Editorial

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4 pages, 172 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Editorial of Special Issue “Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution”

by Michal Krzyzanowski

Atmosphere 2021, 12(2), 216; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/atmos12020216 - 05 Feb 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1630

Abstract

It is well recognized that air pollution affects health [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution)

Research

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12 pages, 2537 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Global Air Quality: An Inter-Disciplinary Approach to Exposure Assessment for Burden of Disease Analyses

by Gavin Shaddick, James M. Salter, Vincent-Henri Peuch, Giulia Ruggeri, Matthew L. Thomas, Pierpaolo Mudu, Oksana Tarasova, Alexander Baklanov and Sophie Gumy

Atmosphere 2021, 12(1), 48; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/atmos12010048 - 31 Dec 2020

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 3847

Abstract

Global assessments of air quality and health require comprehensive estimates of the exposures to air pollution that are experienced by populations in every country. However, there are many countries in which measurements from ground-based monitoring are sparse or non-existent, with quality-control and representativeness [...] Read more.

Global assessments of air quality and health require comprehensive estimates of the exposures to air pollution that are experienced by populations in every country. However, there are many countries in which measurements from ground-based monitoring are sparse or non-existent, with quality-control and representativeness providing additional challenges. While ground-based monitoring provides a far from complete picture of global air quality, there are other sources of information that provide comprehensive coverage across the globe. The World Health Organization developed the Data Integration Model for Air Quality (DIMAQ) to combine information from ground measurements with that from other sources, such as atmospheric chemical transport models and estimates from remote sensing satellites in order to produce the information that is required for health burden assessment and the calculation of air pollution-related Sustainable Development Goals indicators. Here, we show an example of the use of DIMAQ with the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service Re-Analysis (CAMSRA) of atmospheric composition, which represents the best practices in meteorology and climate monitoring that were developed under the World Meteorological Organization’s Global Atmosphere Watch programme. Estimates of PM_2.5 from CAMSRA are integrated within the DIMAQ framework in order to produce high-resolution estimates of air pollution exposure that can be aggregated in a coherent fashion to produce country-level assessments of exposures. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution)

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13 pages, 2439 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Relative Risk Functions for Estimating Excess Mortality Attributable to Outdoor PM_2.5 Air Pollution: Evolution and State-of-the-Art

by Richard Burnett and Aaron Cohen

Atmosphere 2020, 11(6), 589; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/atmos11060589 - 03 Jun 2020

Cited by 44 | Viewed by 7127

Abstract

The recent proliferation of cohort studies of long-term exposure to outdoor fine particulate air pollution and mortality has led to a significant increase in knowledge about this important global health risk factor. As scientific knowledge has grown, mortality relative risk estimators for fine [...] Read more.

The recent proliferation of cohort studies of long-term exposure to outdoor fine particulate air pollution and mortality has led to a significant increase in knowledge about this important global health risk factor. As scientific knowledge has grown, mortality relative risk estimators for fine particulate matter have evolved from simple risk models based on a single study to complex, computationally intensive, integration of multiple independent particulate sources based on nearly one hundred studies. Since its introduction nearly 10 years ago, the integrated exposure-response (IER) model has become the state-of-the art model for such estimates, now used by the Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD), the World Health Organization, the World Bank, the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s benefits assessment software, and scientists worldwide to estimate the burden of disease and examine strategies to improve air quality at global, national, and sub-national scales for outdoor fine particulate air pollution, secondhand smoke, and household pollution from heating and cooking. With each yearly update of the GBD, estimates of the IER continue to evolve, changing with the incorporation of new data and fitting methods. As the number of outdoor fine particulate air pollution cohort studies has grown, including recent estimates of high levels of fine particulate pollution in China, new estimators based solely on outdoor fine particulate air pollution evidence have been proposed which require fewer assumptions than the IER and yield larger relative risk estimates. This paper will discuss the scientific and technical issues analysts should consider regarding the use of these methods to estimate the burden of disease attributable to outdoor fine particulate pollution in their own settings. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution)

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14 pages, 2055 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Conditions for a Meaningful Health Impact Assessment for Local Stakeholders: The Example of the Arve Valley in France

by Mathilde Pascal, Jean-Marc Yvon, Magali Corso, Myriam Blanchard, Perrine De Crouy-Chanel and Sylvia Medina

Atmosphere 2020, 11(6), 566; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/atmos11060566 - 29 May 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2262

Abstract

This article illustrates how a health impact assessment (HIA) can be used to promote a collaborative discussion among stakeholders as part of a local action plan aimed at improving air quality. We performed a HIA of the mortality impacts of long-term exposure to [...] Read more.

This article illustrates how a health impact assessment (HIA) can be used to promote a collaborative discussion among stakeholders as part of a local action plan aimed at improving air quality. We performed a HIA of the mortality impacts of long-term exposure to fine particles PM_2.5 in the Arve Valley in France. This narrow valley can experience high levels of pollution mostly during winter. However, local stakeholders expressed strong, contradictory opinions on the associated health impacts. Our HIA helped overcome existing silos and shifted the overriding question from “Is it true that air pollution kills people?” to “What can we do to improve air quality?” HIAs have proven to be an excellent decision-support tool in many contexts. In addition, they should continue to be useful provided that their scope, specific objectives, choices, calculation assumptions, and limitations are thoroughly explained to all stakeholders and made easily accessible. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution)

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11 pages, 1730 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ecological Assessment of Particulate Material (PM₅ and PM₁₀) in Urban Habitats

by Edina Simon, Vanda Éva Molnár, Béla Tóthmérész and Szilárd Szabó

Atmosphere 2020, 11(6), 559; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/atmos11060559 - 28 May 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2865

Abstract

Trees are especially useful biological indicators. We tested the suitability of tree leaves (Common Lime) to assess PM₅ and PM₁₀ deposition in the three summer months of 2018 in Debrecen city, Hungary. We also tested the usefulness of the cheap and [...] Read more.

Trees are especially useful biological indicators. We tested the suitability of tree leaves (Common Lime) to assess PM₅ and PM₁₀ deposition in the three summer months of 2018 in Debrecen city, Hungary. We also tested the usefulness of the cheap and simple gravimetric method to assess the PM deposition, and compared to the expensive, but standard laser diffraction method. We found significant differences between the concentrations of PM₁₀ deposited on tree leaves, and on dust traps. A significant difference was found in the concentration of PM₅ only in July. A significant difference was also found in the concentration of PM₁₀ among months based on leaves and dust traps. For PM₅ there was a significant difference among months based on leaves deposition. We found a significant positive correlation between the PM₁₀ concentration deposited on leaves and on dust traps. A positive correlation was found between the concentration of PM based on the gravimetric and laser diffraction measurement methods. Our findings pointed out the particulate material’s washing by rain from leaves; thus, dust deposition on the surface of leaves is limited. Our results demonstrated that trees play an important role in the mitigation of air pollution, and they are a useful indicator of PM deposition for biomonitoring studies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution)

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23 pages, 2939 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Spatiotemporal Variations and Health Implications of Hazardous Air Pollutants in Ulsan, a Multi-Industrial City in Korea

by Kyung-Min Baek, Min-Ji Kim, Young-Kyo Seo, Byung-Wook Kang, Jong-Ho Kim and Sung-Ok Baek

Atmosphere 2020, 11(5), 547; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/atmos11050547 - 25 May 2020

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2682

Abstract

We measured a wide range of hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) simultaneously at five sites over four seasons in 2009–2010 in Ulsan, the largest industrial city in Korea. Target analytes included volatile organic compounds (VOCs), carbonyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), phthalates, and heavy metals [...] Read more.

We measured a wide range of hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) simultaneously at five sites over four seasons in 2009–2010 in Ulsan, the largest industrial city in Korea. Target analytes included volatile organic compounds (VOCs), carbonyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), phthalates, and heavy metals (HMs). The objectives of this study were to evaluate the occurrence and spatiotemporal distributions of HAPs, and to identify important HAPs based on health risk assessment. Industrial emissions affected ambient levels of VOCs and HMs, as demonstrated by spatial distribution analysis. However, concentrations of PAHs and phthalates were relatively uniform at all sites. VOCs and HMs exhibited little seasonal variation, while formaldehyde increased in the summer due to its secondary formation. PAHs exhibited notable seasonal variation; higher in cold seasons and lower in warm seasons. Cumulative cancer risks imposed by 35 HAPs were 4.7 × 10⁻⁴ and 1.7 × 10⁻⁴ in industrial and residential areas, respectively. The top five major cancer risk drivers appeared to be formaldehyde, benzene, benzo[a]pyrene, As, and Co. The sums of hazard quotients (HQ) derived by 47 HAPs were 10.0 (industrial) and 2.4 (residential). As the individual species, only two HAPs exceeded the HQ of 1, which are As (3.1) and Pb (2.1) in the industrial area. This study demonstrated the importance of a comprehensive monitoring and health risk assessment to prioritize potentially toxic pollutants in the ambient air of a large industrial city. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution)

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15 pages, 2009 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Quantifying the Public Health Benefits of Reducing Air Pollution: Critically Assessing the Features and Capabilities of WHO’s AirQ+ and U.S. EPA’s Environmental Benefits Mapping and Analysis Program—Community Edition (BenMAP—CE)

by Jason D. Sacks, Neal Fann, Sophie Gumy, Ingu Kim, Giulia Ruggeri and Pierpaolo Mudu

Atmosphere 2020, 11(5), 516; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/atmos11050516 - 16 May 2020

Cited by 36 | Viewed by 5773

Abstract

Scientific evidence spanning experimental and epidemiologic studies has shown that air pollution exposures can lead to a range of health effects. Quantitative approaches that allow for the estimation of the adverse health impacts attributed to air pollution enable researchers and policy analysts to [...] Read more.

Scientific evidence spanning experimental and epidemiologic studies has shown that air pollution exposures can lead to a range of health effects. Quantitative approaches that allow for the estimation of the adverse health impacts attributed to air pollution enable researchers and policy analysts to convey the public health impact of poor air quality. Multiple tools are currently available to conduct such analyses, which includes software packages designed by the World Health Organization (WHO): AirQ+, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA): Environmental Benefits Mapping and Analysis Program—Community Edition (BenMAP—CE), to quantify the number and economic value of air pollution-attributable premature deaths and illnesses. WHO’s AirQ+ and U.S. EPA’s BenMAP—CE are among the most popular tools to quantify these effects as reflected by the hundreds of peer-reviewed publications and technical reports over the past two decades that have employed these tools spanning many countries and multiple continents. Within this paper we conduct an analysis using common input parameters to compare AirQ+ and BenMAP—CE and show that the two software packages well align in the calculation of health impacts. Additionally, we detail the research questions best addressed by each tool. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution)

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15 pages, 2192 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Deaths Attributable to Air Pollution in Nordic Countries: Disparities in the Estimates

by Heli Lehtomäki, Camilla Geels, Jørgen Brandt, Shilpa Rao, Katarina Yaramenka, Stefan Åström, Mikael Skou Andersen, Lise M. Frohn, Ulas Im and Otto Hänninen

Atmosphere 2020, 11(5), 467; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/atmos11050467 - 05 May 2020

Cited by 20 | Viewed by 4878

Abstract

Particulate matter air pollution is widely considered as the leading environmental cause of premature mortality. However, there are substantial differences in the estimated health burden between the assessments. The aim of this work is to quantify the deaths attributable to ambient air pollution [...] Read more.

Particulate matter air pollution is widely considered as the leading environmental cause of premature mortality. However, there are substantial differences in the estimated health burden between the assessments. The aim of this work is to quantify the deaths attributable to ambient air pollution in Nordic countries applying selected assessment tools and approaches, and to identify the main disparities. We quantified and compared the estimated deaths from three health risk assessment tools and from a set of different concentration-response functions. A separate analysis was conducted for the impacts of spatial resolution of the exposure model on the estimated deaths. We found that the death rate (deaths per million) attributable to PM_2.5 and O₃ were the highest in Denmark and the lowest in Iceland. In the five Nordic countries, the results between the three tools ranged from 8500 to 11,400 for PM_2.5 related deaths, and for ozone from 230 to 260 deaths in 2015. Substantially larger differences were found between five concentration-response functions. The shape of concentration-response functions, and applied theoretical thresholds led to substantial differences in the estimated deaths. Nordic countries are especially sensitive to theoretical thresholds due to low exposures. Sensitivity analysis demonstrated that when using spatial exposure assessment methods, high spatial resolution is necessary to avoid underestimation of exposures and health effects. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution)

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12 pages, 1779 KiB

Open AccessArticle

An Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) with Different Health Outcomes Based on the Air Pollution Concentrations in Stockholm during the Period of 2015–2017

by Henrik Olstrup

Atmosphere 2020, 11(2), 192; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/atmos11020192 - 12 Feb 2020

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 4973

Abstract

The Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) is a tool that has been developed in order to address the health effects caused by simultaneous exposure to several different air pollutants. Short-term health effects in terms of mortality or morbidity are used in order to [...] Read more.

The Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) is a tool that has been developed in order to address the health effects caused by simultaneous exposure to several different air pollutants. Short-term health effects in terms of mortality or morbidity are used in order to construct an index. In this study, different indexes for different health outcomes, based on the concentrations of NO₂, O₃, and PM₁₀ at an urban background measuring station in Stockholm during the period of 2015–2017, are calculated by using different risk-coefficients obtained from a meta-analysis. An AQHI based on local risk-coefficients for asthma emergency department visits (AEDV) in Stockholm is also included in the analysis. Correlation coefficients between different pairs of AQHIs, where the additive effects associated with exposure to NO₂, O₃, and PM₁₀ during 2015–2017 are used, exhibit R-values as in 12 out of 15 cases exceed 0.80. However, the average risk increase for different AQHIs are very different, where indexes based on hospital admissions for asthma are larger than those based on mortality outcomes. An overall conclusion is that different AQHIs for different population groups are not needed, but the index may need to be weighted differently for different population groups. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Impact Assessment of Air Pollution)

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