scholarly journals Urban population exposure to air pollution in Europe over the last decades

2021 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre Sicard ◽  
Evgenios Agathokleous ◽  
Alessandra De Marco ◽  
Elena Paoletti ◽  
Vicent Calatayud
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Urban Population ◽  
Quality Standards ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
World Health ◽  
Population Exposure ◽  
Ambient Air Quality ◽  
Air Quality Standards ◽  
The Eu

Abstract Background The paper presents an overview of air quality in the 27 member countries of the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom (previous EU-28), from 2000 to 2017. We reviewed the progress made towards meeting the air quality standards established by the EU Ambient Air Quality Directives (European Council Directive 2008/50/EC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) Air Quality Guidelines by estimating the trends (Mann-Kendal test) in national emissions of main air pollutants, urban population exposure to air pollution, and in mortality related to exposure to ambient fine particles (PM2.5) and tropospheric ozone (O3). Results Despite significant reductions of emissions (e.g., sulfur oxides: ~ 80%, nitrogen oxides: ~ 46%, non-methane volatile organic compounds: ~ 44%, particulate matters with a diameter lower than 2.5 µm and 10 µm: ~ 30%), the EU-28 urban population was exposed to PM2.5 and O3 levels widely exceeding the WHO limit values for the protection of human health. Between 2000 and 2017, the annual PM2.5-related number of deaths decreased (- 4.85 per 106 inhabitants) in line with a reduction of PM2.5 levels observed at urban air quality monitoring stations. The rising O3 levels became a major public health issue in the EU-28 cities where the annual O3-related number of premature deaths increased (+ 0.55 deaths per 106 inhabitants). Conclusions To achieve the objectives of the Ambient Air Quality Directives and mitigate air pollution impacts, actions need to be urgently taken at all governance levels. In this context, greening and re‐naturing cities and the implementation of fresh air corridors can help meet air quality standards, but also answer to social needs, as recently highlighted by the COVID-19 lockdowns.

scholarly journals Urban Population Exposure to Air Pollution in Europe Over the Last Decades

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre Sicard ◽  
Evgenios Agathokleous ◽  
Alessandra De Marco ◽  
Elena Paoletti ◽  
Vicent Calatayud
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Urban Population ◽  
Quality Standards ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
World Health ◽  
Population Exposure ◽  
Ambient Air Quality ◽  
Air Quality Standards ◽  
The Eu

Abstract Background - The paper presents an overview of air quality in the 27 member countries of the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom (previous EU-28), from 2000 to 2017. We reviewed the progress made towards meeting the air quality standards established by the EU Ambient Air Quality Directives (Directive 2008/50/EC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) Air Quality Guidelines by estimating the trends (Mann-Kendal test) in national emissions of main air pollutants, urban population exposure to air pollution, and in mortality related to exposure to ambient fine particles (PM2.5) and tropospheric ozone (O3). Results - Despite significant reductions of emissions (e.g. sulfur oxides: ~80%, nitrogen oxides: ~46%, non-methane volatile organic compounds: ~44%, particulate matters with a diameter lower than 2.5µm and 10µm: ~30%), the EU-28 urban population was exposed to PM2.5 and O3 levels widely exceeding the WHO limit values for the protection of human health. Between 2000 and 2017, the annual PM2.5-related number of deaths decreased (- 4.85 per 106 inhabitants) in line with a reduction of PM2.5 levels observed at urban air quality monitoring stations. The rising O3 levels became a major public health issue in the EU-28 cities where the annual O3-related number of premature deaths increased (+ 0.55 deaths per 106 inhabitants). Conclusions - To achieve the objectives of the Ambient Air Quality Directives and mitigate air pollution impacts, actions need to be urgently taken at all governance levels. In this context, greening and re‐naturing cities can help meet air quality standards, but also answer to social needs, as recently highlighted by the COVID-19 lockdowns.

scholarly journals An Assessment of Annual Mortality Attributable to Ambient PM2.5 in Bangkok, Thailand

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (19) ◽  
pp. 7298 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathaniel R. Fold ◽  
Mary R. Allison ◽  
Berkley C. Wood ◽  
Pham T. B. Thao ◽  
Sebastien Bonnet ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lung Cancer ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Quality Standards ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
The United States ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
World Health ◽  
Ambient Air Quality ◽  
Air Quality Standards ◽  
Ambient Air Quality Standards

Multiple studies indicate that PM2.5 is the most deleterious air pollutant for which there are ambient air quality standards. Daily concentrations of PM2.5 in Bangkok, Thailand, continuously exceed the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Thai National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQSs). Bangkok has only recently begun to measure concentrations of PM2.5. To overcome this paucity of data, daily PM2.5/PM10 ratios were generated over the period 2012–2018 to interpolate missing values. Concentration-response coefficients (β values) for PM2.5 versus non-accidental, cardiopulmonary, and lung cancer mortalities were derived from the literature. Values were also estimated and were found to be comparable to those reported in the literature for a Chinese population, but considerably lower than those reported in the literature from the United States. These findings strongly suggest that specific regional β values should be used to accurately quantify the number of premature deaths attributable to PM2.5 in Asian populations. Health burden analysis using the Environmental Benefits Mapping and Analysis Program (BenMAP) showed that PM2.5 concentration in Bangkok contributes to 4240 non-accidental, 1317 cardiopulmonary, and 370 lung cancer mortalities annually. Further analysis showed that the attainment of PM2.5 levels to the NAAQSs and WHO guideline would reduce annual premature mortality in Bangkok by 33%and 75%, respectively.

scholarly journals Long-term air pollution exposure and diabetes risk in the elderly population.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maayan Yitshak Sade ◽  
Liuhua Shi ◽  
Elena Colicino ◽  
Heresh Amini ◽  
Joel Schwartz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Quality Standards ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Diabetes Risk ◽  
Diabetes Incidence ◽  
Ambient Air Quality ◽  
Air Quality Standards ◽  
Pollution Levels ◽  
Ambient Air Quality Standards

Objective: Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a major public health concern. We assessed the association between air pollution and first documented diabetes occurrence in a national U.S. cohort of Medicare enrollees to estimate incidence risk. Research design and methods: We included all Medicare enrollees 65 years and older in the fee-for-service program, part A and part B, in the contiguous United States (2000-2016). Participants were followed annually until the first recorded diabetes diagnosis, end of enrollment, or death. We obtained air pollution annual estimates of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and ozone (O3) exposures from highly spatiotemporally resolved prediction models. We assessed the simultaneous effect of the pollutants on diabetes incidence using Poisson survival analysis with adjustment for temporal and spatial confounders. We repeated the models in data restricted to ZIP codes with air pollution levels not exceeding the ambient air quality standards during the study period. Results: We have included 264,869,458 person-years of 41,780,637 people. We observed nonlinear associations between the three pollutants and diabetes, with larger risks at lower levels for PM2.5 and O3. When restricting the data to lower air pollution levels, an increased risk for diabetes (Incidence Rate Ratio [95% Confidence Interval] was associated with interquartile range (IQR) increases in PM2.5 (1.048 [1.045;1.051]), O3 (1.016 [1.014;1.18]), and NO2 (1.040 [1.037; 1.043]). Conclusion: We found increased diabetes risk associated with air pollution exposures. The observed effects remained in exposure levels below the national ambient air quality standards in the U.S.

Application of Electron Optics to Characterization of Particulate Pollutants

1972 ◽  
Vol 30 ◽  
pp. 364-365
Author(s):  
J. B. Moran ◽  
J. L. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Quality Standards ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Hazardous Substances ◽  
Fuel Additives ◽  
Ambient Air Quality ◽  
Air Quality Standards ◽  
Emission Standards ◽  
Stationary Sources ◽  
Ambient Air Quality Standards

The Clean Air Act Amendments of 1970 provide the basis for a dramatic change in Federal air quality programs. The Act establishes new standards for motor vehicles and requires EPA to establish national ambient air quality standards, standards of performance for new stationary sources of pollution, and standards for stationary sources emitting hazardous substances. Further, it establishes procedures which allow states to set emission standards for existing sources in order to achieve national ambient air quality standards. The Act also permits the Administrator of EPA to register fuels and fuel additives and to regulate the use of motor vehicle fuels or fuel additives which pose a hazard to public health or welfare.National air quality standards for particulate matter have been established. Asbestos, mercury, and beryllium have been designated as hazardous air pollutants for which Federal emission standards have been proposed.

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