coefficients, and a spatiotemporal residual. The mean structure was derived from a large set of geographic covariates that was reduced using partial least-squares regression. We estimated time trends from observed time series and used spatial smoothing methods to borrow strength between observations. Results: Prediction accuracy was high for most models, with cross-validation R2 (R2CV) > 0.80 at regulatory and fixed sites for most regions and pollutants. At home sites, overall R2CV ranged from 0.45 to 0.92, and temporally adjusted R2CV ranged from 0.23 to 0.92. Conclusions: This novel spatiotemporal modeling approach provides accurate fine-scale predictions in multiple regions for four pollutants. We have generated participant-specific predictions for MESA Air to investigate health effects of long-term air pollution exposures. These successes highlight modeling advances that can be adopted more widely in modern cohort studies. Citation: Keller JP, Olives C, Kim SY, Sheppard L, Sampson PD, Szpiro AA, Oron AP, Lindström J, Vedal S, Kaufman JD. 2015. A unified spatiotemporal modeling approach for predicting concentrations of multiple air pollutants in the Multi

Air pollution and lichens

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ferry, B W; Baddeley, M S; Hawksworth, D L [eds.

1973-01-01

This volume reflects the concern of biologists for the effects of air pollution and illustrates the special values of lichens as plants suitable for such studies. Emphasis is placed on the logical progression from field observational studies to laboratory investigations aimed at elucidating the modes of action of various pollutants. The actions of pollutants on vascular plants is also discussed. Separate analytics are included for 17 chapters.

Assessment of regional air pollution variability in Istanbul

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sen, Z.; Oztopal, A.

2001-01-01

Air pollution concentrations have temporal and spatial variations depending on the prevailing weather conditions, topographic features, city building heights and locations. When the measurements of air pollutants are available at set measurement sites, the regional variability degree of air pollutants is quantified using the point cumulative semi-variogram (PCSV). This technique provides a systematic method for calculating the changes in the concentrations of air pollutants with distance from a specific site. Regional variations of sulphur dioxide (SO 2 ) and total suspended particulate (TSP) matter concentrations in Istanbul city were evaluated using the PCSV concept. The data were available from 16 different air pollution measurement stations scattered all over the city for a period from 1988 to 1994. Monthly regional variation maps were drawn in and around the city at different radii of influence. These maps provide a reference for measuring future changes of air pollution in the city. (author)

Air pollution modifies floral scent trails

Science.gov (United States)

McFrederick, Quinn S.; Kathilankal, James C.; Fuentes, Jose D.

Floral hydrocarbons provide essential signals to attract pollinators. As soon as they are emitted to the atmosphere, however, hydrocarbons are destroyed by chemical reactions involving pollutants such as ozone. It is therefore likely that increased air pollution interferes with pollinator attracting hydrocarbon signals. To test this hypothesis, a Lagrangian diffusion model was used to determine the position of air parcels away from hydrocarbon sources and to estimate the rate of chemical destruction of hydrocarbons as air parcels moved across the landscape. The hydrocarbon compounds linalool, β-myrcene, and β-ocimene were chosen because they are known to be common scents released from flowers. The suppressed ambient abundances of volatile organic compounds were determined in response to increased regional levels of ozone, hydroxyl, and nitrate radicals. The results indicate that the documented increases in air pollution concentrations, from pre-industrial to present times, can lead to reductions in volatile compound concentrations insects detect as they pollinate flowers. For highly reactive volatiles the maximum downwind distance from the source at which pollinators can detect the scents may have changed from kilometers during pre-industrial times to scent signals may mean that pollinators spend more time searching for patches and less time foraging. This decrease in pollinator foraging efficiency will simultaneously decrease the pollinator's reproductive output and the amount of pollen flow in flowering plants.

Air pollution sources, impact and monitoring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qureshi, I.H.

1999-01-01

Improper management of socio-economic developmental activities has put a great stress on natural resources and eco-systems and has caused environmental degradation. Indiscriminate release of toxic substances into the atmosphere from power generation, industrial operations, transportation, incineration of waste and other operations has affected the quality of ambient air. Combustion of fossil fuel results in the emission of oxides of carbon, sulfur and nitrogen, particulate and organic compounds which affect the local, regional and global environment. Industrial operations release a wide variety of pollutants which directly affect the local environment. Operation of automobiles releases oxides of carbon, sulfur and nitrogen, hydrocarbons, traces of heavy metals and toxic polycyclic aromatic compounds whereas incineration of municipal waste releases particulate, acid fumes and photochemically reactive and odorous compounds. These air pollutants have varying impacts on health and environment. The intake of polluted air may produce various physiological disorders ranging from respiratory diseases to changes in blood chemistry. Therefore, the emission of pollutants should be controlled at the source and monitoring the levels of pollution should assess the quality of air. (author)

Does urban vegetation mitigate air pollution in northern conditions?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Setälä, Heikki; Viippola, Viljami; Rantalainen, Anna-Lea; Pennanen, Arto; Yli-Pelkonen, Vesa

2013-01-01

It is generally accepted that urban vegetation improves air quality and thereby enhances the well-being of citizens. However, empirical evidence on the potential of urban trees to mitigate air pollution is meager, particularly in northern climates with a short growing season. We studied the ability of urban park/forest vegetation to remove air pollutants (NO 2 , anthropogenic VOCs and particle deposition) using passive samplers in two Finnish cities. Concentrations of each pollutant in August (summer; leaf-period) and March (winter, leaf-free period) were slightly but often insignificantly lower under tree canopies than in adjacent open areas, suggesting that the role of foliage in removing air pollutants is insignificant. Furthermore, vegetation-related environmental variables (canopy closure, number and size of trees, density of understorey vegetation) did not explain the variation in pollution concentrations. Our results suggest that the ability of urban vegetation to remove air pollutants is minor in northern climates. -- Highlights: ► The ability of northern urban vegetation to remove air pollutants is minor. ► Vegetation-related environmental variables had no effect on air pollution levels. ► The ability of vegetation to clean air did not differ between summer and winter. ► Dry deposition passive samplers proved applicable in urban air pollution study. -- The ability of urban vegetation to remove air pollutants seems to be minor in northern climates

Ambient Air Pollution and Biomarkers of Health Effect.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Di; Yang, Xuan; Deng, Furong; Guo, Xinbiao

2017-01-01

Recently, the air pollution situation of our country is very serious along with the development of urbanization and industrialization. Studies indicate that the exposure of air pollution can cause a rise of incidence and mortality of many diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, myocardial infarction, and so on. However, there is now growing evidence showing that significant air pollution exposures are associated with early biomarkers in various systems of the body. In order to better prevent and control the damage effect of air pollution, this article summarizes comprehensively epidemiological studies about the bad effects on the biomarkers of respiratory system, cardiovascular system, and genetic and epigenetic system exposure to ambient air pollution.

Influence of air pollution on cultivated plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Spierings, F H.F.G.

1958-01-01

In an area, where tulips had been damaged, experimental plots with tulip varieties of different sensitivities to HF were laid out in the open and in greenhouses. It was proven that the injury decreased with increasing distance from the factory. In the same area irises were injured. But in this case the cause of the damage proved to be SO2 derived from the stove in the greenhouse. In an industrial area, where fruit trees were damaged last year, potatoes were injured in a very typical way. Varieties of this crop also showed differences in sensitivity to air pollution. During another period of 1958 air pollution of high intensity occurred in the same area, so that several crops were severely damaged. The damage of the fruit and vegetables turned out to be caused by HF. In several other areas of air pollution the cause of the damage proved to be HF or SO2. Shrubs surrounding the fields were able to prevent the spread of the gases to a small extent. In an area, where the concentration of HF in the atmosphere proved to be too low to cause damage, a conifer species, Chamaecyparis, showed a rather high content of F in the leaves. It is possible that this tree species, which keeps its green color during the whole year, continuously absorbs small quantities of fluorine and may become injured. In an area surrounding an enamel industry plants were damaged by HF. Several new cases of air pollution were investigated. In two of these, the cause of the damage to the plants proved to be hydrochloric acid.

The European concerted action on air pollution epidemiology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ackermann-Liebrich, U. [Basel Univ. (Switzerland). Inst. for Social and Preventive Medicine

1995-12-31

The European Concerted Action on Air Pollution Epidemiology was started in 1990 with the aim of bringing together European researchers in the field and improving research through collaboration and by preparing documents which would help to this end and by organizing workshops. A further aim was to stimulate cooperative research. Air pollution epidemiology investigates human effects of community air pollution by epidemiological methods. Epidemiology in general investigates the distribution and determinants of health-related states and events in populations. Diseases in which air pollution may play a significant role are mainly diseases of the respiratory system, for example chronic non-specific lung disease and lung cancer. Most diseases caused by air pollution can also be caused by other factors. Air pollution epidemiology is therefore specific in the expo variable (community air pollution) rather than in the type of health effects being studied. Air pollution epidemiology is beset with some specially challenging difficulties: ubiquitous exposure and as a consequence limited heterogeneity in exposure, low relative risks, few or specific health end points, and strong confounding. Further on the exposure-effect relationship is complicated by assumptions inherent to different study designs which relate to the exposure duration necessary to produce a certain health effect. In reports and workshops the concerted action tries to propose strategies to deal with these problems. (author)

The European concerted action on air pollution epidemiology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ackermann-Liebrich, U [Basel Univ. (Switzerland). Inst. for Social and Preventive Medicine

1996-12-31

The European Concerted Action on Air Pollution Epidemiology was started in 1990 with the aim of bringing together European researchers in the field and improving research through collaboration and by preparing documents which would help to this end and by organizing workshops. A further aim was to stimulate cooperative research. Air pollution epidemiology investigates human effects of community air pollution by epidemiological methods. Epidemiology in general investigates the distribution and determinants of health-related states and events in populations. Diseases in which air pollution may play a significant role are mainly diseases of the respiratory system, for example chronic non-specific lung disease and lung cancer. Most diseases caused by air pollution can also be caused by other factors. Air pollution epidemiology is therefore specific in the expo variable (community air pollution) rather than in the type of health effects being studied. Air pollution epidemiology is beset with some specially challenging difficulties: ubiquitous exposure and as a consequence limited heterogeneity in exposure, low relative risks, few or specific health end points, and strong confounding. Further on the exposure-effect relationship is complicated by assumptions inherent to different study designs which relate to the exposure duration necessary to produce a certain health effect. In reports and workshops the concerted action tries to propose strategies to deal with these problems. (author)

Assessment of an air pollution monitoring network to generate urban air pollution maps using Shannon information index, fuzzy overlay, and Dempster-Shafer theory, A case study: Tehran, Iran

Science.gov (United States)

Pahlavani, Parham; Sheikhian, Hossein; Bigdeli, Behnaz

2017-10-01

Air pollution assessment is an imperative part of megacities planning and control. Hence, a new comprehensive approach for air pollution monitoring and assessment was introduced in this research. It comprises of three main sections: optimizing the existing air pollutant monitoring network, locating new stations to complete the coverage of the existing network, and finally, generating an air pollution map. In the first section, Shannon information index was used to find less informative stations to be candidate for removal. Then, a methodology was proposed to determine the areas which are not sufficiently covered by the current network. These areas are candidates for establishing new monitoring stations. The current air pollution monitoring network of Tehran was used as a case study, where the air pollution issue has been worsened due to the huge population, considerable commuters' absorption and topographic barriers. In this regard, O3, NO, NO2, NOx, CO, PM10, and PM2.5 were considered as the main pollutants of Tehran. Optimization step concluded that all the 16 active monitoring stations should be preserved. Analysis showed that about 35% of the Tehran's area is not properly covered by monitoring stations and about 30% of the area needs additional stations. The winter period in Tehran always faces the most severe air pollution in the year. Hence, to produce the air pollution map of Tehran, three-month of winter measurements of the mentioned pollutants, repeated for five years in the same period, were selected and extended to the entire area using the kriging method. Experts specified the contribution of each pollutant in overall air pollution. Experts' rankings aggregated by a fuzzy-overlay process. Resulted maps characterized the study area with crucial air pollution situation. According to the maps, more than 45% of the city area faced high pollution in the study period, while only less than 10% of the area showed low pollution. This situation confirms the need

Cough and environmental air pollution in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Qingling; Qiu, Minzhi; Lai, Kefang; Zhong, Nanshan

2015-12-01

With fast-paced urbanization and increased energy consumption in rapidly industrialized modern China, the level of outdoor and indoor air pollution resulting from industrial and motor vehicle emissions has been increasing at an accelerated rate. Thus, there is a significant increase in the prevalence of respiratory symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, and decreased pulmonary function. Experimental exposure research and epidemiological studies have indicated that exposure to particulate matter, ozone, nitrogen dioxide, and environmental tobacco smoke have a harmful influence on development of respiratory diseases and are significantly associated with cough and wheeze. This review mainly discusses the effect of air pollutants on respiratory health, particularly with respect to cough, the links between air pollutants and microorganisms, and air pollutant sources. Particular attention is paid to studies in urban areas of China where the levels of ambient and indoor air pollution are significantly higher than World Health Organization recommendations. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Air pollution control policy in Switzerland

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Leutert, G. [Forests and Landscape, Berne (Switzerland). Federal Office of Environment

1995-12-31

The legal basis of the Swiss air pollution control policy is set by the Federal Law on the Protection of the Environment, which came into force in 1985. It aims to protect human beings, animals and plants, their biological communities and habitats against harmful effects or nuisances and to maintain the fertility of the soil. The law is source-oriented (by emission standards) as well as effect-oriented (by ambient air quality standards). To link both elements a two-stage approach is applied. In the first stage preventive measures are taken at the emitting sources, irrespective of existing air pollution levels. Emissions have to be limited by early preventive measures as much as technical and operational conditions allow and as far as economically acceptable (prevention principle). By this, air pollution shall be kept as low as possible as a matter of principle, without the environment having to be in danger first. In a second stage the measures are strengthened or backed up by additional measures if ambient air quality standards laid down in the Ordinance on Air Pollution Control are exceeded. At this second stage, protection of man and his environment has priority over economic considerations. (author)

Air pollution control policy in Switzerland

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Leutert, G [Forests and Landscape, Berne (Switzerland). Federal Office of Environment

1996-12-31

The legal basis of the Swiss air pollution control policy is set by the Federal Law on the Protection of the Environment, which came into force in 1985. It aims to protect human beings, animals and plants, their biological communities and habitats against harmful effects or nuisances and to maintain the fertility of the soil. The law is source-oriented (by emission standards) as well as effect-oriented (by ambient air quality standards). To link both elements a two-stage approach is applied. In the first stage preventive measures are taken at the emitting sources, irrespective of existing air pollution levels. Emissions have to be limited by early preventive measures as much as technical and operational conditions allow and as far as economically acceptable (prevention principle). By this, air pollution shall be kept as low as possible as a matter of principle, without the environment having to be in danger first. In a second stage the measures are strengthened or backed up by additional measures if ambient air quality standards laid down in the Ordinance on Air Pollution Control are exceeded. At this second stage, protection of man and his environment has priority over economic considerations. (author)

Photochemical and other air pollutions in the Netherlands

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Floor, H.

1975-01-01

Together with the State Institute of Public Health and the Royal Dutch Meteorological Institute, the Institute of Phytopathological Research continued investigations on incidence of air pollution in the country. The main purpose is to measure the effects of air pollution on indicator plants and to detect over the years which components separately or perhaps together damage indicator plants. In 1974, the network of experimental fields in the Netherlands was completed. From April until October, 29 fields were inspected weekly for typical symptoms of air pollution. Just as in the preceding year O3 caused most injury of the photochemical air pollutants, as shown by Spinacia oleracea and Nicotiana tabacum. Other photochemical air pollutants like PAN, and the pollutants SO2, NO/sub x/ and ethylene caused little injury to the indicator plants Urtica urens, Poa annua, Medicago sativa, Petunia nyctaginiflora and Solanum tuberosum. Symptoms of damage on Tulipa gesneriana, Gladiolus gandavensis and Freesia refracta indicated air pollution by HF in all experimental fields, but especially in the south of the country. The F determination in the air by means of the limed paper method established the results with the indicator plants.

Review of air pollution and health impacts in Malaysia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Afroz, Rafia; Hassan, M.N.; Ibrahim, N.A.

2003-01-01

In the early days of abundant resources and minimal development pressures, little attention was paid to growing environmental concerns in Malaysia. The haze episodes in Southeast Asia in 1983, 1984, 1991, 1994, and 1997 imposed threats to the environmental management of Malaysia and increased awareness of the environment. As a consequence, the government established Malaysian Air Quality Guidelines, the Air Pollution Index, and the Haze Action Plan to improve air quality. Air quality monitoring is part of the initial strategy in the pollution prevention program in Malaysia. Review of air pollution in Malaysia is based on the reports of the air quality monitoring in several large cities in Malaysia, which cover air pollutants such as Carbon monoxide (CO), Sulphur Dioxide (SO 2 ), Nitrogen Dioxide (NO 2 ), Ozone (O 3 ), and Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM). The results of the monitoring indicate that Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM) and Nitrogen Dioxide (NO 2 ) are the predominant pollutants. Other pollutants such as CO, O x , SO 2 , and Pb are also observed in several big cities in Malaysia. The air pollution comes mainly from land transportation, industrial emissions, and open burning sources. Among them, land transportation contributes the most to air pollution. This paper reviews the results of the ambient air quality monitoring and studies related to air pollution and health impacts

Air Pollution Surveillance Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Morgan, George B.; And Others

1970-01-01

Describes atmospheric data monitoring as part of total airpollution control effort. Summarizes types of gaseous, liquid and solid pollutants and their sources; contrast between urban and rural environmental air quality; instrumentation to identify pollutants; and anticipated new non-wet chemical physical and physiochemical techniques tor cetection…

Perimenarchal air pollution exposure and menstrual disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Mahalingaiah, S; Missmer, S E; Cheng, J J; Chavarro, J; Laden, F; Hart, J E

2018-01-25

What is the association between perimenarchal exposure to total suspended particulate (TSP) in air, menstrual irregularity phenotypes and time to menstrual cycle regularity? Exposures to TSP during high school are associated with slightly increased odds of menstrual irregularity and longer time to regularity in high school and early adulthood. The menstrual cycle is responsive to hormonal regulation. Particulate matter air pollution has demonstrated hormonal activity. However, it is not known if air pollution is associated with menstrual cycle regularity. Cross sectional study of 34 832 of the original 116 430 women (29.91%) enrolled in 1989 from the Nurses' Health Study II (NHSII). The follow-up rate for this analytic sample was 97.76% at the 1991 survey. Annual averages of TSP were available for each year of high school attendance. We created three case definitions including high school menstrual irregularity and androgen excess. The time to menstrual cycle regularity was reported by participants as air pollution in the adolescent and early adulthood window may be especially important, given its association with phenotypes of menstrual irregularity. The data from this study agrees with existing literature regarding air pollution and reproductive tract diseases. Shruthi Mahalingaiah: Reproductive Scientist Development Program HD000849, and a research grant from the Boston University Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Stacey Missmer: R01HD57210 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Center for Environmental Health Sciences Translational Pilot Project Program, R01CA50385 from the National Cancer Institute, Jaime Hart and Francine Laden: 5R01ES017017 from the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences, Jaime Hart: P30 ES00002 from the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences at the National Institute of Health, The Nurses' Health Study II is supported by

Ambient air pollution, climate change, and population health in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Kan, Haidong; Chen, Renjie; Tong, Shilu

2012-07-01

As the largest developing country, China has been changing rapidly over the last three decades and its economic expansion is largely driven by the use of fossil fuels, which leads to a dramatic increase in emissions of both ambient air pollutants and greenhouse gases (GHGs). China is now facing the worst air pollution problem in the world, and is also the largest emitter of carbon dioxide. A number of epidemiological studies on air pollution and population health have been conducted in China, using time-series, case-crossover, cross-sectional, cohort, panel or intervention designs. The increased health risks observed among Chinese population are somewhat lower in magnitude, per amount of pollution, than the risks found in developed countries. However, the importance of these increased health risks is greater than that in North America or Europe, because the levels of air pollution in China are very high in general and Chinese population accounts for more than one fourth of the world's totals. Meanwhile, evidence is mounting that climate change has already affected human health directly and indirectly in China, including mortality from extreme weather events; changes in air and water quality; and changes in the ecology of infectious diseases. If China acts to reduce the combustion of fossil fuels and the resultant air pollution, it will reap not only the health benefits associated with improvement of air quality but also the reduced GHG emissions. Consideration of the health impact of air pollution and climate change can help the Chinese government move forward towards sustainable development with appropriate urgency. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Global air pollution crossroads over the Mediterranean

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lelieveld, J; Berresheim, H; Borrmann, S; Crutzen, P J; Dentener, F J; Fischer, H; Feichter, J; Flatau, P J; Heland, J; Holzinger, R; Korrmann, R; Lawrence, M G; Levin, Z; Markowicz, K M; Mihalopoulos, N; Minikin, A; Ramanathan, V; De Reus, M; Roelofs, G J; Scheeren, H A; Sciare, J; Schlager, H; Schultz, M; Siegmund, P; Steil, B; Stephanou, E G; Stier, P; Traub, M; Warneke, C; Williams, J; Ziereis, H

2002-01-01

The Mediterranean Intensive Oxidant Study, performed in the summer of 2001, uncovered air pollution layers from the surface to an altitude of 15 kilometers. In the boundary layer, air pollution standards are exceeded throughout the region, caused by West and East European pollution from the north.

Public health implications of urban air pollution in developing countries

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schwela, D.H. [World Health Organisation, Geneva (Switzerland)

1995-12-31

Exposure to air pollution is an almost inescapable part of urban life throughout the world. Ambient air pollutant levels in urban areas are generally a reflection of emissions. For sulphur dioxide, total suspended particulate matter and lead, ambient concentrations are declining in the industrialized western countries. For nitrogen dioxide, ambient levels in cities are generally constant, or slightly increasing. For carbon dioxide, they are variable, declining where controls are being applied. In a substantial number of cities, particularly in developing countries, WHO guidelines are being often exceeded for the compounds mentioned. Given the rate at which these cities are growing, the air pollution situation will probably worsen if environmental control measures are not implemented. As a consequence, the health and well-being of urban residents will further deteriorate with high ambient air pollutant concentrations causing increased mortality, morbidity, deficits on pulmonary functions and cardiovascular and neurobehavioural effects. (author)

Public health implications of urban air pollution in developing countries

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schwela, D H [World Health Organisation, Geneva (Switzerland)

1996-12-31

Exposure to air pollution is an almost inescapable part of urban life throughout the world. Ambient air pollutant levels in urban areas are generally a reflection of emissions. For sulphur dioxide, total suspended particulate matter and lead, ambient concentrations are declining in the industrialized western countries. For nitrogen dioxide, ambient levels in cities are generally constant, or slightly increasing. For carbon dioxide, they are variable, declining where controls are being applied. In a substantial number of cities, particularly in developing countries, WHO guidelines are being often exceeded for the compounds mentioned. Given the rate at which these cities are growing, the air pollution situation will probably worsen if environmental control measures are not implemented. As a consequence, the health and well-being of urban residents will further deteriorate with high ambient air pollutant concentrations causing increased mortality, morbidity, deficits on pulmonary functions and cardiovascular and neurobehavioural effects. (author)

Spatiotemporal Variations and Driving Factors of Air Pollution in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhan, Dongsheng; Kwan, Mei-Po; Zhang, Wenzhong; Wang, Shaojian; Yu, Jianhui

2017-12-08

In recent years, severe and persistent air pollution episodes in China have drawn wide public concern. Based on ground monitoring air quality data collected in 2015 in Chinese cities above the prefectural level, this study identifies the spatiotemporal variations of air pollution and its associated driving factors in China using descriptive statistics and geographical detector methods. The results show that the average air pollution ratio and continuous air pollution ratio across Chinese cities in 2015 were 23.1 ± 16.9% and 16.2 ± 14.8%. The highest levels of air pollution ratio and continuous air pollution ratio were observed in northern China, especially in the Bohai Rim region and Xinjiang province, and the lowest levels were found in southern China. The average and maximum levels of continuous air pollution show distinct spatial variations when compared with those of the continuous air pollution ratio. Monthly changes in both air pollution ratio and continuous air pollution ratio have a U-shaped variation, indicating that the highest levels of air pollution occurred in winter and the lowest levels happened in summer. The results of the geographical detector model further reveal that the effect intensity of natural factors on the spatial disparity of the air pollution ratio is greater than that of human-related factors. Specifically, among natural factors, the annual average temperature, land relief, and relative humidity have the greatest and most significant negative effects on the air pollution ratio, whereas human factors such as population density, the number of vehicles, and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) witness the strongest and most significant positive effects on air pollution ratio.

Spatiotemporal Variations and Driving Factors of Air Pollution in China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dongsheng Zhan

2017-12-01

Full Text Available In recent years, severe and persistent air pollution episodes in China have drawn wide public concern. Based on ground monitoring air quality data collected in 2015 in Chinese cities above the prefectural level, this study identifies the spatiotemporal variations of air pollution and its associated driving factors in China using descriptive statistics and geographical detector methods. The results show that the average air pollution ratio and continuous air pollution ratio across Chinese cities in 2015 were 23.1 ± 16.9% and 16.2 ± 14.8%. The highest levels of air pollution ratio and continuous air pollution ratio were observed in northern China, especially in the Bohai Rim region and Xinjiang province, and the lowest levels were found in southern China. The average and maximum levels of continuous air pollution show distinct spatial variations when compared with those of the continuous air pollution ratio. Monthly changes in both air pollution ratio and continuous air pollution ratio have a U-shaped variation, indicating that the highest levels of air pollution occurred in winter and the lowest levels happened in summer. The results of the geographical detector model further reveal that the effect intensity of natural factors on the spatial disparity of the air pollution ratio is greater than that of human-related factors. Specifically, among natural factors, the annual average temperature, land relief, and relative humidity have the greatest and most significant negative effects on the air pollution ratio, whereas human factors such as population density, the number of vehicles, and Gross Domestic Product (GDP witness the strongest and most significant positive effects on air pollution ratio.

Air pollution monitoring - a methodological approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trajkovska Trpevska, Magdalena

2002-01-01

Methodology for monitoring the emission of polluters in the air is a complex concept that in general embraces following fazes: sampling, laboratory treatment, and interpretation of results. In Company for technological and laboratory investigation and environmental protection - Mining Institute Skopje, the control of emission of polluters in the air is performing according methodology based in general on the recommendation of standard VDI 2.066 prescribe from Ministry of Ecology in Germany, because adequate legislation in our country does not exist. In this article the basic treatment of methodology for the air polluters emission control is presented. (Original)

Influence of air pollution upon plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kangas, E

1963-01-01

This talk, which was given at a symposium concerned with pollution of the air, arranged by the Societas Biochemica Biophysica et Microbiologica of Finland, deals with the influence exerted by air pollution upon plants, and upon trees in particular. Mention is made of the gases which have in Finland caused pollution of the air and have damaged plants (SO/sub 2/, Cl, gases containing chlorates, and the smoke from coal and liquid fuel). The effect of these substances, and of their varying concentrations, is reported, together with the effect of forms of dirt, especially with respect to coniferous trees.

Human Exposure Assessment for Air Pollution.

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Bin; Hu, Li-Wen; Bai, Zhipeng

2017-01-01

Assessment of human exposure to air pollution is a fundamental part of the more general process of health risk assessment. The measurement methods for exposure assessment now include personal exposure monitoring, indoor-outdoor sampling, mobile monitoring, and exposure assessment modeling (such as proximity models, interpolation model, air dispersion models, and land-use regression (LUR) models). Among these methods, personal exposure measurement is considered to be the most accurate method of pollutant exposure assessment until now, since it can better quantify observed differences and better reflect exposure among smaller groups of people at ground level. And since the great differences of geographical environment, source distribution, pollution characteristics, economic conditions, and living habits, there is a wide range of differences between indoor, outdoor, and individual air pollution exposure in different regions of China. In general, the indoor particles in most Chinese families comprise infiltrated outdoor particles, particles generated indoors, and a few secondary organic aerosol particles, and in most cases, outdoor particle pollution concentrations are a major contributor to indoor concentrations in China. Furthermore, since the time, energy, and expense are limited, it is difficult to measure the concentration of pollutants for each individual. In recent years, obtaining the concentration of air pollutants by using a variety of exposure assessment models is becoming a main method which could solve the problem of the increasing number of individuals in epidemiology studies.

Impact of air pollution on vitamin D deficiency and bone health in adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Feizabad, Elham; Hossein-Nezhad, Arash; Maghbooli, Zhila; Ramezani, Majid; Hashemian, Roxana; Moattari, Syamak

2017-12-01

The association between air pollution and bone health was evaluated in adolescents in the city of Tehran. This study is essentially ecological. Vitamin D deficiency among adolescents has been reported at higher rates in polluted areas than in non-polluted areas. Additionally, residence in polluted areas is associated with lower levels of bone alkaline phosphatase. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between ambient air pollution and bone turnover in adolescents and to compare the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency between polluted and non-polluted areas of Tehran. This cross-sectional population-based study was conducted on 325 middle- and high-school students (both girls and boys) in Tehran in the winter. During the study period, detailed daily data on air pollution were obtained from archived data collected by Tehran Air Quality Control Company (AQCC). Serum levels of calcium, phosphorus, parathyroid hormone (PTH), bone-specific alkaline phosphatase, 25(OH) vitamin D, osteocalcin, cross-linked C-telopeptide (CTX), total protein, albumin, and creatinine were obtained from the study group. Vitamin D deficiency was more prevalent in polluted areas than in non-polluted areas. After adjustment for age and sex, residence in the polluted area showed a statistically significant positive association with vitamin D deficiency and a statistically significant negative association with bone turnover. Interestingly, high calcium intake (>5000 mg/week) protects against the effects of air pollution on bone turnover. Air pollution is a chief factor determining the amount of solar UVB that reaches the earth's surface. Thus, atmospheric pollution may play a significant independent role in the development of vitamin D deficiency.

Participatory measurements of individual exposure to air pollution in urban areas

Science.gov (United States)

Madelin, Malika; Duché, Sarah; Dupuis, Vincent

2016-04-01

Air pollution is a major environmental issue in urban areas. Chronic and high concentration exposure presents a health risk with cardiovascular and respiratory problems and longer term nervous, carcinogenic and endocrine problems. In addition to the estimations based on simulations of both background and regional pollution and of the pollution induced by the traffic, knowing exposure of each individual is a key issue. This exposure reflects the high variability of pollution at fine spatial and time scales, according to the proximity of emission sources and the urban morphology outside. The emergence of citizen science and the progress of miniaturized electronics, low-cost and accessible to (almost) everyone, offers new opportunities for the monitoring of air pollution, but also for the citizens' awareness of their individual exposure to air pollution. In this communication, we propose to present a participatory research project 'What is your air?' (project funded by the Île-de-France region), which aims at raising awareness on the theme of air quality, its monitoring with sensors assembled in a FabLab workshop and an online participatory mapping. Beyond the discussion on technical choices, the stages of manufacture or the sensor calibration procedures, we discuss the measurements made, in this case the fine particle concentration measurements, which are dated and georeferenced (communication via a mobile phone). They show high variability between the measurements (in part linked to the substrates, land use, traffic) and low daily contrasts. In addition to the analysis of the measurements and their comparison with the official data, we also discuss the choice of representation of information, including mapping, and therefore the message about pollution to communicate.

Hydrocarbons and air pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Herz, O.

1992-01-01

This paper shows the influence of hydrocarbons vapors, emitted by transports or by volatile solvents using, on air pollution. Hydrocarbons are the principal precursors of photochemical pollution. After a brief introduction on atmospheric chemistry and photochemical reactions, the author describes the french prevention program against hydrocarbons emissions. In the last chapter, informations on international or european community programs for photochemical pollution study are given. 5 figs., 10 tabs

Air pollution hazards in brick kilns

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aslam, M; Srivastava, R S; Minocha, A K; Gupta, R G [Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee (India)

1994-02-01

Three types of brick kiln - Bull's trench kiln of movable chimney type, Bull's trench kiln of fixed chimney type, and high draught kiln of normal capacity (25,000-30,000 bricks/day) fed manually with slack coal and other local fuels - were investigated for stack emissions. Dust and hydrocarbons were identified as chief pollutants. Particle size analysis of dust emitted from movable chimney kiln and its impact on ambient air quality were also studied. Based on these studies, recommendations have been drawn on their comparative pollution hazard and need for optimization of operational parameters to improve their thermal performance and reduce pollution emission. 15 refs., 4 tabs.

Air pollution: mechanisms of neuroinflammation and CNS disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Block, Michelle L; Calderón-Garcidueñas, Lilian

2009-09-01

Air pollution has been implicated as a chronic source of neuroinflammation and reactive oxygen species (ROS) that produce neuropathology and central nervous system (CNS) disease. Stroke incidence and Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease pathology are linked to air pollution. Recent reports reveal that air pollution components reach the brain; systemic effects that impact lung and cardiovascular disease also impinge upon CNS health. While mechanisms driving air pollution-induced CNS pathology are poorly understood, new evidence suggests that microglial activation and changes in the blood-brain barrier are key components. Here we summarize recent findings detailing the mechanisms through which air pollution reaches the brain and activates the resident innate immune response to become a chronic source of pro-inflammatory factors and ROS, culminating in CNS disease.

Public Perception of Urban Air Pollution: An Exploratory Study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sala, R.; Oltra, C.; Goncalves, L.

2014-01-01

This report presents the results of a qualitative study using focus groups aimed at understanding the beliefs and attitudes of the population towards air pollution, its levels, causes, health impacts and possible mitigation and protection actions. The study sample consisted of members of the general population, between 18 and 65 years living in Barcelona. The analysis of the group discussion indicates that there is little awareness among participants about air pollution risks. The causes of air pollution are relatively known but there is little knowledge about pollution levels and types of pollutants. We found a low level of perceived personal risk associated to air pollution that coexists with a general awareness of the health impacts of air pollution, a low level of concern about the problem and a low level of personal involvement in mitigation and self protection measures. Participants reported no use of existing information services about air pollution. (Author)

AIR POLLUTION EFFECTS ON SEMEN QUALITY

Science.gov (United States)

The potential impact of exposure to periods of high air pollution on male reproductive health was examined within the framework of an international project conducted in the Czech Republic. Semen quality was evaluated in young men (age 18) living in the Teplice District who are ex...

Association of Air Pollution Exposures With High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol and Particle Number: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Bell, Griffith; Mora, Samia; Greenland, Philip; Tsai, Michael; Gill, Ed; Kaufman, Joel D

2017-05-01

The relationship between air pollution and cardiovascular disease may be explained by changes in high-density lipoprotein (HDL). We examined the cross-sectional relationship between air pollution and both HDL cholesterol and HDL particle number in the MESA Air study (Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis Air Pollution). Study participants were 6654 white, black, Hispanic, and Chinese men and women aged 45 to 84 years. We estimated individual residential ambient fine particulate pollution exposure (PM 2.5 ) and black carbon concentrations using a fine-scale likelihood-based spatiotemporal model and cohort-specific monitoring. Exposure periods were averaged to 12 months, 3 months, and 2 weeks prior to examination. HDL cholesterol and HDL particle number were measured in the year 2000 using the cholesterol oxidase method and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, respectively. We used multivariable linear regression to examine the relationship between air pollution exposure and HDL measures. A 0.7×10 - 6 m - 1 higher exposure to black carbon (a marker of traffic-related pollution) averaged over a 1-year period was significantly associated with a lower HDL cholesterol (-1.68 mg/dL; 95% confidence interval, -2.86 to -0.50) and approached significance with HDL particle number (-0.55 mg/dL; 95% confidence interval, -1.13 to 0.03). In the 3-month averaging time period, a 5 μg/m 3 higher PM 2.5 was associated with lower HDL particle number (-0.64 μmol/L; 95% confidence interval, -1.01 to -0.26), but not HDL cholesterol (-0.05 mg/dL; 95% confidence interval, -0.82 to 0.71). These data are consistent with the hypothesis that exposure to air pollution is adversely associated with measures of HDL. © 2017 American Heart Association, Inc.

Regional air pollution at a turning point.

Science.gov (United States)

Grennfelt, Peringe; Hov, Oystein

2005-02-01

The control of transboundary air pollution in Europe has been successful. Emissions of many key pollutants are decreasing and there are signs of improvements in damaged ecosystems. The strategies under development within the CAFE programme under the European Commission and the Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP), aim to take regional air pollution control a large step further, in particular with respect to small particles. In this paper we highlight the new strategies but look primarily at socioeconomic trends and climate change feedbacks that may have a significant influence on the outcome of the strategies and which so far have not been considered. In particular, we point out the influence on air quality of increased summer temperatures in Europe and of increasing emissions including international shipping, outside of Europe. Taken together the further emissions reductions in Europe and the increasing background pollution, slowly cause a greying of the Northern Hemisphere troposphere rather than the traditional picture of dominant emissions in Europe and North America ('black') with much lower emission intensities elsewhere ('white'). A hemispheric approach to further combat air pollution will become necessary in Europe and elsewhere.

Link between environmental air pollution and allergic asthma: East meets West.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Qingling; Qiu, Zhiming; Chung, Kian Fan; Huang, Shau-Ku

2015-01-01

With the levels of outdoor air pollution from industrial and motor vehicle emissions rising rapidly in the fastly-industrializing countries of South East Asia, the prevalence of asthma and allergic diseases has also been increasing to match those in the West. Epidemiological and experimental exposure studies indicate a harmful impact of outdoor air pollution from vehicles and factories both on the development of allergic diseases and asthma and the increase in asthma symptoms and exacerbations. The level of outdoor pollution in Asia is much higher and more diverse than those encountered in Western countries. This may increase the impact of outdoor pollution on health, particularly lung health in Asia. This review discusses the constituents of air pollution in Asia with a special focus on studies in mainland China and Taiwan where the levels of pollution have reached high levels and where such high levels particularly in winter can cause a thick haze that reduces visibility. The onus remains on regulatory and public health authorities to curb the sources of pollution so that the health effects on the population particularly those with lung and cardiovascular diseases and with increased susceptibility can be mitigated.

Climatic effects of air pollutants over china: A review

Science.gov (United States)

Liao, Hong; Chang, Wenyuan; Yang, Yang

2015-01-01

Tropospheric ozone (O3) and aerosols are major air pollutants in the atmosphere. They have also made significant contributions to radiative forcing of climate since preindustrial times. With its rapid economic development, concentrations of air pollutants are relatively high in China; hence, quantifying the role of air pollutants in China in regional climate change is especially important. This review summarizes existing knowledge with regard to impacts of air pollutants on climate change in China and defines critical gaps needed to reduce the associated uncertainties. Measured monthly, seasonal, and annual mean surface-layer concentrations of O3 and aerosols over China are compiled in this work, with the aim to show the magnitude of concentrations of O3 and aerosols over China and to provide datasets for evaluation of model results in future studies. Ground-based and satellite measurements of O3 column burden and aerosol optical properties, as well as model estimates of radiative forcing by tropospheric O3 and aerosols are summarized. We also review regional and global modeling studies that have investigated climate change driven by tropospheric O3 and/or aerosols in China; the predicted sign and magnitude of the responses in temperature and precipitation to O3/aerosol forcings are presented. Based on this review, key priorities for future research on the climatic effects of air pollutants in China are highlighted.

Air pollution, deprivation and health: understanding relationships to add value to local air quality management policy and practice in Wales, UK.

Science.gov (United States)

Brunt, H; Barnes, J; Jones, S J; Longhurst, J W S; Scally, G; Hayes, E

2017-09-01

Air pollution exposure reduces life expectancy. Air pollution, deprivation and poor-health status combinations can create increased and disproportionate disease burdens. Problems and solutions are rarely considered in a broad public health context, but doing so can add value to air quality management efforts by reducing air pollution risks, impacts and inequalities. An ecological study assessed small-area associations between air pollution (nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter), deprivation status and health outcomes in Wales, UK. Air pollution concentrations were highest in 'most' deprived areas. When considered separately, deprivation-health associations were stronger than air pollution-health associations. Considered simultaneously, air pollution added to deprivation-health associations; interactions between air pollution and deprivation modified and strengthened associations with all-cause and respiratory disease mortality, especially in 'most' deprived areas where most-vulnerable people lived and where health needs were greatest. There is a need to reduce air pollution-related risks for all. However, it is also the case that greater health gains can result from considering local air pollution problems and solutions in the context of wider health-determinants and acting on a better understanding of relationships. Informed and co-ordinated air pollution mitigation and public health action in high deprivation and pollution areas can reduce risks and inequalities. To achieve this, greater public health integration and collaboration in local air quality management policy and practice is needed. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Faculty of Public Health. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

On the feasibility of measuring urban air pollution by wireless distributed sensor networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Moltchanov, Sharon; Levy, Ilan; Etzion, Yael; Lerner, Uri; Broday, David M; Fishbain, Barak

2015-01-01

Accurate evaluation of air pollution on human-wellbeing requires high-resolution measurements. Standard air quality monitoring stations provide accurate pollution levels but due to their sparse distribution they cannot capture the highly resolved spatial variations within cities. Similarly, dedicated field campaigns can use tens of measurement devices and obtain highly dense spatial coverage but normally deployment has been limited to short periods of no more than few weeks. Nowadays, advances in communication and sensory technologies enable the deployment of dense grids of wireless distributed air monitoring nodes, yet their sensor ability to capture the spatiotemporal pollutant variability at the sub-neighborhood scale has never been thoroughly tested. This study reports ambient measurements of gaseous air pollutants by a network of six wireless multi-sensor miniature nodes that have been deployed in three urban sites, about 150 m apart. We demonstrate the network's capability to capture spatiotemporal concentration variations at an exceptional fine resolution but highlight the need for a frequent in-situ calibration to maintain the consistency of some sensors. Accordingly, a procedure for a field calibration is proposed and shown to improve the system's performance. Overall, our results support the compatibility of wireless distributed sensor networks for measuring urban air pollution at a sub-neighborhood spatial resolution, which suits the requirement for highly spatiotemporal resolved measurements at the breathing-height when assessing exposure to urban air pollution. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Climate Change and Air Pollution: Effects on Respiratory Allergy.

Science.gov (United States)

D'Amato, Gennaro; Pawankar, Ruby; Vitale, Carolina; Lanza, Maurizia; Molino, Antonio; Stanziola, Anna; Sanduzzi, Alessandro; Vatrella, Alessandro; D'Amato, Maria

2016-09-01

A body of evidence suggests that major changes involving the atmosphere and the climate, including global warming induced by anthropogenic factors, have impact on the biosphere and human environment. Studies on the effects of climate change on respiratory allergy are still lacking and current knowledge is provided by epidemiological and experimental studies on the relationship between allergic respiratory diseases, asthma and environmental factors, such as meteorological variables, airborne allergens, and air pollution. Urbanization with its high levels of vehicle emissions, and a westernized lifestyle are linked to the rising frequency of respiratory allergic diseases and bronchial asthma observed over recent decades in most industrialized countries. However, it is not easy to evaluate the impact of climate changes and air pollution on the prevalence of asthma in the general population and on the timing of asthma exacerbations, although the global rise in asthma prevalence and severity could also be an effect of air pollution and climate change. Since airborne allergens and air pollutants are frequently increased contemporaneously in the atmosphere, an enhanced IgE-mediated response to aeroallergens and enhanced airway inflammation could account for the increasing frequency of respiratory allergy and asthma in atopic subjects in the last 5 decades. Pollen allergy is frequently used to study the relationship between air pollution and respiratory allergic diseases, such as rhinitis and bronchial asthma. Epidemiologic studies have demonstrated that urbanization, high levels of vehicle emissions, and westernized lifestyle are correlated with an increased frequency of respiratory allergy prevalently in people who live in urban areas in comparison with people living in rural areas. Climatic factors (temperature, wind speed, humidity, thunderstorms, etc.) can affect both components (biological and chemical) of this interaction.

A Zooming Technique for Wind Transport of Air Pollution

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Berkvens, P.J.F.; Bochev, Mikhail A.; Lioen, W.; Verwer, J.G.

In air pollution dispersion models, typically systems of millions of equations that describe wind transport, chemistry and vertical mixing have to be integrated in time. To have more accurate results over specific fixed areas of interest---usually highly polluted areas with intensive emissions---a

A zooming technique for wind transport of air pollution

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vilsmeier, R.; Berkvens, P.J.F.; Benkhaldoun, F.; Bochev, Mikhail A.; Lioen, W.M.; Haenel, D.; Verwer, J.G.

1999-01-01

In air pollution dispersion models, typically systems of millions of equations that describe wind transport, chemistry and vertical mixing have to be integrated in time. To have more accurate results over specific fixed areas of interest---usually highly polluted areas with intensive emissions---a

Climate change, extreme weather events, air pollution and respiratory health in Europe.

Science.gov (United States)

De Sario, M; Katsouyanni, K; Michelozzi, P

2013-09-01

Due to climate change and other factors, air pollution patterns are changing in several urbanised areas of the world, with a significant effect on respiratory health both independently and synergistically with weather conditions; climate scenarios show Europe as one of the most vulnerable regions. European studies on heatwave episodes have consistently shown a synergistic effect of air pollution and high temperatures, while the potential weather-air pollution interaction during wildfires and dust storms is unknown. Allergen patterns are also changing in response to climate change, and air pollution can modify the allergenic potential of pollens, especially in the presence of specific weather conditions. The underlying mechanisms of all these interactions are not well known; the health consequences vary from decreases in lung function to allergic diseases, new onset of diseases, exacerbation of chronic respiratory diseases, and premature death. These multidimensional climate-pollution-allergen effects need to be taken into account in estimating both climate and air pollution-related respiratory effects, in order to set up adequate policy and public health actions to face both the current and future climate and pollution challenges.

The public health relevance of air pollution abatement.

Science.gov (United States)

Künzli, N

2002-07-01

Assuming a causal relationship between current levels of air pollution and morbidity/mortality, it is crucial to estimate the public health relevance of the problem. The derivation of air pollution attributable cases faces inherent uncertainties and requires influential assumptions. Based on the results of the trinational impact assessment study of Austria, France, and Switzerland, where prudent estimates of the air pollution attributable cases (mortality, chronic bronchitis incidence, hospital admissions, acute bronchitis among children, restricted activity days, asthma attacks) have been made, influential uncertainties are quantified in this review. The public health impact of smoking, environmental tobacco smoke, and air pollution on the prevalence of chronic cough/phlegm are outlined. Despite all methodological caveats, impact assessment studies clearly suggest that public health largely benefits from better air quality. The studies are selective underestimates as they are strongly driven by mortality, but do not include full quantification of the impact on morbidity and their consequences on quality of life among the diseased and the caregivers. Air pollution abatement strategies are usually political in nature, targeting at polities, regulation and technology in mobile or stationary sources rather than at individuals. It is of note that key clean air strategies converge into abatement of climate change. In general, energy consumption is very closely related to both air pollution and greenhouse gases. The dominant causes of both problems are the excessive and inefficient combustion of fossil fuel. Thus, for many policy options, the benefit of air pollution abatement will go far beyond what prudent health-impact assessments may derive. From a climate change and air pollution perspective, improved energy efficiency and a strong and decisive departure from the "fossil fuel" combustion society is a science-based must. Health professionals must raise their voices

Advance planning for air pollution control

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brewer, G L

1972-11-01

An air quality management program for nitric acid plants emitting pollutants which include nitrogen oxides is proposed. The program consists of the following five phases: an inventory of the handling equipment within the plant, including the identification of potential emission sources in terms of process material balances; source testing (if required); ambient air quality measurements; emission control analysis; and the development of a complete air management plan which includes a balance between air exhausted from buildups and processes and air supplied in a controlled economical manner. Typical NOx air pollution problems associated with nitric acid plants are reviewed along with various approaches to control and by-product recovery.

Air pollution and urban air quality management in Indonesia

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Santosa, Sri J. [Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Gadjah Mada University, Yogyakarta (Indonesia); Okuda, Tomoaki; Tanaka, Shigeru [Department of Applied Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, Keio University, Yokohama (Japan)

2008-06-15

The trade-led industry and economic development after the Asian financial crisis a decade ago has been accelerated in Indonesia to improve the quality of life of its population. This rapid development of Indonesia was in fact heavily fueled by fossil fuels, especially oil, followed by natural gas and coal. The exploitation of fossil fuel in fueling the development resulted in significant environmental quality degradation. Air pollution is perhaps Indonesia's most severe environmental problem. Industry and transportation were the typical main sources of urban air pollutants. Moreover, Indonesia also failed to reach its original 2005 target for a complete phase-out of leaded gasoline. As a result, the level of Pb together with other pollutants such as CO, NO{sub x}, SO{sub 2}, and total suspended particulates has exceeded or at least approached the designated ambient air quality standards. The urban air pollution will not be lesser in extent, but surely will be more severe in the future. Unfortunately, the capability of the Indonesian authorities to manage the urban air quality is still very limited and the portion of the budget allocated to the improvement of urban air quality is still remarkably low, typically 1% of total. This is why the efforts to enhance the capability to manage the urban air quality could not be handled by the environmental authorities in Indonesia's cities themselves, but outside stimulation in the form of man power, consultant and equipment assistance along with financial support has been very important. (Abstract Copyright [2008], Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Methods of valuing air pollution and estimated monetary values of air pollutants in various U.S. regions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, M.Q.; Santini, D.J.; Warinner, S.A.

1994-12-01

Air pollutant emission values are used to determine the social costs of various technologies that cause air pollution and to estimate the benefits of emission control technologies. In this report, the authors present two methods of estimating air pollutant emission values--the damage value method and the control cost method--and review 15 recent studies in which these methods were employed to estimate emission values. The reviewed studies derived emission values for only a limited number of areas; emission value estimates are needed for other US regions. Using the emission values estimated in the reviewed studies, they establish regression relationships between emission values, air pollutant concentrations, and total population exposed, and apply the established relationships to 17 US metropolitan areas to estimate damage-based and control-cost-based emission values for reactive organic gases, nitrogen oxides, particulate matter measuring less than 10 microns, sulfur oxides, and carbon monoxide in these areas. Their estimates show significant variations in emission values across the 17 regions.

Long Term Variations of the Atmospheric Air Pollutants in Istanbul City

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. Kurtulus Ozcan

2012-03-01

Full Text Available High population density and intense industrial activity has resulted in various forms of pollution in megacities. Air pollution ranks at the top of this list. This study investigated long-term changes in air pollutant parameters (SO2, CO, NO, NO2, NOx in Istanbul City, Turkey, using data from air-quality measurement stations on the Asian and European sides of Istanbul. The results show decreases from 2002 to 2010 in the amounts of SO2 (one of the main pollutants released as a result of the burning of fossil fuels and CO (indicative of incomplete combustion. However, NOx concentrations showed fluctuations over time, rather than a steady decline throughout the study period.

The Role of Different Agricultural Plant Species in Air Pollution

Science.gov (United States)

Fiala, P.; Miller, D.; Shivers, S.; Pusede, S.; Roberts, D. A.

2017-12-01

The goal of this research project is to use remote sensing data to study the relationship between different plant species and the pollutants in the air. It is known that chemical reactions within plants serve as both sources and sinks for different types of Volatile Organic Compounds. However, the species-specific relationships have not been well studied. Through the better characterization of this relationship, certain aspects of air pollution may be more effectively managed. For this project, I used Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) data and trace gas measurements from instruments on board the NASA DC-8 to assess the relationship between different plant species and the pollutants in the air. I used measurements primarily from the agricultural land surrounding Bakersfield, CA. I created a map of the crop species in this area using Multiple Endmember Spectral Mixture Analysis (MESMA) on the AVIRIS imagery, and matched this to trace gas measurements taken on the DC-8. I used a Hysplit matrix trajectory to account for the air transport over the vegetation and up to contact with the plane. Finally, I identified correlations between the plant types and the concentration of the pollutants. The results showed that there were significant relationships between specific species and pollutants, with lemons and grapes contributing to enhanced pollution, and tree nuts reducing pollution. Specifically, almonds produced significantly lower levels of O3 , NO, and NO2. Lemons and grapes had high O3 levels, and lemons had high levels of isoprene. In total, these data show that it may be possible to mitigate airborne pollution via selective planting; however, the overall environmental effects are much more complicated and must be analyzed further.

The impact of climate upon variation in air pollution using a synoptic climatological approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Powley, J.F.

1991-01-01

The Environmental Protection Agency has set national ambient air quality standards for six different pollutants: sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, total suspended particulates, nitrogen oxides, and oxidants. The goal of this study was to apply an automatic air mass-based synoptic methodology to surface weather data in order to evaluate the impact of climate on the above pollutant concentrations in Philadelphia, PA; Dallas, TX; and St. Louis, MO. A group of synoptic categories depicting the summer and winter weather in each city was developed using principal components analysis and average linkage clustering. The concentrations of the six air pollutants were then related to the synoptic weather categories. The synoptic categories and associated weather conditions exhibiting particularly high pollution concentrations were analyzed in detail. Ultimately, the procedure was validated for prediction of future pollutant levels. The results from this study support the conclusion that there is a close link between synoptic-air mass combinations and various pollutant concentrations. The climate-pollutant relationship seems to change from summer to winter in the three cities. It appears that climatic thresholds could be found for high levels of various air pollutants. Similar synoptic conditions appear to lead to high accumulations of all six pollutants, although the transportation-related pollutants showed more dependency on the level of solar radiation. These pollutants seem to be more significant in the southern city of Dallas. The synoptic methodology proved to be of assistance in developing a weather/pollution watch-warning system; such a system would be designed to signal impending synoptic conditions which could significantly raise pollutant concentrations

Air Pollution Is Associated With Ischemic Stroke via Cardiogenic Embolism.

Science.gov (United States)

Chung, Jong-Won; Bang, Oh Young; Ahn, Kangmo; Park, Sang-Soon; Park, Tai Hwan; Kim, Jae Guk; Ko, Youngchai; Lee, SooJoo; Lee, Kyung Bok; Lee, Jun; Kang, Kyusik; Park, Jong-Moo; Cho, Yong-Jin; Hong, Keun-Sik; Nah, Hyun-Wook; Kim, Dae-Hyun; Cha, Jae-Kwan; Ryu, Wi-Sun; Kim, Dong-Eog; Kim, Joon-Tae; Choi, Jay Chol; Oh, Mi-Sun; Yu, Kyung-Ho; Lee, Byung-Chul; Lee, Ji Sung; Lee, Juneyoung; Park, Hong-Kyun; Kim, Beom Joon; Han, Moon-Ku; Bae, Hee-Joon

2017-01-01

The aim of the study was to assessed the impact of short-term exposure to air pollution on ischemic stroke subtype, while focusing on stroke caused via cardioembolism. From a nationwide, multicenter, prospective, stroke registry database, 13 535 patients with acute ischemic stroke hospitalized to 12 participating centers were enrolled in this study. Data on the hourly concentrations of particulate matter <10 μm, nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), ozone (O 3 ), and carbon monoxide (CO) were collected from 181 nationwide air pollution surveillance stations. The average values of these air pollutants over the 7 days before stroke onset from nearest air quality monitoring station in each patient were used to determine association with stroke subtype. The primary outcome was stroke subtype, including large artery atherosclerosis, small-vessel occlusion, cardioembolism, and stroke of other or undetermined cause. Particulate matter <10 μm and SO 2 concentrations were independently associated with an increased risk of cardioembolic stroke, as compared with large artery atherosclerosis and noncardioembolic stroke. In stratified analyses, the proportion of cases of cardioembolic stroke was positively correlated with the particulate matter <10 μm, NO 2 , and SO 2 quintiles. Moreover, seasonal and geographic factors were related to an increased proportion of cardioembolic stroke, which may be attributed to the high levels of air pollution. Our findings suggest that the short-term exposure to air pollutants is associated with cardioembolic stroke, and greater care should be taken for those susceptible to cerebral embolism during peak pollution periods. Public and environmental health policies to reduce air pollution could help slow down global increasing trends of cardioembolic stroke. © 2016 American Heart Association, Inc.

Electrodialytic remediation of air pollution control residues

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Pernille Erland

Air pollution control (APC) residue from municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) consists of the fly ash, and, in dry and semi-dry systems, also the reaction products from the flue gas cleaning process. APC residue is considered a hazardous waste due to its high alkalinity, high content of salt...

A review on air pollution and various dust models for open cast mines in India

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sangeeth, M.G.; Ahmed, Siraj; Bhagoria, J.L.; Pandit, G.G.

2010-01-01

Open cast coal mining continues to create significant environmental problems in India. In particular, this type of mining creates high rates of air pollution SPM, RPM, SO 2 and NO x . In these particulate matter i.e. SPM and RPM is major pollution in the open cast mines. It creates several heath hazards to mine workers and surrounding peoples and high environmental deterioration occurs. Several studies are carried out in the field of air pollution and air quality modeling of open cast projects and many researchers suggested several control measures for the air pollution control in mines. Different dust models FDM, ISC3 are available for prediction and transport of the pollutants. In this paper a review has been studied about air pollution in the open cast mines and dust dispersion models for open cast mines in India. (author)

Air pollution burden of illness from traffic in Toronto

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McKeown, D.; Campbell, M.; Bassil, K.; Morgan, C.; Lalani, M.; Macfarlane, R.; Bienefeld, M.

2007-11-01

This paper examined the health impacts of air pollution from traffic in Toronto. The paper provided a review of scientific studies on the health effects of vehicle pollution as well as a quantitative assessment of the economic costs and the burden of illness attributed to traffic pollution in Toronto. The report also assessed air pollution and traffic trends in the city, and outlined initiatives being conducted to reduce vehicle-related pollution. The study used the new air quality benefits tool (AQBAT) which determines the burden of illness and the economic impacts of traffic-related air pollution. Air modelling specialists were consulted in order to determine the contribution of traffic-related pollutants to overall pollution levels using data on traffic counts and vehicle emissions factors. The air model also considered dispersion, transport and and the transformation of compounds emitted from vehicles. Results of the study showed that traffic pollution caused approximately 440 premature deaths and 1700 hospitalizations per year. Children in the city experienced more than 1200 acute bronchitis episodes per year as a result of air pollution from traffic. Mortality-related costs associated with traffic pollution in Toronto were estimated at $2.2 billion. It was concluded that the city must pursue the implementation of sustainable transportation policies and programs which foster and enable the expansion and use of public transport. 47 refs., 8 tabs., 9 figs

The rise of low-cost sensing for managing air pollution in cities.

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Prashant; Morawska, Lidia; Martani, Claudio; Biskos, George; Neophytou, Marina; Di Sabatino, Silvana; Bell, Margaret; Norford, Leslie; Britter, Rex

2015-02-01

Ever growing populations in cities are associated with a major increase in road vehicles and air pollution. The overall high levels of urban air pollution have been shown to be of a significant risk to city dwellers. However, the impacts of very high but temporally and spatially restricted pollution, and thus exposure, are still poorly understood. Conventional approaches to air quality monitoring are based on networks of static and sparse measurement stations. However, these are prohibitively expensive to capture tempo-spatial heterogeneity and identify pollution hotspots, which is required for the development of robust real-time strategies for exposure control. Current progress in developing low-cost micro-scale sensing technology is radically changing the conventional approach to allow real-time information in a capillary form. But the question remains whether there is value in the less accurate data they generate. This article illustrates the drivers behind current rises in the use of low-cost sensors for air pollution management in cities, while addressing the major challenges for their effective implementation. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Health Effects of Ambient Air Pollution in Developing Countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Mannucci, Pier Mannuccio; Franchini, Massimo

2017-09-12

The deleterious effects of ambient air pollution on human health have been consistently documented by many epidemiologic studies worldwide, and it has been calculated that globally at least seven million deaths are annually attributable to the effects of air pollution. The major air pollutants emitted into the atmosphere by a number of natural processes and human activities include nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds, and particulate matter. In addition to the poor ambient air quality, there is increasing evidence that indoor air pollution also poses a serious threat to human health, especially in low-income countries that still use biomass fuels as an energy resource. This review summarizes the current knowledge on ambient air pollution in financially deprived populations.

Evaluating impacts of air pollution in China on public health: Implications for future air pollution and energy policies

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xiaoping; Mauzerall, Denise L.

Our objective is to establish the link between energy consumption and technologies, air pollution concentrations, and resulting impacts on public health in eastern China. We use Zaozhuang, a city in eastern China heavily dependent on coal, as a case study to quantify the impacts that air pollution in eastern China had on public health in 2000 and the benefits in improved air quality and health that could be obtained by 2020, relative to business-as-usual (BAU), through the implementation of best available emission control technology (BACT) and advanced coal gasification technologies (ACGT). We use an integrated assessment approach, utilizing state-of-the-science air quality and meteorological models, engineering, epidemiology, and economics, to achieve this objective. We find that total health damages due to year 2000 anthropogenic emissions from Zaozhuang, using the "willingness-to-pay" metric, was equivalent to 10% of Zaozhuang's GDP. If all health damages resulting from coal use were internalized in the market price of coal, the year 2000 price would have more than tripled. With no new air pollution controls implemented between 2000 and 2020 but with projected increases in energy use, we estimate health damages from air pollution exposure to be equivalent to 16% of Zaozhuang's projected 2020 GDP. BACT and ACGT (with only 24% penetration in Zaozhuang and providing 2% of energy needs in three surrounding municipalities) could reduce the potential health damage of air pollution in 2020 to 13% and 8% of projected GDP, respectively. Benefits to public health, of substantial monetary value, can be achieved through the use of BACT; health benefits from the use of ACGT could be even larger. Despite significant uncertainty associated with each element of the integrated assessment approach, we demonstrate that substantial benefits to public health could be achieved in this region of eastern China through the use of additional pollution controls and particularly from the

Urban Air Pollution Climates Throughout the World

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hertel, Ole; Goodsite, Michael Evan

2009-01-01

The extent of the urban area, the local emission density, and the temporal pattern in the releases govern the local contribution to air pollution levels in urban environments. However, meteorological conditions also heavily affect the actual pollution levels as they govern the dispersion conditio...... population and provide the right basis for future urban air pollution management....

Health effects of ambient air pollution – recent research development and contemporary methodological challenges

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ren Cizao

2008-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Exposure to high levels of air pollution can cause a variety of adverse health outcomes. Air quality in developed countries has been generally improved over the last three decades. However, many recent epidemiological studies have consistently shown positive associations between low-level exposure to air pollution and health outcomes. Thus, adverse health effects of air pollution, even at relatively low levels, remain a public concern. This paper aims to provide an overview of recent research development and contemporary methodological challenges in this field and to identify future research directions for air pollution epidemiological studies.

[Prevention and control of air pollution needs to strengthen further study on health damage caused by air pollution].

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, T C

2016-08-06

Heath issues caused by air pollution such as particulate matter (PM) are much concerned and focused among air, water and soil pollutions because human breathe air for whole life span. Present comments will review physical and chemical characteristics of PM2.5 and PM10; Dose-response associations of PM10, PM2.5 and their components with mortality and risk of cardiopulmonary diseases, early health damages such as the decrease of lung functions and heart rate variability, DNA damage; And the roles of genetic variations and epigenetic changes in lung functions and heart rate variability, DNA damage related to PMs and their components. This comments list some limitations and perspectives about the associations of air pollution with health.

Respiratory Health Effects of Air Pollution: Update on Biomass Smoke and Traffic Pollution

OpenAIRE

Laumbach, Robert J.; Kipen, Howard M.

2012-01-01

Mounting evidence suggests that air pollution contributes to the large global burden of respiratory and allergic diseases including asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pneumonia and possibly tuberculosis. Although associations between air pollution and respiratory disease are complex, recent epidemiologic studies have led to an increased recognition of the emerging importance of traffic-related air pollution in both developed and less-developed countries, as well as the continued i...

Regional Air Pollutions in Three Different Regions of Asia From a Transcontinental Transport Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Pochanart, P.; Kanaya, Y.; Komazaki, Y.; Liu, Y.; Akimoto, H.

2007-12-01

Asia is known as one of the regions with the fastest rate of growing in industrialization and urbanization. As a result, the rapid increases of large-scale air pollution in Asia emerge as a serious concern at both domestic and international levels. Apart from the problems of air quality degradation, emission control, environmental risk, and health effect in a domestic level, evidences from scientific studies indicate that by the long-range transport, Asian air pollution is becoming a global problem. Observations and model studies confirm that air pollution from Asia could be transported to North America or farther. In this work, we investigate the Asian air pollutions, in particular ozone and some other atmospheric components such as carbon monoxide and black carbon, from the ground- based observations in the three different regions, namely 1) background region of Siberia and central Asia, 2) highly anthropogenic region in eastern China, and 3) the rim region of the Asia-Pacific. In a transcontinental transport perspective, these regions are regarded as the inflow region, source region, and outflow region of Asia, respectively. From the results, it is found that the influences from large-scale emission in East Asia are observed clearly in the source region, and to the significant extent in the outflow region. For the inflow region of Asia, our data in Siberia and Kyrgyzstan indicate that air masses in this region are mostly intact from large-scale anthropogenic emission, and remain much of the global background atmospheric pollution characteristic. When the air masses are transported to source region, the air pollutants level increased sharply and frequent episodes of extremely high pollutions have been observed. Our results show good correlation between the residence time of air masses over the source region in eastern China and the observed levels of air pollutants verifying the strong enhancements by anthropogenic emissions from industrialization and

Ambient and household air pollution: complex triggers of disease

Science.gov (United States)

Farmer, Stephen A.; Nelin, Timothy D.; Falvo, Michael J.

2014-01-01

Concentrations of outdoor air pollution are on the rise, particularly due to rapid urbanization worldwide. Alternatively, poor ventilation, cigarette smoke, and other toxic chemicals contribute to rising concentrations of indoor air pollution. The World Health Organization recently reported that deaths attributable to indoor and outdoor air pollutant exposure are more than double what was originally documented. Epidemiological, clinical, and animal data have demonstrated a clear connection between rising concentrations of air pollution (both indoor and outdoor) and a host of adverse health effects. During the past five years, animal, clinical, and epidemiological studies have explored the adverse health effects associated with exposure to both indoor and outdoor air pollutants throughout the various stages of life. This review provides a summary of the detrimental effects of air pollution through examination of current animal, clinical, and epidemiological studies and exposure during three different periods: maternal (in utero), early life, and adulthood. Additionally, we recommend future lines of research while suggesting conceivable strategies to curb exposure to indoor and outdoor air pollutants. PMID:24929855

Ambient and household air pollution: complex triggers of disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Farmer, Stephen A; Nelin, Timothy D; Falvo, Michael J; Wold, Loren E

2014-08-15

Concentrations of outdoor air pollution are on the rise, particularly due to rapid urbanization worldwide. Alternatively, poor ventilation, cigarette smoke, and other toxic chemicals contribute to rising concentrations of indoor air pollution. The World Health Organization recently reported that deaths attributable to indoor and outdoor air pollutant exposure are more than double what was originally documented. Epidemiological, clinical, and animal data have demonstrated a clear connection between rising concentrations of air pollution (both indoor and outdoor) and a host of adverse health effects. During the past five years, animal, clinical, and epidemiological studies have explored the adverse health effects associated with exposure to both indoor and outdoor air pollutants throughout the various stages of life. This review provides a summary of the detrimental effects of air pollution through examination of current animal, clinical, and epidemiological studies and exposure during three different periods: maternal (in utero), early life, and adulthood. Additionally, we recommend future lines of research while suggesting conceivable strategies to curb exposure to indoor and outdoor air pollutants.

Some measurements of ambient air pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Memon, H.R.; Memon, A.A.; Behan, M.Y.

1999-01-01

Ambient air pollution arising from different sources in Karachi and its surroundings has been studied. The urban centres like Karachi are mostly confronted with eye-irritation, reduce visibility, heart-diseases, nervous disorder, smog and other unpleasant experiences. In this paper quantitative estimations of some air-pollutants such as sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, oxides of nitrogen, chlorine and particular matters are presented with their hazardous effects. The remedial measures for the control of major air emissions are also discussed. (author)

Fractional kalman filter to estimate the concentration of air pollution

Science.gov (United States)

Vita Oktaviana, Yessy; Apriliani, Erna; Khusnul Arif, Didik

2018-04-01

Air pollution problem gives important effect in quality environment and quality of human’s life. Air pollution can be caused by nature sources or human activities. Pollutant for example Ozone, a harmful gas formed by NOx and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from various sources. The air pollution problem can be modeled by TAPM-CTM (The Air Pollution Model with Chemical Transport Model). The model shows concentration of pollutant in the air. Therefore, it is important to estimate concentration of air pollutant. Estimation method can be used for forecast pollutant concentration in future and keep stability of air quality. In this research, an algorithm is developed, based on Fractional Kalman Filter to solve the model of air pollution’s problem. The model will be discretized first and then it will be estimated by the method. The result shows that estimation of Fractional Kalman Filter has better accuracy than estimation of Kalman Filter. The accuracy was tested by applying RMSE (Root Mean Square Error).

Air pollution and health studies in China--policy implications.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Bingheng; Kan, Haidong; Chen, Renjie; Jiang, Songhui; Hong, Chuanjie

2011-11-01

During the rapid economic development in China, ambient air pollutants in major cities, including PM10 (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter air pollution levels in China are still at the higher end of the world level. Less information is available regarding changes in national levels of other pollutants such as PM2.5 and ozone. The Chinese Ministry of Environmental Protection (MOEP) set an index for "controlling/reducing total SO2 emissions" to evaluate the efficacy of air pollution control strategy in the country. Total SO2 emissions declined for the first time in 2007. Chinese epidemiologic studies evidenced adverse health effects of ambient air pollution similar to those reported from developed countries, though risk estimates on mortality/morbidity per unit increase of air pollutant are somewhat smaller than those reported in developed countries. Disease burden on health attributable to air pollution is relatively greater in China because of higher pollution levels. Improving ambient air quality has substantial and measurable public health benefits in China. It is recommended that the current Chinese air quality standards be updated/revised and the target for "controlling/reducing total SO2 emissions" be maintained and another target for "reducing total NO2 emissions" be added in view of rapid increase in motor vehicles. Continuous and persistent efforts should be taken to improve ambient air quality.

Meteorological air pollution potential for Santiago, Chile: Towards an objective episode forecasting.

Science.gov (United States)

Rutllant, J; Garreaud, R

1995-02-01

The geography and climate of the Santiago basin are, in general, unfavorable for the diffusion of air pollutants. Consequently, extreme events occur frequently during the high pollution season extending from April to August. The meteorological conditions concurrent with those extreme events are mainly associated with the leading edges of coastal lows that bring down the base of the semipermanent temperature inversion reducing the dirunal growth of the surface mixed layer. In order to produce an objective 12 to 24-hour episode forecast, a two-way multivariate discriminant analysis has been used in the definition of a meteorological air-pollution potential index (MAPPI), separating high and low meteorological air-pollution potential days. The same procedure has been applied in the selection of the most efficient predictors for the MAPPI objective forecast, based on 12 and 24 UTC radiosonde data at Quintero, about 100 km to the NW of Santiago. Results indicate about 70% correctly forecasted days, with satisfactory skill-scores relative to persistency. The strong persistency characterizing the most efficient predictors in the 12-hour objective forecast scheme, makes the prediction of the first and last days of any particular air-pollution potential episode particularly difficult. To overcome this problem, a new set of predictors based on continuous measurements near the level of the top of the temperature inversion layer (900 hPa during air-pollution episodes) is being tested. Preliminary results indicate that the time-integrated zonal wind component at that level is a reliable precursor for both the onset and the end of air-pollution potential episodes.

Cadastre of air polluters for city of Skopje

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trajkovska, Magdalena

1997-01-01

In this paper a review of the condition with harmful articles emission in the air from industrial, energetic and communal emitters on the area of city Skopje is presented. The results of researches taken in the period 1994-1996, as a second phase of the project: 'Cadastre of air polluters and map of air pollution of Republic of Macedonia' are given. The level of data processing represents a base for prognosis of expected air pollution of city of Skopje, with what a possibility of air quality control will be provided. (author)

Air Pollution Episodes Associated with Prescribed Burns

Science.gov (United States)

Hart, M.; Di Virgilio, G.; Jiang, N.

2017-12-01

Air pollution events associated with wildfires have been associated with extreme health impacts. Prescribed burns are an important tool to reduce the severity of wildfires. However, if undertaken during unfavourable meteorological conditions, they too have the capacity to trigger extreme air pollution events. The Australian state of New South Wales has increased the annual average area treated by prescribed burn activities by 45%, in order to limit wildfire activity. Prescribed burns need to be undertaken during meteorological conditions that allow the fuel load to burn, while still allowing the burn to remain under control. These conditions are similar to those that inhibit atmospheric dispersion, resulting in a fine balance between managing fire risk and managing ambient air pollution. During prescribed burns, the Sydney air shed can experience elevated particulate matter concentrations, especially fine particulates (PM2.5) that occasionally exceed national air quality standards. Using pollutant and meteorological data from sixteen monitoring stations in Sydney we used generalized additive model and CART analyses to profile the meteorological conditions influencing air quality during planned burns. The insights gained from this study will help improve prescribed burn scheduling in order to reduce the pollution risk to the community, while allowing fire agencies to conduct this important work.

The economic cost of air pollution in Mangaung metro municipality ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The economic cost of air pollution in Mangaung metro municipality: A case study in South Africa. ... the significance of air quality, to value the benefits of air pollution control ... Key words: Air pollution, air quality, workdays lost, mitigating cost.

Enhanced air pollution via aerosol-boundary layer feedback in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Petäjä, T; Järvi, L; Kerminen, V-M; Ding, A J; Sun, J N; Nie, W; Kujansuu, J; Virkkula, A; Yang, X-Q; Fu, C B; Zilitinkevich, S; Kulmala, M

2016-01-12

Severe air pollution episodes have been frequent in China during the recent years. While high emissions are the primary reason for increasing pollutant concentrations, the ultimate cause for the most severe pollution episodes has remained unclear. Here we show that a high concentration of particulate matter (PM) will enhance the stability of an urban boundary layer, which in turn decreases the boundary layer height and consequently cause further increases in PM concentrations. We estimate the strength of this positive feedback mechanism by combining a new theoretical framework with ambient observations. We show that the feedback remains moderate at fine PM concentrations lower than about 200 μg m(-3), but that it becomes increasingly effective at higher PM loadings resulting from the combined effect of high surface PM emissions and massive secondary PM production within the boundary layer. Our analysis explains why air pollution episodes are particularly serious and severe in megacities and during the days when synoptic weather conditions stay constant.

The state of transboundary air pollution: 1989 update

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-01-01

This sixth volume of the series of Air Pollution Studies published under the auspices of the Executive Body for the Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution, contains the documents reviewed and approved for publication at the seventh session of the Executive Body held at Geneva from 21 to 24 November 1989. Part one is the annual review of strategies and policies for air pollution abatement. Country by country, recent legislative and regulatory developments are summarized, including ambient-air quality standards, fuel-quality standards, emission standards, as well as economic instruments for air pollution abatement. Part two is an executive summary of the 1988 forest damage survey in Europe, carried out under the International Co-operative Programme for Assessment and Monitoring of Air Pollution Effects on Forests which was established by the Executive Body for the Convention in 1985. A total of 25 countries participated in the survey, conducted in accordance with common guidelines laid down in an ECE manual on methodologies and criteria for harmonized sampling, assessment, monitoring and analysis of the effects of air pollution on forests. Parts three and four describe the effects of mercury and some other heavy metals related to the long-range atmospheric transport of pollution. The section on mercury describes the environmental effects and the causes of mercury pollution in air and atmospheric deposition, including its sources and its transport from forest soils into fresh water and aquatic organisms. The section dealing with other heavy metals (such as asbestos, cadmium and lead) describes the process of atmospheric transport and deposition, the effects on forest ecosystems, ground water, surface water and agricultural products. Refs, figs and tabs

Effects of Compact Urban Development on Air Pollution: Empirical Evidence from Korea

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hee-Sun Cho

2014-09-01

Full Text Available This study investigates the effects of compact urban development on air pollution, taking into account both the spatial distribution of pollutants resulting from an increase in inner urban densities and the dispersion of pollutants associated with an increase in outer green open spaces. The empirical analysis is based upon a panel data model covering 17 cities in Korea from 1996–2009; this approach is used because urban air pollution is influenced by spatial and temporal changes. Measuring the air pollution level by distance from city centers demonstrates that the spatial concentration of emission sources does not necessarily increase air pollution levels. The two-way fixed effects model, which is employed to control both individual (regional and time effects, shows that SO2 decreases as the proportion of green area increases, while a rise in net density leads to an increase of NO2. Both effects are observed in the case of CO dispersion by green area as well as emission source concentration by high densities. Therefore, there is no clear impact of compact urban development on air quality, which is instead related to pollutant-specific characteristics and the emission source.

Vaal Triangle air pollution health study. Addressing South African problems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Terblanche, P.; Nel, R. [CSIR Environmental Services, Pretoria (South Africa); Surridge, T. [Dept. of Mineral and Energy Affairs (South Africa); Annegarn, H. [Annegarn Environmental Research, Johannesburg (South Africa); Tosen, G. [Eskom, Johannesburg (South Africa); Pols, A. [CSIR Informationtek, Pretoria (South Africa)

1995-12-31

Situated in the central region of South Africa, the Vaal Triangle is an area which plays a vital role in driving the economic dynamo of South Africa. Also, because of the concentration of heavy industry, it is an area which provides a challenge in effective air pollution control. The Vaal Triangle lies within the Vaal River Basin, at an altitude of 1 500 m above sea level. Meteorological conditions in the area are highly conducive to the formation of surface temperature inversions, resulting in a poor dispersion potential. Because of multiple sources of air pollution in the area, poor dispersion conditions increase the risk pollution build-up and subsequent adverse impacts. The situation is further exacerbated by the continued combustion of coal in households, even after the electrification of residences. This is particularly chronic in the developing communities and during winter. Vaal Triangle Air Pollution Health Study (VAPS) was initiated in 1990 by the Department of Health, the Medical Research Council and major industries in the area to determine effects of air pollution on the health of the community. The final results of that study summarised in this article, and options to ameliorate problems are addressed. (author)

Vaal Triangle air pollution health study. Addressing South African problems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Terblanche, P; Nel, R [CSIR Environmental Services, Pretoria (South Africa); Surridge, T [Dept. of Mineral and Energy Affairs (South Africa); Annegarn, H [Annegarn Environmental Research, Johannesburg (South Africa); Tosen, G [Eskom, Johannesburg (South Africa); Pols, A [CSIR Informationtek, Pretoria (South Africa)

1996-12-31

Situated in the central region of South Africa, the Vaal Triangle is an area which plays a vital role in driving the economic dynamo of South Africa. Also, because of the concentration of heavy industry, it is an area which provides a challenge in effective air pollution control. The Vaal Triangle lies within the Vaal River Basin, at an altitude of 1 500 m above sea level. Meteorological conditions in the area are highly conducive to the formation of surface temperature inversions, resulting in a poor dispersion potential. Because of multiple sources of air pollution in the area, poor dispersion conditions increase the risk pollution build-up and subsequent adverse impacts. The situation is further exacerbated by the continued combustion of coal in households, even after the electrification of residences. This is particularly chronic in the developing communities and during winter. Vaal Triangle Air Pollution Health Study (VAPS) was initiated in 1990 by the Department of Health, the Medical Research Council and major industries in the area to determine effects of air pollution on the health of the community. The final results of that study summarised in this article, and options to ameliorate problems are addressed. (author)

Urban air pollution in megacities of the world

Science.gov (United States)

Mage, David; Ozolins, Guntis; Peterson, Peter; Webster, Anthony; Orthofer, Rudi; Vandeweerd, Veerle; Gwynne, Michael

Urban air pollution is a major environmental problem in the developing countries of the world. WHO and UNEP created an air pollution monitoring network as part of the Global Environment Monitoring System. This network now covers over 50 cities in 35 developing and developed countries throughout the world. The analyses of the data reported by the network over the past 15-20 yr indicate that the lessons of the prior experiences in the developed countries (U.S.A., U.K.) have not been learned. A study of air pollution in 20 of the 24 megacities of the world (over 10 million people by year 2000) shows that ambient air pollution concentrations are at levels where serious health effects are reported. The expected rise of population in the next century, mainly in the developing countries with a lack of capital for air pollution control, means that there is a great potential that conditions will worsen in many more cities that will reach megacity status. This paper maps the potential for air pollution that cities will experience in the future unless control strategies are developed and implemented during the next several decades.

Air Pollution Mortality in Denmark, Finland, and Sweden

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ulla Lehmijoki

2009-01-01

Full Text Available The adverse health consequences of air pollution are of concern currently and there is a fear that these consequences escalate along with economic growth. The effect of economic growth on air pollution deaths is analyzed in Denmark, Finland, and Sweden by applying the Environmental Kuznets Curve approach, according to which economic growth has competing effects on air pollution and related deaths. On the one hand, emissions tend to increase as the scale of economic activity increases, but on the other hand, consumers and firms in richer countries use cleaner goods and adopt cleaner technologies. In Denmark and Finland, the latter effects are stronger, while in Sweden the opposite is true. Therefore, air pollution deaths will decrease in Denmark and Finland but increase in Sweden. Since country's own emissions do not determine air pollution completely, the paper briefly analyzes emissions from the Baltic countries and Russia.

Respiratory risks from household air pollution in low and middle income countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Gordon, Stephen B; Bruce, Nigel G; Grigg, Jonathan; Hibberd, Patricia L; Kurmi, Om P; Lam, Kin-bong Hubert; Mortimer, Kevin; Asante, Kwaku Poku; Balakrishnan, Kalpana; Balmes, John; Bar-Zeev, Naor; Bates, Michael N; Breysse, Patrick N; Buist, Sonia; Chen, Zhengming; Havens, Deborah; Jack, Darby; Jindal, Surinder; Kan, Haidong; Mehta, Sumi; Moschovis, Peter; Naeher, Luke; Patel, Archana; Perez-Padilla, Rogelio; Pope, Daniel; Rylance, Jamie; Semple, Sean; Martin, William J

2014-10-01

A third of the world's population uses solid fuel derived from plant material (biomass) or coal for cooking, heating, or lighting. These fuels are smoky, often used in an open fire or simple stove with incomplete combustion, and result in a large amount of household air pollution when smoke is poorly vented. Air pollution is the biggest environmental cause of death worldwide, with household air pollution accounting for about 3·5-4 million deaths every year. Women and children living in severe poverty have the greatest exposures to household air pollution. In this Commission, we review evidence for the association between household air pollution and respiratory infections, respiratory tract cancers, and chronic lung diseases. Respiratory infections (comprising both upper and lower respiratory tract infections with viruses, bacteria, and mycobacteria) have all been associated with exposure to household air pollution. Respiratory tract cancers, including both nasopharyngeal cancer and lung cancer, are strongly associated with pollution from coal burning and further data are needed about other solid fuels. Chronic lung diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and bronchiectasis in women, are associated with solid fuel use for cooking, and the damaging effects of exposure to household air pollution in early life on lung development are yet to be fully described. We also review appropriate ways to measure exposure to household air pollution, as well as study design issues and potential effective interventions to prevent these disease burdens. Measurement of household air pollution needs individual, rather than fixed in place, monitoring because exposure varies by age, gender, location, and household role. Women and children are particularly susceptible to the toxic effects of pollution and are exposed to the highest concentrations. Interventions should target these high-risk groups and be of sufficient quality to make the air clean. To make clean energy

Public Health and Air Pollution in Asia (PAPA): A Multicity Study of Short-Term Effects of Air Pollution on Mortality

OpenAIRE

Wong, Chit-Ming; Vichit-Vadakan, Nuntavarn; Kan, Haidong; Qian, Zhengmin

2008-01-01

Background and Objectives: Although the deleterious effects of air pollution from fossil fuel combustion have been demonstrated in many Western nations, fewer studies have been conducted in Asia. The Public Health and Air Pollution in Asia (PAPA) project assessed the effects of short-term exposure to air pollution on daily mortality in Bangkok, Thailand, and in three cities in China: Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Wuhan. Methods: Poisson regression models incorporating natural spline smoothing func...

Identification of Regional Air Pollution Characteristic and the Correlation with Public Health in Taiwan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Huey H. Hsieh

2007-06-01

Full Text Available This study aims to classify regions with different air pollution characteristics into groups in Taiwan, and further to evaluate and compare the air quality of various groups. A selected multivariate analysis technique, cluster analysis, is applied to the pollution monitoring dataset which including PM10, SO2, NO2, CO and O3. The obtained results have proved that the regions with similar air pollution characteristic can be appropriately grouped by applying cluster analysis. All 22 regions are classified into six groups, and the pollution pattern for each group is characterized as: Group 1 (high SO2/NO2; low PM10, Group 2 (high PM10, Group 3 (high SO2/PM10, Group 4 (low SO2/NO2/CO; high O3, Group 5 (low CO/NO2; high O3 and Group 6 (low PM10/SO2/NO2/O3/CO. Results from air quality evaluation indicate that the regions in group 6 (Ilan, Hualien and Taitung have the best air quality while the regions in group 3 (Kaohsiung and Kaohsiung City have the worst air quality in Taiwan. The results from correlation analysis reveal that incidence of the respiratory system disease is significantly positively correlated with pollution of NO2 and CO at 99% confidence level.

A bird's eye view of the air pollution-cancer link in China

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Yu-Bei; Song, Feng-Ju; Liu, Qun; Li, Wei-Qin; Zhang, Wei; Chen, Ke-Xin

2014-01-01

Air pollution in China comes from multiple sources, including coal consumption, construction and industrial dust, and vehicle exhaust. Coal consumption in particular directly determines the emissions of three major air pollutants: dust, sulfur dioxide (SO2), and nitrogen oxide (NOx). The rapidly increasing number of civilian vehicles is expected to bring NOx emission to a very high level. Contrary to expectations, however, existing data show that the concentrations of major pollutants [particulate matter-10 (PM10), SO2, and nitrogen dioxide (NO2)] in several large Chinese cities have declined during the past decades, though they still exceed the national standards of ambient air quality. Archived data from China does not fully support that the concentrations of pollutants directly depend on local emissions, but this is likely due to inaccurate measurement of pollutants. Analyses on the cancer registry data show that cancer burden related to air pollution is on the rise in China and will likely increase further, but there is a lack of data to accurately predict the cancer burden. Past experience from other countries has sounded alarm of the link between air pollution and cancer. The quantitative association requires dedicated research as well as establishment of needed monitoring infrastructures and cancer registries. The air pollution-cancer link is a serious public health issue that needs urgent investigation. PMID:24636232

Air pollution due to road traffic in Ljubljana

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matej Ogrin

2007-01-01

Full Text Available Air pollution is due to road traffic an inevitable outcome of internal combustion in engines ofvehicles and some other processes. Air near the roads is more polluted with some pollutants,such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, ozone, particulate matter and some others.Monitoring the air quality is a key issue, when one wants to estimate environmental impactsof the road traffic. The article shows a method of passive samplers for air quality monitoringalong different roads in the area of Ljubljana Municipality.

A review of air exchange rate models for air pollution exposure assessments.

Science.gov (United States)

Breen, Michael S; Schultz, Bradley D; Sohn, Michael D; Long, Thomas; Langstaff, John; Williams, Ronald; Isaacs, Kristin; Meng, Qing Yu; Stallings, Casson; Smith, Luther

2014-11-01

A critical aspect of air pollution exposure assessments is estimation of the air exchange rate (AER) for various buildings where people spend their time. The AER, which is the rate of exchange of indoor air with outdoor air, is an important determinant for entry of outdoor air pollutants and for removal of indoor-emitted air pollutants. This paper presents an overview and critical analysis of the scientific literature on empirical and physically based AER models for residential and commercial buildings; the models highlighted here are feasible for exposure assessments as extensive inputs are not required. Models are included for the three types of airflows that can occur across building envelopes: leakage, natural ventilation, and mechanical ventilation. Guidance is provided to select the preferable AER model based on available data, desired temporal resolution, types of airflows, and types of buildings included in the exposure assessment. For exposure assessments with some limited building leakage or AER measurements, strategies are described to reduce AER model uncertainty. This review will facilitate the selection of AER models in support of air pollution exposure assessments.

Air pollution episodes associated with East Asian winter monsoons

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hien, P.D., E-mail: pdhien@gmail.com [Vietnam Atomic Energy Agency, 59 Ly Thuong Kiet str. Hanoi (Viet Nam); Loc, P.D.; Dao, N.V. [National Hydro-Meteorological Center, 62-A2 Nguyen Chi Thanh str. Hanoi (Viet Nam)

2011-11-01

A dozen multi-day pollution episodes occur from October to February in Hanoi, Vietnam due to prolonged anticyclonic conditions established after the northeast monsoon surges (cold surges). These winter pollution episodes (WPEs) account for most of the 24-h PM{sub 10} exceedances and the highest concentrations of gaseous pollutants in Hanoi. In this study, WPEs were investigated using continuous air quality monitoring data and information on upper-air soundings and air mass trajectories. The 24-h pollutant concentrations are lowest during cold surges; concurrently rise thereafter reaching the highest levels toward the middle of a monsoon cycle, then decline ahead of the next cold surge. Each monsoon cycle usually proceeds through a dry phase and a humid phase as Asiatic continental cold air arrives in Hanoi through inland China then via the East China Sea. WPEs are associated with nighttime radiation temperature inversions (NRTIs) in the dry phase and subsidence temperature inversions (STIs) in the humid phase. In NRTI periods, the rush hour pollution peak is more pronounced in the evening than in the morning and the pollution level is about two times higher at night than in daytime. In STI periods, broad morning and evening traffic peaks are observed and pollution is as high at night as in daytime. The close association between pollution and winter monsoon meteorology found in this study for the winter 2003-04 may serve as a basis for advance warning of WPEs and for forecasting the 24-h pollutant concentrations. - Highlights: {yields} Dozen pollution episodes from Oct. to Feb in Hanoi associated with anticyclones after monsoon surges. {yields} 24-h concentrations of PM{sub 10}, SO{sub 2}, NO{sub 2}, CO rise after surge and decline ahead of the next. {yields} Episodes caused by nighttime radiation and subsidence inversions in dry and humid monsoon phases. {yields} Distinct diurnal variations of pollutant concentrations observed in the two periods. {yields} Close

Pollution prevention for cleaner air: EPA's air and energy engineering research laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shaver, E.M.

1992-01-01

The article discusses the role of EPA's Air and Energy Engineering Research Laboratory (AEERL) in pollution prevention research for cleaner air. For more than 20 years, AEERL has been conducting research to identify control approaches for the pollutants and sources which contribute to air quality problems. The Laboratory has successfully developed and demonstrated cost-effective sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulate control technologies for fossil fuel combustion sources. More recently, it has expanded its research activities to include indoor air quality, radon, organic control, stratospheric ozone depletion, and global warming. AEERL also develops inventories of air emissions of many types. Over the last several years, it has made substantial efforts to expand research on pollution prevention as the preferred choice for air emissions reduction

Tolerance Levels of Roadside Trees to Air Pollutants Based on Relative Growth Rate and Air Pollution Tolerance Index

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

SULISTIJORINI

2008-09-01

Full Text Available Motor vehicles release carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, and particulate matters to the air as pollutants. Vegetation can absorb these pollutants through gas exchange processes. The objective of this study was to examine the combination of the relative growth rate (RGR and physiological responses in determining tolerance levels of plant species to air pollutants. Physiological responses were calculated as air pollution tolerance index (APTI. Eight roadside tree species were placed at polluted (Jagorawi highway and unpolluted (Sindangbarang field area. Growth and physiological parameters of the trees were recorded, including plant height, leaf area, total ascorbate, total chlorophyll, leaf-extract pH, and relative water content. Scoring criteria for the combination of RGR and APTI method was given based on means of the two areas based on two-sample t test. Based on the total score of RGR and APTI, Lagerstroemia speciosa was categorized as a tolerant species; and Pterocarpus indicus, Delonix regia, Swietenia macrophylla were categorized as moderately tolerant species. Gmelina arborea, Cinnamomum burmanii, and Mimusops elengi were categorized as intermediate tolerant species. Lagerstroemia speciosa could be potentially used as roadside tree. The combination of RGR and APTI value was better to determinate tolerance level of plant to air pollutant than merely APTI method.

Air pollution prevention at the Hanford Site: Status and recommendations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Engel, J.A.

1995-08-01

With the introduction of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 and other air and pollution prevention regulations, there has been increased focus on both pollution prevention and air emissions at US DOE sites. The Pollution Prevention (P2) Group of WHC reviewed the status of air pollution prevention with the goal of making recommendations on how to address air emissions at Hanford through pollution prevention. Using the air emissions inventory from Hanford's Title V permit, the P2 Group was able to identify major and significant air sources. By reviewing the literature and benchmarking two other DOE Sites, two major activities were recommended to reduce air pollution and reduce costs at the Hanford Site. First, a pollution prevention opportunity assessment (P2OA) should be conducted on the significant painting sources in the Maintenance group and credit should be taken for reducing the burning of tumbleweeds, another significant source of air pollution. Since they are significant sources, reducing these emissions will reduce air emission fees, as well as have the potential to reduce material and labor costs, and increase worker safety. Second, a P2OA should be conducted on alternatives to the three coal-fired powerhouses (steam plants) on-site, including a significant costs analysis of alternatives. This analysis could be of significant value to other DOE sites. Overall, these two activities would reduce pollution, ease regulatory requirements and fees, save money, and help Hanford take a leadership role in air pollution prevention

Total free radical species and oxidation equivalent in polluted air.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Guoying; Jia, Shiming; Niu, Xiuli; Tian, Haoqi; Liu, Yanrong; Chen, Xuefu; Li, Lan; Zhang, Yuanhang; Shi, Gaofeng

2017-12-31

Free radicals are the most important chemical intermediate or agent of the atmosphere and influenced by thousands of reactants. The free radicals determine the oxidizing power of the polluted air. Various gases present in smog or haze are oxidants and induce organ and cellular damage via generation of free radical species. At present, however, the high variability of total free radicals in polluted air has prevented the detection of possible trends or distributions in the concentration of those species. The total free radicals are a kind of contaminants with colorless, tasteless characteristics, and almost imperceptible by human body. Here we present total free radical detection and distribution characteristics, and analyze the effects of total free radicals in polluted air on human health. We find that the total free radical values can be described by not only a linear dependence on ozone at higher temperature period, but also a linear delay dependence on particulate matter at lower temperature period throughout the measurement period. The total free radical species distribution is decrease from west to east in Lanzhou, which closely related to the distribution of the air pollutants. The total free radical oxidation capacity in polluted air roughly matches the effects of tobacco smoke produced by the incomplete combustion of a controlled amount of tobacco in a smoke chamber. A relatively unsophisticated chromatographic fingerprint similarity is used for indicating preliminarily the effect of total free radicals in polluted air on human health. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Impact of noise and air pollution on pregnancy outcomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Gehring, Ulrike; Tamburic, Lillian; Sbihi, Hind; Davies, Hugh W; Brauer, Michael

2014-05-01

Motorized traffic is an important source of both air pollution and community noise. While there is growing evidence for an adverse effect of ambient air pollution on reproductive health, little is known about the association between traffic noise and pregnancy outcomes. We evaluated the impact of residential noise exposure on small size for gestational age, preterm birth, term birth weight, and low birth weight at term in a population-based cohort study, for which we previously reported associations between air pollution and pregnancy outcomes. We also evaluated potential confounding of air pollution effects by noise and vice versa. Linked administrative health data sets were used to identify 68,238 singleton births (1999-2002) in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with complete covariate data (sex, ethnicity, parity, birth month and year, income, and education) and maternal residential history. We estimated exposure to noise with a deterministic model (CadnaA) and exposure to air pollution using temporally adjusted land-use regression models and inverse distance weighting of stationary monitors for the entire pregnancy. Noise exposure was negatively associated with term birth weight (mean difference = -19 [95% confidence interval = -23 to -15] g per 6 dB(A)). In joint air pollution-noise models, associations between noise and term birth weight remained largely unchanged, whereas associations decreased for all air pollutants. Traffic may affect birth weight through exposure to both air pollution and noise.

Air pollution and the school air environment

OpenAIRE

Fsadni, Peter; Montefort, Stephen

2015-01-01

There is growing concern about the association of school indoor air quality (SIAQ) with asthma, rhinitis, and rhinoconjunctivitis. Students and school staff deserve the highest standards of school air quality to ensure a safe and productive environment for our children’s education. Existing studies highlight the presence of several air pollutants present within school classrooms that have a direct association with poor health and poor student performance. Very little data exist ab...

THE RISK PERCEPTION OF TRANSPORT–GENERATED AIR POLLUTION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Birgitta GATERSLEBEN

2000-01-01

Full Text Available This paper describes a study that is part of a multidisciplinary project examining the relationship between transport, air pollution and health in Guildford, a medium sized town in the UK. Real-time air quality monitoring revealed low levels of air pollution through vehicle emissions. However, the residents of the town claim that there is an air pollution problem, perceptions reinforced by visual and sensory feedback, i.e., people see dust, feel irritations to their eyes, noses and throats and smell exhaust fumes. It is shown that the higher people believe air pollution levels to be the more responsible they feel and the less trust they have in local authorities and technological developments. Beliefs about the health consequences of air pollution are not related to responsibility and trust. The findings support other studies on risk perception that have shown that people find a risk less acceptable when they have a lower trust in risk managers. It is concluded that these findings are of importance for the environmental education of the public generally and risk communication by local authorities in particular.

Air Pollution and Mortality in Chile: Susceptibility among the Elderly

Science.gov (United States)

Cakmak, Sabit; Dales, Robert E.; Vidal, Claudia Blanco

2007-01-01

Objective The estimated mortality rate associated with ambient air pollution based on general population studies may not be representative of the effects on certain subgroups. The objective of the present study was to determine the influence of relatively high concentrations of air pollution on mortality in a general population sample and in the very elderly. Study design Daily time-series analyses tested the association between daily air pollution and daily mortality in seven Chilean urban centers during 1997–2003. Results were adjusted for day of the week and humidex. Results Daily averaged particulate matter with aerodynamic matter 85 years. Respective values were 4.96 (1.17) and 8.56 (2.02) for O3; 4.77 (2.50) and 7.92 (3.23) for SO2; and 4.10 (2.52) and 8.58 (4.45) for CO. Conclusion Our results suggest that the very elderly are particularly susceptible to dying from air pollution. Concentrations deemed acceptable for the general population may not adequately protect the very elderly. PMID:17450219

Air pollution: what matters most? : Physical, chemical and oxidative properties of air pollution components related to toxic effects

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Steenhof, M.

2015-01-01

Numerous studies have been published on the adverse health effects associated with both short- and long-term exposure to air pollution. Air pollution is a heterogeneous, complex mixture of gases, liquids, and particulate matter (PM). Up to now, PM mass concentration has been the metric of choice to

Air Pollution In The Mountain - Urban Areas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jakovljevic, I.; Pehnec, G.; Vadjic, V.; Marovic, G.; Suric Mihic, M.; Sencar, J.; Godec, R.; Davila, S.

2015-01-01

Pollution of the environment is characterized, among others, by ionizing radiation burden and air pollution. Ambient dose equivalent, H*(10), is operational quantity for area monitoring due to ionizing radiation exposure. One of air pollution sources is benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) as the most commonly measured polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) and is used as an indicator of carcinogenic hazard in polluted environments. PAHs are widely distributed in the atmosphere and were among the first pollutants identified as potential carcinogens. PAHs are products of the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and other organic materials. More than 500 PAHs have so far been identified in the air. Sampling of airborne particles PM10 was carried out in a mountain area in Gorski Kotar, Croatia during 60 days in the winter and 60 days in the summer period of the year. During the sampling of airborne particles, the ambient dose equivalent rate was also measured using an electronic dosemeter ALARA device. High performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detector was used for BaP analysis. BaP concentrations showed strong seasonal variations. During winter, the average BaP concentrations were significantly higher (5.46 ng/m3) than in the summer (0.06 ng/m3). Ambient dose equivalent rate in winter period was a little higher than in summer. Ambient dose equivalent was calculated on a yearly base. Yearly ambient dose equivalent was 860 micro Sv which is slightly lower than the average value for Croatia (890 micro Sv). (author).

A high-resolution air pollutants emission inventory in 2013 for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, China

Science.gov (United States)

Qi, Ji; Zheng, Bo; Li, Meng; Yu, Fang; Chen, Chuchu; Liu, Fei; Zhou, Xiafei; Yuan, Jing; Zhang, Qiang; He, Kebin

2017-12-01

We developed a high-resolution Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) regional air pollutants emission inventory for the year 2013. The inventory was established using a bottom-up approach based on facility-level activity data obtained from multiple data sources. The estimates from the BTH 2013 emission inventory show that the total emissions of SO2, NOX, PM2.5, PM10, CO, NMVOC, NH3, BC, and OC were 2,305, 2,686, 1,090, 1,494, 20,567, 2,207, 623, 160, and 254 Gg, respectively. The industry sector is the largest emissions source for SO2, NOX, PM2.5, PM10, CO, and NMVOC in the BTH region, contributing 72.6%, 43.7%, 59.6%, 64.7%, 60.3%, and 70.4% of the total emissions, respectively. Power plants contributed 11.8% and 23.3% of the total SO2 and NOX emissions, respectively. The transportation sector contributed 28.9% of the total NOX emissions. Emissions from the residential sector accounted for 31.3%, 21.5%, 46.6% and 71.7% of the total PM2.5, NMVOC, BC and OC emissions, respectively. In addition, more than 90% of the total NH3 emissions originate from the agriculture sector, with 44.2% from fertilizer use and 47.7% from livestock. The spatial distribution results illustrate that air pollutant emissions are mainly distributed over the eastern and southern BTH regions. Beijing, Tianjin, Shijiazhuang, Tangshan and Handan are the major contributors of air pollutants. The major NMVOC species in the BTH region are ethylene, acetylene, ethane and toluene. Ethylene is the biggest contributor in Tianjin and Hebei. The largest contributor in Beijing is toluene. There is relatively low uncertainty in SO2 and NOX emission estimates, medium uncertainty in PM2.5, PM10 and CO emission estimates, and high uncertainties in VOC, NH3, BC and OC emission estimates. The proposed policy recommendations, based on the BTH 2013 emission inventory, would be helpful to develop strategies for air pollution control.

Urban Form, Air Pollution, and Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Hankey, Steve; Marshall, Julian D

2017-12-01

Urban form can impact air pollution and public health. We reviewed health-related articles that assessed (1) the relationships among urban form, air pollution, and health as well as (2) aspects of the urban environment (i.e., green space, noise, physical activity) that may modify those relationships. Simulation and empirical studies demonstrate an association between compact growth, improved regional air quality, and health. Most studies are cross-sectional and focus on connections between transportation emissions and land use. The physical and mental health impacts of green space, public spaces that promote physical activity, and noise are well-studied aspects of the urban environment and there is evidence that these factors may modify the relationship between air pollution and health. Urban form can support efforts to design clean, health-promoting cities. More work is needed to operationalize specific strategies and to elucidate the causal pathways connecting various aspects of health.

Air pollution holiday effect in metropolitan Kaohsiung

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, P.; Chen, P. Y.

2014-12-01

Different from Taipei, the metropolitan Kaohsiung which is a coastal and industrial city has the major pollution sources from stationary sources such as coal-fired power plants, petrochemical facilities and steel plants, rather than mobile sources. This study was an attempt to conduct a comprehensive and systematical examination of the holiday effect, defined as the difference in air pollutant concentrations between holiday and non-holiday periods, over the Kaohsiung metropolitan area. We documented evidence of a "holiday effect", where concentrations of NOx, CO, NMHC, SO2 and PM10 were significantly different between holidays and non-holidays, in the Kaohsiung metropolitan area from daily surface measurements of seven air quality monitoring stations of the Taiwan Environmental Protection Administration during the Chinese New Year (CNY) and non-Chinese New Year (NCNY) periods of 1994-2010. Concentrations of the five pollutants were lower in the CNY than in the NCNY period, however, that of O3 was higher in the CNY than in the NCNY period and had no holiday effect. The exclusion of the bad air quality day (PSI > 100) and the Lantern Festival Day showed no significant effects on the holiday effects of air pollutants. Ship transportation data of Kaohsiung Harbor Bureau showed a statistically significant difference in the CNY and NCNY period. This difference was consistent with those found in air pollutant concentrations of some industrial and general stations in coastal areas, implying the possible impact of traffic activity on the air quality of coastal areas. Holiday effects of air pollutants over the Taipei metropolitan area by Tan et al. (2009) are also compared.

Individual and Neighborhood Stressors, Air Pollution and Cardiovascular Disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Hazlehurst, Marnie F; Nurius, Paula S; Hajat, Anjum

2018-03-08

Psychosocial and environmental stress exposures across the life course have been shown to be relevant in the development of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Assessing more than one stressor from different domains (e.g., individual and neighborhood) and across the life course moves us towards a more integrated picture of how stress affects health and well-being. Furthermore, these individual and neighborhood psychosocial stressors act on biologic pathways, including immune function and inflammatory response, which are also impacted by ubiquitous environmental exposures such as air pollution. The objective of this study is to evaluate the interaction between psychosocial stressors, at both the individual and neighborhood level, and air pollution on CVD. This study used data from the 2009-2011 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) from Washington State. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) measured at the individual level, and neighborhood deprivation index (NDI) measured at the zip code level, were the psychosocial stressors of interest. Exposures to three air pollutants-particulate matter (both PM 2.5 and PM 10 ) and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂)-were also calculated at the zip code level. Outcome measures included several self-reported CVD-related health conditions. Both multiplicative and additive interaction quantified using the relative excess risk due to interaction (RERI), were evaluated. This study included 32,151 participants in 502 unique zip codes. Multiplicative and positive additive interactions were observed between ACEs and PM 10 for diabetes, in models adjusted for NDI. The prevalence of diabetes was 1.58 (95% CI: 1.40, 1.79) times higher among those with both high ACEs and high PM 10 compared to those with low ACEs and low PM 10 ( p -value = 0.04 for interaction on the multiplicative scale). Interaction was also observed between neighborhood-level stressors (NDI) and air pollution (NO₂) for the stroke and diabetes outcomes on both

Ambient air pollution, temperature and out-of-hospital coronary deaths in Shanghai, China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dai, Jinping; Chen, Renjie; Meng, Xia; Yang, Changyuan; Zhao, Zhuohui; Kan, Haidong

2015-01-01

Few studies have evaluated the effects of ambient air pollution and temperature in triggering out-of-hospital coronary deaths (OHCDs) in China. We evaluated the associations of air pollution and temperature with daily OHCDs in Shanghai, China from 2006 to 2011. We applied an over-dispersed generalized additive model and a distributed lag nonlinear model to analyze the effects of air pollution and temperature, respectively. A 10 μg/m 3 increase in the present-day PM 10 , PM 2.5 , SO 2 , NO 2 and CO were associated with increases in OHCD mortality of 0.49%, 0.68%, 0.88%, 1.60% and 0.08%, respectively. A 1 °C decrease below the minimum-mortality temperature corresponded to a 3.81% increase in OHCD mortality on lags days 0–21, and a 1 °C increase above minimum-mortality temperature corresponded to a 4.61% increase over lag days 0–3. No effects were found for in-hospital coronary deaths. This analysis suggests that air pollution, low temperature and high temperature may increase the risk of OHCDs. - Highlights: • Few studies have evaluated the effects of air pollution and temperature on OHCDs in China. • The present-day concentrations of air pollution were associated with OHCDs. • The effect of high temperatures on OHCDs was more immediate than low temperatures. • No significant effects were found for in-hospital coronary deaths. - Ambient air pollution and temperature may trigger out-of-hospital coronary deaths but not in-hospital coronary deaths

The health effects of exercising in air pollution.

Science.gov (United States)

Giles, Luisa V; Koehle, Michael S

2014-02-01

The health benefits of exercise are well known. Many of the most accessible forms of exercise, such as walking, cycling, and running often occur outdoors. This means that exercising outdoors may increase exposure to urban air pollution. Regular exercise plays a key role in improving some of the physiologic mechanisms and health outcomes that air pollution exposure may exacerbate. This problem presents an interesting challenge of balancing the beneficial effects of exercise along with the detrimental effects of air pollution upon health. This article summarizes the pulmonary, cardiovascular, cognitive, and systemic health effects of exposure to particulate matter, ozone, and carbon monoxide during exercise. It also summarizes how air pollution exposure affects maximal oxygen consumption and exercise performance. This article highlights ways in which exercisers could mitigate the adverse health effects of air pollution exposure during exercise and draws attention to the potential importance of land use planning in selecting exercise facilities.

Large Scale Computations in Air Pollution Modelling

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zlatev, Z.; Brandt, J.; Builtjes, P. J. H.

Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Large Scale Computations in Air Pollution Modelling, Sofia, Bulgaria, 6-10 July 1998......Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Large Scale Computations in Air Pollution Modelling, Sofia, Bulgaria, 6-10 July 1998...

Dialogues on air pollution: an Asian example

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kroeze, C.; Stalpers, S.I.P.

2013-01-01

The efficient reduction of transboundary air pollution requires dialogue on emission reduction at an international level. A model is under construction to facilitate such dialogues for Asia. This is the Regional Air pollution Information System (RAINS-Asia), developed at the International Institute

[Study on emission standard system of air pollutants].

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Mei; Zhang, Guo-Ning; Zhang, Ming-Hui; Zou, Lan; Wei, Yu-Xia; Ren, Chun

2012-12-01

Scientific and reasonable emission standard system of air pollutants helps to systematically control air pollution, enhance the protection of the atmospheric environment effect and improve the overall atmospheric environment quality. Based on the study of development, situation and characteristics of national air pollutants emission standard system, the deficiencies of system were pointed out, which were not supportive, harmonious and perfect, and the improvement measures of emission standard system were suggested.

Understanding the Patterns and Drivers of Air Pollution on Multiple Time Scales: The Case of Northern China

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Yupeng; Wu, Jianguo; Yu, Deyong; Hao, Ruifang

2018-06-01

China's rapid economic growth during the past three decades has resulted in a number of environmental problems, including the deterioration of air quality. It is necessary to better understand how the spatial pattern of air pollutants varies with time scales and what drive these changes. To address these questions, this study focused on one of the most heavily air-polluted areas in North China. We first quantified the spatial pattern of air pollution, and then systematically examined the relationships of air pollution to several socioeconomic and climatic factors using the constraint line method, correlation analysis, and stepwise regression on decadal, annual, and seasonal scales. Our results indicate that PM2.5 was the dominant air pollutant in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, while PM2.5 and PM10 were both important pollutants in the Agro-pastoral Transitional Zone (APTZ) region. Our statistical analyses suggest that energy consumption and gross domestic product (GDP) in the industry were the most important factors for air pollution on the decadal scale, but the impacts of climatic factors could also be significant. On the annual and seasonal scales, high wind speed, low relative humidity, and long sunshine duration constrained PM2.5 accumulation; low wind speed and high relative humidity constrained PM10 accumulation; and short sunshine duration and high wind speed constrained O3 accumulation. Our study showed that analyses on multiple temporal scales are not only necessary to determine key drivers of air pollution, but also insightful for understanding the spatial patterns of air pollution, which was important for urban planning and air pollution control.

Origin of polluted air masses in the Alps. An overview and first results for MONARPOP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaiser, August

2009-01-01

The contribution of ZAMG to MONAROP consists of special weather forecasts to control the SOCs sampling procedure and of the analysis of the specific transport processes for SOCs, which is still in progress. In this paper, air pollutant transport into the Alps is demonstrated by examples of inorganic pollutants: Measurements of NO x and ozone provide evidence for air pollutant transport by local wind systems (valley and slope winds), especially at low elevated sites of the Alps. In addition, trajectory analyses for the high elevation sites demonstrate the importance of large scale synoptic air pollutant transport. The effects of these transport processes with different spatial and temporal scales are governed by the physical and chemical properties of the particular pollutant. First results for the high alpine MONARPOP stations show that air masses from east Europe influence mostly Sonnblick (Austria), whereas the influence of the Po basin is strongest at Weissfluhjoch (Switzerland). - Effects of meteorological transport processes on air pollution in the Alps are demonstrated by examples of inorganic pollutants and first conclusions for SOCs are drawn.

Air pollution in India and related adverse respiratory health effects: past, present, and future directions.

Science.gov (United States)

Khilnani, Gopi C; Tiwari, Pawan

2018-03-01

The review describes current status of air pollution in India, summarizes recent research on adverse health effects of ambient and household air pollution, and outlines the ongoing efforts and future actions required to improve air quality and reduce morbidity and mortality because of air pollution in India. Global burden of disease data analysis reveals more than one million premature deaths attributable to ambient air pollution in 2015 in India. More than one million additional deaths can be attributed to household air pollution. Particulate matter with diameter 2.5 μm or less has been causatively linked with most premature deaths. Acute respiratory tract infections, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, exacerbations of preexisting obstructive airway disease and lung cancer are proven adverse respiratory effects of air pollution. Targeting air quality standards laid by WHO can significantly reduce morbidity and mortality because of air pollution in India. India is currently exposed to high levels of ambient and household air pollutants. Respiratory adverse effects of air pollution are significant contributors to morbidity and premature mortality in India. Substantial efforts are being made at legislative, administrative, and community levels to improve air quality. However, much more needs to be done to change the 'status quo' and attain the target air quality standards. VIDEO ABSTRACT: http://links.lww.com/COPM/A24.