scholarly journals How Clean Is the Air You Breathe? Air Quality During Commuting Using Various Transport Modes in Nottingham

2021 ◽  
pp. 247-254
Author(s):  
Bubaker Shakmak ◽  
Matthew Watkins ◽  
Amin Al-Habaibeh
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Residential Areas ◽  
Data Logger ◽  
Particulate Pollution ◽  
Pollution Levels ◽  
3D Data ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
Transport Modes ◽  
Pm2.5 And Pm10 ◽  
The City

AbstractAir quality has developed into a significant global issue and its negative effect on human health, wellbeing and ultimately the effect of shortening of life expectancy is becoming a pressing concern. Such concerns are most acute in cities in the UK. Although many cities, including Nottingham, are taking significant measures to enhance air quality, there was limited work focusing on the individual’s experience during commuting. This paper suggests a novel approach for measuring commuting air quality through quantifying particulate matters PM2.5 and PM10, using the city of Nottingham as a case study. Portable low-cost systems comprising of a GPS sensor and an Aeroqual pollution data logger were used to capture data and develop the sensor fusion via newly developed software. Data was collected from a variety of transport modes comprising bike, bus, car, tram and walking to provide evidence on relative particulate levels and 2D and 3D data maps were produced to communicate the relative pollution levels in a publicly accessible manner. The study found as expected particulate pollution to be higher during peak hours and typically closer to the city. However whilst the lowest particulate concentrations were found on the Tram the highest were for cyclists contrary to the literature. The project encompasses a democratic crowd sourced approach to data collection by enabling the public to gather data via their daily commute, increasing people’s awareness of the air quality in their locality. The acquired data permitted a range of comparisons considering differing times of day and zones such as the city centre and surrounding residential areas in the City council boundary.

scholarly journals Relations between demographic, geographic, and environmental statistics, and the spread of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Italy

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Rovetta ◽  
Lucia Castaldo
Keyword(s):  
Normal Distribution ◽  
Strong Correlation ◽  
Demographic Data ◽  
Population Number ◽  
Environmental Statistics ◽  
Particulate Pollution ◽  
Pollution Levels ◽  
Awareness Campaigns ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Pm2.5 And Pm10

BACKGROUND: Since January 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has raged around the world, causing nearly a million deaths and hundreds of severe economic crises. In this scenario, Italy has been one of the most affected countries. OBJECTIVE: This study investigated significant correlations between COVID-19 cases and demographic, geographical, and environmental statistics of each Italian region from February 26 to August 12, 2020. We further investigated the link between the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and particulate matter (PM) 2.5 and 10 concentrations before the lockdown in Lombardy. METHODS: All demographic data were obtained from the AdminStat Italia website, and geographic data were from the Il Meteo website. The collection frequency was one week. Data on PM2.5 and PM10 average daily concentrations were collected from previously published articles. We used Pearson's coefficients to correlate the quantities that followed a normal distribution, and Spearman's coefficient to correlate quantities that did not follow a normal distribution. RESULTS: We found significant strong correlations between COVID-19 cases and population number in 60.0% of the regions. We also found a significant strong correlation between the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in the various regions and their latitude, and with the historical averages (last 30 years) of their minimum temperatures. We identified a significant strong correlation between the number of COVID-19 cases until August 12 and the average daily concentrations of PM2.5 in Lombardy until February 29, 2020. No significant correlation with PM10 was found in the same periods. However, we found that 40 μg/m^3 for PM2.5 and 50 μg/m^3 PM10 are plausible thresholds beyond which particulate pollution clearly favors the spread of SARS-CoV-2. CONCLUSION: Since SARS-CoV-2 is correlated with historical minimum temperatures and PM10 and 2.5, health authorities are urged to monitor pollution levels and to invest in precautions for the arrival of autumn. Furthermore, we suggest creating awareness campaigns for the recirculation of air in enclosed places and to avoid exposure to the cold. KEYWORDS: COVID-19, Italy, Pandemic, Epidemiology, Coronavirus-2019

scholarly journals Impacts of Anthropogenic Factors on Urban Air Quality in Lagos Metropolis

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 35
Author(s):  
Peter Nkashi AGAN
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Anthropogenic Activities ◽  
Anthropogenic Factors ◽  
Land Uses ◽  
Residential Areas ◽  
Industrial Land ◽  
The City

Land use is the utilization and reordering of land cover for human comfort. This process disrupts the pristine state of the environment reducing the quality of environmental receptors like water, air, vegetation etc. Air pollution is introduced into the environment as a result of anthropogenic activities from commercial, industrial and residential areas. These activities are burning of fossil fuels for power generation, transport of goods and services, valorization of raw materials into finished products, bush burning, use of gas cookers, generators and electric stove etc. The introduction of pollutants into the planetary layer of the atmosphere has impacted negatively on the quality of the environment posing threat to humans and the survival of the ecosystem. In Lagos metropolis, commercial activities and high population densities have caused elevated levels of pollution in the city. This study aimed to investigate the spatial distribution of pollutant in Lagos metropolis with a view to revealing the marked spatial/temporal difference in pollutants levels over residential, commercial and industrial land uses. Commercial and industrial land uses revealed higher levels of pollutants than the residential areas. Pearson product moment correlation coefficients revealed strong positive relationship between land use and air quality in the city.

scholarly journals Lockdown Due to COVID-19 Pandemic Improves Overall Air Quality: An Evidence Based Study from Siliguri Metropolitan, West Bengal, India

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 574-587
Author(s):  
Subham Roy ◽  
Nimai Singha ◽  
Nishikanta Majumdar ◽  
Barsha Roy
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
West Bengal ◽  
Time Span ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
The Third ◽  
Third Phase ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Pm2.5 And Pm10 ◽  
The City ◽  
Quality Variation

About more than two months of lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, from the end of March to the end of May in the Siliguri city of West Bengal, India, results in a momentous change in the overall air quality. The study aimed to identify the propensity of the concentration of pollutants during the period pre, during and post lockdown through trend analysis and to evaluate the alteration of air quality at different phases of lockdown (including Phase I, II, III and IV). Also, to compares the changes in the concentration of various pollutants, including Air quality index (AQI) for pre-during and pre-post lockdown periods. Data were obtained for the time-span of before, during and after lockdown and the entire lockdown period (from 25th March to 31st May) was divided into four phases to better comprehend the extent of air quality variation. Each phase of lockdown reveals different air quality scenarios, with a tendency to reduce during the first phase, increase by the third phase, and again lessens to a minimum at the fourth phase. The result shows a significant reduction in the concentration of Particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) (upto -66% respectively), Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) (upto -46%), Sulphur dioxide (SO2) (upto -20%), Ammonia (NH3) (upto -19%) and AQI (upto -68%) during the lockdown period compared to before lockdown. On the other hand, overall Air quality was further improved after the lockdown as the concentration of the pollutants, including AQI, was further reduced to minimal. The changes for PM2.5 (upto -78%), PM10 (upto -76%), NO2 (upto -48%), SO2 (upto -40%), NH3 (upto -41%) and AQI (upto -80%) after the lockdown compared to the period of pre-lockdown. In contrast, the concentration of Ozone (O3) was increased by 21% and 25% for the same period. Similarly, the mean AQI of the city shows a poor AQI before lockdown, came to a satisfactory during the lockdown, which further changes to good air after the lockdown ended. Therefore, it is clear from the study that the lockdown has an impact on improving the overall air quality and further lockdown with appropriate planning in the future should be seen as an alternative solution to reducing excessive pollution.

scholarly journals Vehicular PM Emissions and Urban Public Health Sustainability: A Probabilistic Analysis for Dhaka City

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (15) ◽  
pp. 6284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asif Iqbal ◽  
Shirina Afroze ◽  
Md. Mizanur Rahman
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Stochastic Modelling ◽  
Urban Setting ◽  
Monte Carlo Simulation Technique ◽  
Particulate Pollution ◽  
Emission Modelling ◽  
A Minor ◽  
The City

Particulate Matter (PM) pollution is generally considered as a prime indicator of urban air quality and is linked to human health hazards. As vehicles are a vital component of an urban setting, the risks of particulate pollution need to be assessed. An emission modelling is essential for that, and thus stochastic modelling approach involving Monte Carlo simulation technique was applied, aiming to reduce the uncertainty in emission modelling. The risks scenarios for the emissions were generated for 2019 (present state) and 2024 (future), integrating the probability of emissions and the associated AQI (Air Quality Index). Despite the vehicles being a minor source of PM in Dhaka (compared to the contribution from other sources), about one-third of the city is found under high risk due to the exhaust particulate pollution; having the potentiality to cover more than 60% of the city in the coming years, affecting the urban public health sustainability. However, the extent of implementation of planning and management strategies can revert the scenarios for the city, which can plausibly reduce the risk from 80% to 50%, or even to a no-risk state.

scholarly journals NO2 Concentration in Banepa Valley, Nepal

1970 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Ahmad Kamruzzaman Majumder ◽  
V Krishna Murthy ◽  
Sanjay Nath Khanal ◽  
Dhiraj Giri
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Winter Season ◽  
Maximum Level ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
World Health ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
Residential Areas ◽  
Pollution Levels ◽  
Air Sampler ◽  
Commercial Area

This study comprised of air quality monitoring during the day time at three municipalities of Banepa, Dhulikhel and Panauti(Known as Banepa Valley) in Kavre district of Nepal. The study was conducted in order to establish a baseline air quality data for those municipalities as the first time ever in the district. In each of those municipalities three air monitoring stations were established representing predominant industrial, commercial and residential areas. Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) had been estimated from air sampling programme which spanned 7 months and a total of 126 days reflecting winter, premonsoon and monsoon seasons. Low Volume Air (LVA) Sampler and Personal air sampler were used for sampling. UV spectrophotometer was used for estimation of the NO2. The study found that during winter season the concentration of NO2 was more and among the areas commercial area found to be highest level pollution. The over all mean, minimum and maximum level of NO2 was found to be 24.62μg/m3, 11.26μg/m3, 91.20μg/m3 in the Banepa valley. The seasonal trend in pollution levels show that winter > pre-monsoon > monsoon. The pollution concentration trend noted among the areas was commercial > industrial > residential on almost all the occasions. This finding conclude that, most of the time NO2 level are below the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) and World Health Organization (WHO) guideline representing little risk at present in Banepa Valley however commercial area of Banepa is more polluted and is associated with higher NO2 concentration compared to other areas. Keywords: NO2, Nepal, Banepa, air quality, personal air sampler DOI: 10.3126/kuset.v4i1.2878 Kathmandu University Journal of Science, Engineering and Technology Vol.4, No.1, September 2008, pp 1-11

scholarly journals Forecasting Particulate Pollution in an Urban Area: From Copernicus to Sub-Km Scale

Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 881
Author(s):  
Areti Pappa ◽  
Ioannis Kioutsioukis
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Local Scale ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Pollutant Emissions ◽  
Spatiotemporal Pattern ◽  
Particulate Emissions ◽  
Particulate Pollution ◽  
Predictive Skill ◽  
Pm2.5 And Pm10

Particulate air pollution has aggravated cardiovascular and lung diseases. Accurate and constant air quality forecasting on a local scale facilitates the control of air pollution and the design of effective strategies to limit air pollutant emissions. CAMS provides 4-day-ahead regional (EU) forecasts in a 10 km spatial resolution, adding value to the Copernicus EO and delivering open-access consistent air quality forecasts. In this work, we evaluate the CAMS PM forecasts at a local scale against in-situ measurements, spanning 2 years, obtained from a network of stations located in an urban coastal Mediterranean city in Greece. Moreover, we investigate the potential of modelling techniques to accurately forecast the spatiotemporal pattern of particulate pollution using only open data from CAMS and calibrated low-cost sensors. Specifically, we compare the performance of the Analog Ensemble (AnEn) technique and the Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) network in forecasting PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations for the next four days, at 6 h increments, at a station level. The results show an underestimation of PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations by a factor of 2 in CAMS forecasts during winter, indicating a misrepresentation of anthropogenic particulate emissions such as wood-burning, while overestimation is evident for the other seasons. Both AnEn and LSTM models provide bias-calibrated forecasts and capture adequately the spatial and temporal variations of the ground-level observations reducing the RMSE of CAMS by roughly 50% for PM2.5 and 60% for PM10. AnEn marginally outperforms the LSTM using annual verification statistics. The most profound difference in the predictive skill of the models occurs in winter, when PM is elevated, where AnEn is significantly more efficient. Moreover, the predictive skill of AnEn degrades more slowly as the forecast interval increases. Both AnEn and LSTM techniques are proven to be reliable tools for air pollution forecasting, and they could be used in other regions with small modifications.

scholarly journals Analysis of Ambient Air Quality Based On Exceedance Factor and Air Quality Index for Siliguri City, West Bengal

2020 ◽  
pp. 236-246 ◽  
Author(s):  
Subham Roy ◽  
Nimai Singha
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Quality Index ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Air Quality Index ◽  
National Standard ◽  
Pollution Level ◽  
Pm2.5 And Pm10 ◽  
The City ◽  
Exceedance Factor

Bad air is one of the key concerns for most of the urban centres today, and Siliguri is no exceptions to this. In order to assess the air quality of Siliguri, Exceedance factor (EF) method was applied based on the average annual concentration of the pollutants named as; NO2, SO2, PM2.5 and PM10 and it is found that PM2.5 and PM10 are the major pollutants that pose a severe threat for the city. After applying the EF method, it is found that the values of PM2.5 was between moderate to high pollution level and for PM10 it falls under high to critical pollution level. On the other hand, the concentration of NO2 and SO2 falls under moderate to low pollution level. Through trend analysis of the various pollutants, it is found that their concentration was varying in nature. In case of PM10, the trend shows high concentration which exceeds national standard; whereas PM2.5 shows its concentration near towards violating the national standard soon if not checked. In contrast, trends of NO2 and SO2 were recorded lower than the national standard. The present situation of ambient air of Siliguri was analyzed based on Air Quality Index which reveals that air quality of the city can be classified into two seasons, i.e. clean air period (from April to October) and polluted period (from November to March). Lastly, the annual trends of PM2.5 and PM10 were constructed as they are the major pollutants, and it shows their skewed nature during winter months which results in smog episodes. It unveils how critical the situation of air quality of Siliguri became especially during winter months which seek immediate attention. Thus the study tries to present a vivid scenario about the present air quality of Siliguri, which concludes with some of the suggestions to restrain the air quality.

scholarly journals Characterization of particulate matter in iron ore mining region of Itabira, Minas Gerais, Brazil

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Carolina Vasques Freitas ◽  
Rose-Marie Belardi ◽  
Henrique de Melo Jorge Barbosa
Keyword(s):  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Fine Particulate Matter ◽  
Monitoring Network ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Opencast Mining ◽  
Residential Areas ◽  
Emission Data ◽  
Particulate Matter Emission ◽  
The City

Itabira has in its territory the largest complex of opencast mining in the world, which is located close to residential areas of the city. The air quality-monitoring network installed in the city is the main source of particulate matter emission data. However, these air quality stations only cover the areas near the mines and does not measure fine particulate matter. Thus, a first field campaign was carried out to characterize the particulate matter in the city and to compare the Hi-Vol data from air quality stations with the dichotomous air sampler data. Results of trajectories cluster analysis showed a long-range transport of aerosols during the sampling days from northeast (84% of the trajectories), east-southeast (12%) and south-southwest (3%) directions. Regarding to the meteorological conditions during the sampling days, negative correlations were seen between coarse particulate matter from mostly air quality stations and all meteorological parameters (but temperature). Results of the X-ray fluorescence and principal component analyses showed that the main trace elements in the coarse and fine modes are Iron and Sulfur, associated with emissions from mining activities, air mass transport from regional iron and steelmaking industry activities, vehicle emissions, local and regional biomass burning and natural biogenic emissions. This work represents the first assessment of source apportionment done in the city. Comparisons with other studies for some Brazilian larger cities showed that Itabira has comparable contributions of sulfur, iron and elements, such as copper, selenium, chromium, nickel, vanadium and lead.

scholarly journals Contribution of Urban Forests to the Ecosystem Service of Air Quality in the City of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 1249
Author(s):  
Solhanlle Bonilla-Duarte ◽  
Claudia Caballero González ◽  
Leonardo Cortés Rodríguez ◽  
Ulises Javier Jáuregui-Haza ◽  
Agustín García-García
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Green Infrastructure ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
World Health ◽  
Santo Domingo ◽  
Average Percentage ◽  
Pollution Levels ◽  
Sampling Points ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
The City

A survey on pollutants that affect air quality was carried out at 27 points in the city of Santo Domingo, National District. The removal of air pollutants was estimated in relation to the city’s forest cover; using the iTree Canopy software. A principal components analysis and a correlation analysis was also performed to identify the association of these variables. The results show that the average percentage of green infrastructure in the sampling points was 26%. Also, positive correlation was identified between the presence of NO2 and SO2 at the sampling points. It was observed that the higher the presence of forest cover, the higher the concentration of CO and the lower the presence of pollutants. Although five hot spots were defined in terms of air pollution levels in the National District, the study does not show conclusive results regarding the relationship between green infrastructure and air quality in Santo Domingo. Results show that urban planning for environmental quality requires inter-institutional coordination, permanent ecological quality monitoring, and coordinated public policies to establish adequate indicators comparable to the World Health Organization standards.

scholarly journals KAJIAN PARTICULATE MATTER DAN KEBISINGAN PADA PERMUKIMAN DI SEKITAR JALAN TOL KEDUNGMUNDU SEMARANG

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 54
Author(s):  
Andarina Aji Pamurti
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Residential Area ◽  
Toll Roads ◽  
Ambient Air Quality ◽  
Residential Areas ◽  
Toll Road ◽  
Daily Average ◽  
Pm2.5 And Pm10

<div><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr><td align="left" valign="top"><p><em>The construction of toll roads has a positive impact to facilitate the mobility rate of the community. But the construction of toll roads also has a negative impact on the residential area around the toll road, namely air pollution due to the burning of vehicle fuel. PM2.5 and PM10 air particles are particles that damage the working system of the lungs. The health of the environment where settled is an important support that affects health, especially in the era of pandemic covid. Air particle measurement using portable PM2.5 and PM10 Air Quality Tester Detector. The daily average level of PM2.5 particles in residential areas around Semarang's Kedungmundu toll road is 65.44 μg/Nm³, while the PM10 particle content is 95.2 μg/Nm³. PM2.5 levels exceed the standards of the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (BMUA), The WHO Air Quality Guidline and Ambient Air Quality Standards (USEPA). For PM10 exceeds WHO standard. In addition to air pollution, another impact is that these residential areas have noise. The daily average noise value when measuring the sampling time is 62.23 dB, this value is exceeding the standard threshold of the Regulation of the Minister of Environment for residential areas. So the residential area around Kedungmundu Semarang toll road is less feasible for health when viewed from the value of PM 2.5 and PM10 as well as noise. This study aims to determine the level of PM2.5 and PM10 particles as well as noise in residential areas around the Kedungmundu Semarang toll road. Once the measurement results are obtained, it will be used as a reference for planners to provide solutions for settlements that have an impact due to toll road construction activities with dense vehicle intensity.</em></p></td></tr></tbody></table></div>

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