scholarly journals Granny shows the way: Results from implementing an alternative fire-lighting method in Orange Farm

2006 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 17-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
M Wentzel
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Economic Loss ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Ambient Air Pollution ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Wide Scale ◽  
Benefit Cost ◽  
Orange Farm

High levels of air pollution caused by domestic coal burning create human health problems and unwarranted economic loss. The associated health cost is estimated at R1.2 billion per annum. The Basa Njengo Magogo (BNM) alternative fire lighting method represents the highest impact on health from a benefit-cost and employment point of view since the method can potentially reduce ambient air pollution caused by the use of household coal in a relatively short period, by approximately 40-50%. In a pilot study funded by the Department of Minerals and Energy (DME), the method was demonstrated to 16 000 households through a series of direct demonstrations in Orange Farm. The study found that 99% of households who attended a demonstration used the BNM method and continued to use it after a month, households saved on average 25 kilograms of coal, translating in a R26 saving per month. A wide scale implementation of the BNM method holds the potential not only to reduce air pollution but also to result in coal and monetary savings for low-income households.

scholarly journals Prenatal ambient air pollution and maternal depression at 12 months postpartum in the MADRES pregnancy cohort

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Theresa M. Bastain ◽  
Thomas Chavez ◽  
Rima Habre ◽  
Ixel Hernandez-Castro ◽  
Brendan Grubbs ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Risk Factors ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Los Angeles ◽  
Maternal Depression ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Ambient Air Pollution ◽  
Second Trimester ◽  
Latina Women

Abstract Background Depression is the leading cause of mental health-related morbidity and affects twice as many women as men. Hispanic/Latina women in the US have unique risk factors for depression and they have lower utilization of mental health care services. Identifying modifiable risk factors for maternal depression, such as ambient air pollution, is an urgent public health priority. We aimed to determine whether prenatal exposure to ambient air pollutants was associated with maternal depression at 12 months after childbirth. Methods One hundred eighty predominantly low-income Hispanic/Latina women participating in the ongoing MADRES cohort study in Los Angeles, CA were followed from early pregnancy through 12 months postpartum through a series of phone questionnaires and in-person study visits. Daily prenatal ambient pollutant estimates of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3), and particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) were assigned to participant residences using inverse-distance squared spatial interpolation from ambient monitoring data. Exposures were averaged for each trimester and across pregnancy. The primary outcome measure was maternal depression at 12 months postpartum, as reported on the 20-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression (CES-D) scale. We classified each participant as depressed (n = 29) or not depressed (n = 151) based on the suggested cutoff of 16 or above (possible scores range from 0 to 60) and fitted logistic regression models, adjusting for potential confounders. Results We found over a two-fold increased odds of depression at 12 months postpartum associated with second trimester NO2 exposure (OR = 2.63, 95% CI: 1.41–4.89) and pregnancy average NO2 (OR = 2.04, 95% CI: 1.13–3.69). Higher second trimester PM2.5 exposure also was associated with increased depression at 12 months postpartum (OR = 1.56, 95% CI: 1.01–2.42). The effect for second trimester PM10 was similar and was borderline significant (OR = 1.58, 95% CI: 0.97–2.56). Conclusions In a low-income cohort consisting of primarily Hispanic/Latina women in urban Los Angeles, we found that prenatal ambient air pollution, especially mid-pregnancy NO2 and PM2.5, increased the risk of depression at 12 months after childbirth. These results underscore the need to better understand the contribution of modifiable environmental risk factors during potentially critical exposure periods.

scholarly journals Short-Term Effects of Ambient air Pollution on Pediatric Hospital Visits for Respiratory Diseases in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdoul Risgou Ouédraogo ◽  
Jean Claude Romaric Pingdwinde Ouedraogo ◽  
Serge Ouoba ◽  
Obianju B. Ozoh ◽  
Abdoul Narcisse Traoré ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Burkina Faso ◽  
Medical History ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Respiratory Diseases ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Sociodemographic Factors ◽  
Ambient Air Pollution ◽  
Hospital Visits ◽  
Pm2.5 Concentration

Abstract Background: The adverse effects of air pollution on respiratory health has been documented in high-income countries, but data are scarce from low-income countries. We reported on air quality in Ouagadougou and its effects on hospital visits for respiratory diseases among children.Methods: It was a retrospective hospital-based ecological study. All children admitted from 1 July 2019 to 30 June 2020 at two major teaching hospitals in Burkina Faso were included. We conducted a binary logistic regression to determine the health effects of PM2.5 and PM10 on hospital visits for respiratory diseases, with adjustment for covariates (weather, sociodemographic factors and medical history). Results: Hospital visits for respiratory diseases accounted for 14.16% of all visits. Children were males in the majority (54.57%) and aged between 29 days-30 months (74.85%). PM10 was at WHO recommended levels, ranging from 0.06 μg/m³ to 18.33 μg/m³. PM2.5 concentration ranged from 0.41 to 258.82 μg/m³, above the WHO standards. Rise in PM2.5 concentration was associated with slightly more outpatients than inpatients (ORc=0.996 95% CI: 0.993-0.998; p=0.003). The weather confounded this relationship, but the sociodemographic factors and medical history did not. The increase in PM10 was not significantly associated with hospital visits for respiratory diseases (ORc=0.997 95% CI: 0.977-1.018; p=0.802). Adjusting the PM effects for all covariates, higher PM2.5 and relative humidity levels and the female sex were associated with more outpatient cases than inpatients. Underlying conditions (severe acute malnutrition, sickle cell disease and heart disease) favoured more inpatients than outpatients. Conclusion: At harmful levels in Ouagadougou, PM2.5 caused primarily outpatient hospital visits rather than hospitalisations for respiratory diseases.

scholarly journals Estimation of Health Effects and Economic Losses from Ambient Air Pollution in Undeveloped Areas: Evidence from Guangxi, China

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (15) ◽  
pp. 2707 ◽  
Author(s):  
Feng Han ◽  
Xingcheng Lu ◽  
Cuicui Xiao ◽  
Miao Chang ◽  
Ke Huang
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Economic Loss ◽  
Ambient Air Pollution ◽  
Economic Losses ◽  
Statistical Life ◽  
Health Burden ◽  
Health Damage ◽  
Log Linear

Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, located in the southwest of China, has rapidly developed since the late 2000s. Similar to other regions, economic development has been accompanied by environmental problems, especially air pollution, which can adversely affect the health of residents in the area. In this study, we estimated the negative health effects of three major ambient pollutants, Particulate Matter with a diameter of 10 μm or less (PM10), Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) and Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) in Guangxi from 2011 to 2016 using a log-linear exposure–response function. We monetarized the economic loss using the value of statistical life (VSL) and the cost of illness (COI) methods. The results show that the total possible short-term all-cause mortality values due to PM10, SO2, and NO2 were 28,396, with the confidence intervals from 14,664 to 42,014 (14,664–42,014), 24,618 (15,480–33,371), and 46,365 (31,158–61,423), respectively. The mortality from the three pollutants was 48,098 (19,972–75,973). The economic loss of the health burden from the three pollutants was 40,555 (24,172–57,585), which was 2.86% (1.70–4.06%) of the regional gross domestic product. The result of the comparative analysis among different cities showed that urbanization, industrialization, and residents’ income are important factors in air-pollution-caused health damage and subsequent economic loss. We conclude that the health burden caused by ambient pollutants in developing regions, accompanied by its rapid socio-economic growth, is significant and tighter regulation is needed in the future to alleviate air pollution and mitigate the related health damage.

scholarly journals Who pollutes and who suffers from air pollution in India

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Narasimha Rao ◽  
Gregor Kiesewetter ◽  
Jihoon Min ◽  
Shonali Pachauri ◽  
Fabian Wagner
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Biomass Burning ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Indoor Air Pollution ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Household Consumption ◽  
Ambient Air Pollution ◽  
Mortality Risks ◽  
Premature Deaths ◽  
Cook Stoves

Abstract Airborne fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is the most important environmental risk factor for premature mortality worldwide, and the likely cause of several hundred thousand premature deaths every year in India. Indian households also contribute to ambient PM2.5 to different extents from a number of sources, including biomass-burning cook stoves, transport and industrial manufacturing triggered by household consumption. In this study, we quantify the PM2.5 contributions by source from, as well as the mortality burden suffered by, individual urban and rural income deciles. We find that the impacts are distributed differently from contributions. Indirect emissions associated with household consumption contribute almost twice as much to ambient PM2.5 concentrations as direct emissions from biomass cook stoves. We show that the mortality risk from these indirect sources fall disproportionately on lower-income households, exacerbating the mortality risks they already face from using biomass-burning cook stoves. As a result, economy-wide end-of-pipe controls can reduce inequity in contributions to ambient air pollution. However, due to the overwhelming role of household indoor air pollution in premature deaths among the low-income population, clean cook stoves reduce overall inequality in terms of mortality risks to a far greater extent.

STATISTICAL METHODS FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF AIR POLLUTION OF JHANSI CITY, UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
V. S. CHAUHAN ◽  
BHANUMATI SINGH ◽  
SHREE GANESH ◽  
JAMSHED ZAIDI
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Uttar Pradesh ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Ambient Air Pollution ◽  
Base Line ◽  
Multivariate Statistical ◽  
Large Cities ◽  
Governmental Organizations ◽  
Non Governmental Organizations ◽  
The Status

Studies on air pollution in large cities of India showed that ambient air pollution concentrations are at such levels where serious health effects are possible. This paper presents overview on the status of air quality index (AQI) of Jhansi city by using multivariate statistical techniques. This base line data can help governmental and non-governmental organizations for the management of air pollution.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document