scholarly journals Air Pollution Policy in Israel

Atmosphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 1065
Author(s):  
Maya Negev
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Industrial Sector ◽  
Continuous Increase ◽  
Best Available Techniques ◽  
Transportation Sector ◽  
History Of ◽  
Clean Air ◽  
Air Pollution Policy

Since its establishment in 1948, the State of Israel has been oriented towards economic development and industrialization, with a transportation sector increasingly focused on private cars. In 1961, initial awareness of environmental risks led to the adoption of the Abatement of Nuisances Law, which served as the platform for air pollution policy for several decades, even as population growth and growth of the industrial sector, including fossil fuel power plants, led to a continuous increase in air pollution. In the early 2000s, the environmental movement in Israel criticized local air pollution policy as being out of date and started to promote a new Clean Air Law. The law, which was adopted in 2008 and came into force in 2011, was a watershed in air pollution policy in Israel. It includes ambient air quality values for 28 contaminants, emission permits for the industrial sector based on best available techniques (BAT), an enforcement system, and a unified and transparent monitoring system. This paper reviews the history of air pollution policy in Israel from 1948, through the 1961 and 2008 landmark legislations and their strengths and weaknesses, to the present. The paper ends with recommendations for future air pollution policy in Israel.

scholarly journals Seasonal and Spatial Variation of Volatile Organic Compounds in Ambient Air of Almaty City, Kazakhstan

Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 1592
Author(s):  
Olga P. Ibragimova ◽  
Anara Omarova ◽  
Bauyrzhan Bukenov ◽  
Aray Zhakupbekova ◽  
Nassiba Baimatova
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Volatile Organic Compounds ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Spatial Variations ◽  
Primary Sources ◽  
Volatile Organic ◽  
Seasonal And Spatial Variations ◽  
Before And After

Air pollution is one of the primary sources of risk to human health in the world. In this study, seasonal and spatial variations of multiple volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were measured at six sampling sites in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The seasonal and spatial variations of 19 VOCs were evaluated in 2020, including the periods before and after COVID-19 lockdown. The concentrations of 9 out of 19 VOCs had been changed significantly (p < 0.01) during 2020. The maximum concentrations of total VOCs (TVOCs) were observed on 15, 17, and 19 January and ranged from 233 to 420 µg m−3. The spatial distribution of TVOCs concentrations in the air during sampling seasons correlated with the elevation and increased from southern to northern part of Almaty, where Combined Heat and Power Plants are located. The sources of air pollution by VOCs were studied by correlations analysis and BTEX ratios. The ranges of toluene to benzene ratio and benzene, toluene, and ethylbenzene demonstrated two primary sources of BTEX in 2020: traffic emissions and biomass/biofuel/coal burning. Most of m-, p-xylenes to ethylbenzene ratios in this study were lower than 3 in all sampling periods, evidencing the presence of aged air masses at studied sampling sites from remote sources.

scholarly journals Air Quality and Human Health among a Low Income Community in the Highveld Priority Area

2011 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
C.Y Wright ◽  
R Oosthuizen ◽  
J John ◽  
R.M Garland ◽  
P Albers ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Agricultural Activity ◽  
Priority Area ◽  
The Impact

Human exposure to poor air quality is linked to adverse health effects. The largest burden of air pollution-related diseases is in developing countries where air pollution levels are also among the highest in the world. In South Africa, two geographic areas, the Vaal Triangle and the Highveld, have been identified for air quality managementinterventions to ensure compliance with National Air Quality Management Standards and to control potential harmful air pollution impacts on human health. The Highveld Priority Area (HPA) is characterised by intense mining, coal-fired power plants, industries, including iron and steel manufacturing, chemical plants, agricultural activity, motor vehicles and domestic fuel burning. Apart from two previous studies, no respiratory health studies have been carried out in the HPA. This paper describes the results of a recent, comprehensive study of ambient air quality, potential exposure to air pollution and air-related human health among a low income community living in the HPA in order to better understand the impact of air pollution on human health in South Africa.

Struggling for Air

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Revesz ◽  
Jack Lienke
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Electricity Market ◽  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Environmental Law ◽  
Power Sector ◽  
Industrial Facilities ◽  
Major Energy Source ◽  
Clean Air ◽  
Emission Limits

Since the beginning of the Obama Administration, conservative politicians have railed against the President's "War on Coal." As evidence of this supposed siege, they point to a series of rules issued by the Environmental Protection Agency that aim to slash air pollution from the nation's power sector . Because coal produces far more pollution than any other major energy source, these rules are expected to further reduce its already shrinking share of the electricity market in favor of cleaner options like natural gas and solar power. But the EPA's policies are hardly the "unprecedented regulatory assault " that opponents make them out to be. Instead, they are merely the latest chapter in a multi-decade struggle to overcome a tragic flaw in our nation's most important environmental law. In 1970, Congress passed the Clean Air Act, which had the remarkably ambitious goal of eliminating essentially all air pollution that posed a threat to public health or welfare. But there was a problem: for some of the most common pollutants, Congress empowered the EPA to set emission limits only for newly constructed industrial facilities, most notably power plants. Existing plants, by contrast, would be largely exempt from direct federal regulation-a regulatory practice known as "grandfathering." What lawmakers didn't anticipate was that imposing costly requirements on new plants while giving existing ones a pass would simply encourage those old plants to stay in business much longer than originally planned. Since 1970, the core problems of U.S. environmental policy have flowed inexorably from the smokestacks of these coal-fired clunkers, which continue to pollute at far higher rates than their younger peers. In Struggling for Air, Richard L. Revesz and Jack Lienke chronicle the political compromises that gave rise to grandfathering, its deadly consequences, and the repeated attempts-by presidential administrations of both parties-to make things right.

scholarly journals The Impact of Ambient Fine Particulate Matter on Consumer Expenditures

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 1855
Author(s):  
Hojin Jung
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Airborne Particulate Matter ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Ambient Air Pollution ◽  
Significant Heterogeneity ◽  
Airborne Particulate ◽  
Consumer Expenditures ◽  
The Impact

Airborne particulate matter suspended from industrial facilities, power plants, and automobiles is detrimental to health. Growing concerns about the increasing level of airborne particulate matter have led many industrialized nations to advocate for the transformation of the energy market and investment in sustainable energy products. At the other end, consumers have made individual adjustments and attempted to reduce the exposure to the particulate matter. In this paper, we focus on the effect of ambient air pollution on consumer expenditures based on scanner panel data on consumers’ debit and credit card transactions. A series of empirical analyses found robust evidence that the increased level of particulate matter led to considerable disruption in total consumer expenditures with significant heterogeneity across categories. Our findings suggest that consumers alter their spending behaviors in an attempt to reduce the risk of exposures to particulate matter. Such an estimated effect of air pollution is qualitatively different from those of other macroeconomic factors and provides important guidance for policy interventions and practical decisions aimed at sustaining economic growth.

scholarly journals Influence of Meteorological Variables on Ambient Air Pollutants of a Coastal District in Eastern India

2021 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 194-203
Author(s):  
SS Kalikinkar Mahanta ◽  
Sharada Shrinivas Patil ◽  
Bhagirathi Mahanta ◽  
Kushalindu Biswas ◽  
Rojalin Sahu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Meteorological Parameters ◽  
Winter Season ◽  
Pollution Index ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Air Pollution Index ◽  
Clean Air ◽  
Pm2.5 Concentration

The study of various air pollutants and meteorological parameters are very important for all the researchers. Baleswar was known to be a seaside Districts of Odisha which is the economic and cultural heart of Northern Odisha. The aim of this study is to measure the air pollutants, meteorological parameters and to enumerate the air pollution index at three specific sites (Sahadevkhunta, Mallikashpur, Rasalpur) according to CPCB procedures. The air pollutants analysed by supplying through specific absorbing reagents and the pollutants were analysed up to 3 year (2017, 2018 and 2019) with a regularity of thrice per week. Analyses of our data sets showing that SO2 and NO2 concentration during summer, rainy and winter season are within the prescribe standard of NAAQS by CPCB but PM10 and PM2.5 are above the prescribed standard except PM2.5 concentration of rainy season in year 2019. Air pollution index is remaining in the condition between clean air (CA) to moderate air pollution (MAP) and it shows that the pollution index in all the sites are reducing from the year 2017 to 2019 may be due to enhancing technologies to reduce the pollutant concentration in air.

scholarly journals Assessment of Air Pollution with Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins (PCDDs) and Polychlorinated Dibenzofuranes (PCDFs) in Lithuania

Atmosphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 759
Author(s):  
Vigilija Klima ◽  
Renata Chadyšienė ◽  
Rūta Ivanec-Goranina ◽  
Dainius Jasaitis ◽  
Vaida Vasiliauskienė
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Solid Waste ◽  
Alternative Energy ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Waste Incineration ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Environmental Stability ◽  
Polychlorinated Dibenzofurans ◽  
Total Particulate Matter ◽  
Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins

Polychlorinated dibenzodioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDD/F) are highly bioavailable in humans, either through direct inhalation or indirectly by trophic transfer from contaminated food or water. The main sources of pollution with PCDD/F include industrial and non-industrial combustion sources, like domestic contaminated wood burning, house fires, burning of leaves from trees, etc. When looking for alternative energy sources and reduced energy costs, solid waste incineration plants are intended to be built in the vicinity of urbanized areas, and thus, the need emerges for examination and prediction of to what extent the solid waste incineration plants might affect the surrounding ecosystem, air pollution, and human health. Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) (or simply PCDD/F congeners) belong to the group of semi-volatile organic compounds with environmental stability and long-range transfer in the ambient air. Dioxin isomers are highly toxic and may have carcinogenic and mutagenic effects in humans. PCDD/F is detected in air, water, sediment, plants and animals. PCDD/F is generally distributed in the particulate phase in ambient air. For solid waste incineration plant emissions, the distribution of PCDD/F particles into particles with a diameter of <10 μm is more than 81% of the total particulate matter, and more than 54% of the PCDD/F is distributed into particles with a diameter of <2.5 μm. The aim of this study is to investigate the sources of PCDD/F, emissions and potential hazards, i.e., a toxic equivalent in Lithuania. The measurements were performed in two largest cities of Lithuania Vilnius and Kaunas, where the level of PCDD/F discovered was from 0.015 to 0.52 pg/m3 and from 0.02 to 0.05 pg/m3, respectively. The sites for the monitoring were selected based on their proximity to the locations of the planned cogeneration power plants in these cities.

scholarly journals ON ESTIMATING THE ADDITIONAL INCIDENCE OF COVID-19 AMONG POPULATIONS EXPOSED TO POLLUTED AMBIENT AIR: METHODICAL APPROACHES AND SOME PRACTICAL RESULTS

2021 ◽  
pp. 14-28
Author(s):  
N.V. Zaitseva ◽  
◽  
I.V. May ◽  
J. Reis ◽  
P.S. Spenser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Environmental Pollution ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Ambient Air Pollution ◽  
Dynamic Features ◽  
Post Vaccination ◽  
Clean Air ◽  
Research Goal ◽  
The Russian Federation ◽  
Actual Incidence

This research is vital due to the considerable global medical and demographic losses during the COVID-19 pandemic and the latest research works providing evidence of a correlation between air pollution and spread of the disease, its sever- ity, clinical course and outcomes. Our research goal was to quantitatively estimate the influence of ambient air pollution on SARS-CoV-2 spread among populations in six cities in the Russian Federation. These cities were among priority ones as per air pollution and were in- cluded in the “Clean air” Federal project (Bratsk, Krasnoyarsk, Norilsk, Omsk, Cherepovets, and Lipetsk). Our hypothesis was that dynamic features of the infection spread would be different from an expected model of its epi- demiologic process under exposure to environmental pollution. Regression and correlation analysis was performed for rela- tionships between a daily deviation in actual incidence from a basic epidemiologic scenario and the average daily concen- trations of chemicals in ambient air. The initial data were results obtained from instrument measurements of ambient air quality in the examined cities (approximately 10.8 thousand measurements covering 29 chemicals) and the daily incidence of COVID-19 from April 18, 2020 to July 31, 2021 (77,337 cases). An authentic correlation between COVID-19 incidence and chemical concentrations in ambient air was detected in all six examined cities. The contribution of air pollution to COVID-19 prevalence amounted to 5.0 ± 2.6 % in five cities (Kras- noyarsk, Norilsk, Omsk, Cherepovets, and Lipetsk) over the examined period. In Bratsk, this value was about 33% and it requires additional research for either confirmation or correction. Growth in COVID-19 incidence in the examined territo- ries is associated with particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5) and some other chemicals that can irritate the airway directly or indirectly (sulfuric acid vapors, hydrogen chloride, formaldehyde, hydrogen sulphide, etc.). Target levels were substantiated for several priority chemicals; should these levels be achieved, one would predict a decrease in COVID-19 prevalence by more than 1-3% in the examined cities. We propose that population morbidity and mortality caused by COVID-19 require further studies, including those combined with medical and biological examination regarding efficiency of vaccination and post-vaccination immunity per- sistence on territories with elevated environmental pollution.

Methodological Approaches to Optimizing Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Programs within the Framework of the Federal Clean Air Project (on the example of Nizhny Tagil)

2020 ◽  
pp. 38-47
Author(s):  
VB Gurvich ◽  
DN Kozlovskikh ◽  
IA Vlasov ◽  
IV Chistyakova ◽  
SV Yarushin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Health Risks ◽  
Monitoring Program ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Quality Monitoring ◽  
Air Quality Monitoring ◽  
Ambient Air Quality ◽  
Clean Air ◽  
Methodological Approaches

ntroduction: One of the key socially significant results of implementing the Federal Clean Air Project is the maximum possible mitigation of inhalation health risks by achieving the target rate of reducing emissions (by 20 % against the level of 2017) in a number of cities included in the federal project as priority areas. Materials and methods: Ambient air pollution monitoring as a measure of this accomplishment is indispensable both for verification of applying the model to estimating surface concentrations of pollutants, assessing health risks, and evaluating changes in ambient air quality. For the objectivity of such assessments, it is fundamental to determine the list of priority health-threatening air pollutants, to select monitoring sites that best characterize population exposure to these chemicals, and to plan air quality monitoring programs setting sampling frequency and volume. Results: The article presents the results of implementing methodological approaches adopted by the Russian Federal Service for Surveillance in the Sphere of Consumer Rights and Human Wellbeing (Rospotrebnadzor) to optimize ambient air quality monitoring within the framework of solving the tasks of the Federal Clean Air Project in the city of Nizhny Tagil, Sverdlovsk Region, in 2019. The Nizhny Tagil air quality monitoring program for 2020 has been developed and tested. This program, in conjunction with similar programs carried out by the Russian Federal Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring Service (Roshydromet) and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Sverdlovsk Region and taking into account their implementation over the past five years, helps provide implementers of the federal project with air pollution data to address its key challenges. Conclusions: The adopted ambient air quality monitoring program implemented in Nizhny Tagil in 2020 by the Center for Hygiene and Epidemiology in the Sverdlovsk Region meets terms and requirements of the Federal Clean Air Project.

scholarly journals ON ESTIMATING THE ADDITIONAL INCIDENCE OF COVID-19 AMONG POPULATIONS EXPOSED TO POLLUTED AMBIENT AIR: METHODICAL APPROACHES AND SOME PRACTICAL RESULTS

2021 ◽  
pp. 14-28
Author(s):  
N.V. Zaitseva ◽  
◽  
I.V. May ◽  
J. Reis ◽  
P.S. Spenser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Environmental Pollution ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Ambient Air Pollution ◽  
Dynamic Features ◽  
Post Vaccination ◽  
Clean Air ◽  
Research Goal ◽  
The Russian Federation ◽  
Actual Incidence

This research is vital due to the considerable global medical and demographic losses during the COVID-19 pandemic and the latest research works providing evidence of a correlation between air pollution and spread of the disease, its sever- ity, clinical course and outcomes. Our research goal was to quantitatively estimate the influence of ambient air pollution on SARS-CoV-2 spread among populations in six cities in the Russian Federation. These cities were among priority ones as per air pollution and were in- cluded in the “Clean air” Federal project (Bratsk, Krasnoyarsk, Norilsk, Omsk, Cherepovets, and Lipetsk). Our hypothesis was that dynamic features of the infection spread would be different from an expected model of its epi- demiologic process under exposure to environmental pollution. Regression and correlation analysis was performed for rela- tionships between a daily deviation in actual incidence from a basic epidemiologic scenario and the average daily concen- trations of chemicals in ambient air. The initial data were results obtained from instrument measurements of ambient air quality in the examined cities (approximately 10.8 thousand measurements covering 29 chemicals) and the daily incidence of COVID-19 from April 18, 2020 to July 31, 2021 (77,337 cases). An authentic correlation between COVID-19 incidence and chemical concentrations in ambient air was detected in all six examined cities. The contribution of air pollution to COVID-19 prevalence amounted to 5.0 ± 2.6 % in five cities (Kras- noyarsk, Norilsk, Omsk, Cherepovets, and Lipetsk) over the examined period. In Bratsk, this value was about 33% and it requires additional research for either confirmation or correction. Growth in COVID-19 incidence in the examined territo- ries is associated with particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5) and some other chemicals that can irritate the airway directly or indirectly (sulfuric acid vapors, hydrogen chloride, formaldehyde, hydrogen sulphide, etc.). Target levels were substantiated for several priority chemicals; should these levels be achieved, one would predict a decrease in COVID-19 prevalence by more than 1-3% in the examined cities. We propose that population morbidity and mortality caused by COVID-19 require further studies, including those combined with medical and biological examination regarding efficiency of vaccination and post-vaccination immunity per- sistence on territories with elevated environmental pollution.

Ambient Air Pollution: Respiratory Hazards to Children

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 91 (6) ◽  
pp. 1210-1213
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Carbon Monoxide ◽  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Stratospheric Ozone ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Clean Air Act ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Ambient Air Pollution ◽  
Motor Vehicles ◽  
Clean Air

Levels of many outdoor air pollutants decreased substantially after the passage of the Clean Air Act of 1970; however, levels of ozone, carbon monoxide, and particulate matter are still high enough to present hazards to children. Failure to meet the federal standards for these pollutants was a major force driving the adoption of the revised Clean Air Act of 1990. In addition, recent research indicates that acidic aerosols, for which there are no health-based standards, may be associated with adverse respiratory effects. As an ambient air pollutant, ozone is formed by the action of sunlight on nitrogen oxides and reactive hydrocarbons (both of which are emitted by motor vehicles and industrial sources). Ozone levels therefore tend to be highest on warm, sunny days, which are conducive to outdoor activities. In many areas ozone concentrations peak in the midafternoon, when children are likely to be playing outside. It is important to distinguish ground-level ozone air pollution from stratospheric ozone depletion by chlorofluorocarbons. These issues are unrelated. Carbon monoxide, a product of incomplete combustion, is emitted mainly from cars and other mobile sources. Airborne particulate matter is a variable and complex mixture of natural materials and substances released from numerous industries, motor vehicles, residential wood burning, construction and demolition, and other sources. Acidic aerosols are traceable mainly to combustion of sulfur-containing fossil fuels and to reactions of photochemical free radicals with nitrogen dioxide. Exposure to ambient air pollution in North America has been clearly associated with acute and subacute effects in epidemiologic investigations and in controlled exposure studies in environmental chambers.

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