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Global review of national ambient air quality standards for PM(10) and SO(2) (24 h).

ABSTRACT: Literature comparing national ambient air quality standards (AAQSs) globally is scattered and sparse. Twenty-four hour AAQSs for particulate matter <10 ?m in aerodynamic diameter (PM(10)) and sulfur dioxide (SO(2)) in 96 countries were identified through literature review, an international survey, and querying an international legal database. Eighty three percent, of the 96 countries with information on the presence or absence of AAQSs, have 24-h AAQSs for either PM(10) or SO(2). Slightly more countries have 24-h AAQSs for SO(2) (76 countries) than PM(10) (69 countries). The average 24-h AAQSs for PM(10) and SO(2) are 95 ?g/m(3) (95% confidence interval [CI], 82-108 ?g/m(3), n?=?68) and 182 ?g/m(3) (95% CI, 158-205 ?g/m(3), n?=?73). The population-weighted average AAQS for PM(10) is 98 and 155 ?g/m(3) for SO(2). The average AAQS for both PM(10) and SO(2) are substantially higher than the recommended World Health Organization Air Quality Guideline (WHO AQG) value. Several countries have promulgated AAQSs at the WHO AQG value for PM(10), but none for SO(2). Further examination in selected countries found that air quality monitoring data, existing AAQSs in other countries, environmental epidemiology studies, and the WHO AQGs are considered the most often in establishing or revising AAQSs. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s11869-010-0131-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

SUBMITTER: Vahlsing C

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3505502 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Global review of national ambient air quality standards for PM(10) and SO(2) (24 h).

Vahlsing Candace C Smith Kirk R KR

Air quality, atmosphere, & health 20110118 4

Literature comparing national ambient air quality standards (AAQSs) globally is scattered and sparse. Twenty-four hour AAQSs for particulate matter <10 μm in aerodynamic diameter (PM(10)) and sulfur dioxide (SO(2)) in 96 countries were identified through literature review, an international survey, and querying an international legal database. Eighty three percent, of the 96 countries with information on the presence or absence of AAQSs, have 24-h AAQSs for either PM(10) or SO(2). Slightly more c ...[more]

PMID: 23205158

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Project description:Objectives: National ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) are critical tools for controlling air pollution and protecting public health. We designed this study to 1) gather the NAAQS for six classical air pollutants: PM2.5, PM10, O3, NO2, SO2, and CO in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) countries, 2) compare those with the updated World Health Organizations Air Quality Guidelines (WHO AQGs 2021), 3) estimate the potential health benefits of achieving annual PM2.5 NAAQS and WHO AQGs per country, and 4) gather the information on air quality policies and action plans in the EMR countries. Methods: To gather information on the NAAQS, we searched several bibliographic databases, hand-searched the relevant papers and reports, and analysed unpublished data on NAAQS in the EMR countries reported from these countries to the WHO/Regional office of the Eastern Mediterranean/Climate Change, Health and Environment Unit (WHO/EMR/CHE). To estimate the potential health benefits of reaching the NAAQS and AQG levels for PM2.5, we used the average of ambient PM2.5 exposures in the 22 EMR countries in 2019 from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) dataset and AirQ+ software. Results: Almost all of the EMR countries have national ambient air quality standards for the critical air pollutants except Djibouti, Somalia, and Yemen. However, the current standards for PM2.5 are up to 10 times higher than the current health-based WHO AQGs. The standards for other considered pollutants exceed AQGs as well. We estimated that the reduction of annual mean PM2.5 exposure level to the AQG level (5 μg m-3) would be associated with a decrease of all natural-cause mortality in adults (age 30+) by 16.9%-42.1% in various EMR countries. All countries would even benefit from the achievement of the Interim Target-2 (25 μg m-3) for annual mean PM2.5: it would reduce all-cause mortality by 3%-37.5%. Less than half of the countries in the Region reported having policies relevant to air quality management, in particular addressing pollution related to sand and desert storms (SDS) such as enhancing the implementation of sustainable land management practices, taking measures to prevent and control the main factors of SDS, and developing early warning systems as tools to combat SDS. Few countries conduct studies on the health effects of air pollution or on a contribution of SDS to pollution levels. Information from air quality monitoring is available for 13 out of the 22 EMR countries. Conclusion: Improvement of air quality management, including international collaboration and prioritization of SDS, supported by an update (or establishment) of NAAQSs and enhanced air quality monitoring are essential elements for reduction of air pollution and its health effects in the EMR.

Project description:Rapid urbanization and consuming lifestyles have intensified air pollution in urban areas. Air pollution in megacities has imposed severe environmental damages to human health. Proper management of the issue necessitates identification of the share of emission sources. Therefore, numerous research works have studied the apportionment of the total emissions and observed concentrations among different emissions sources. In this research, a comprehensive review is conducted to compare the source apportioning results for ambient air PM2.5 in the megacity of Tehran, the capital of Iran. One hundred seventy-seven pieces of scientific literatures, published between 2005 and 2021, were reviewed. The reviewed research are categorized according to the source apportioning methods: emission inventory (EI), source apportionment (SA), and sensitivity analysis of the concentration to the emission sources (SNA). The possible reasons for inconsistency among the results are discussed according to the scope of the studies and the implemented methods. Although 85% of the reviewed original estimates identify that mobile sources contribute to more thant 60% of Tehran air pollution, the distribution of vehicle types and modes are clearly inconsistent among the EI studies. Our review suggests that consistent results in the SA studies in different locations in central Tehran may indicate the reliability of this method for the identification of the type and share of the emission sources. In contrast, differences among the geographical and sectoral coverage of the EI studies and the disparities among the emission factors and activity data have caused significant deviations among the reviewed EI studies. Also, it is shown that the results of the SNA studies are highly dependent on the categorization type, model capabilities and EI presumptions and data input to the pollutant dispersion modelings. As a result, integrated source apportioning in which the three methods complement each other's results is necessary for consistent air pollution management in megacities.Supplementary informationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40201-023-00855-0.

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Global review of national ambient air quality standards for PM(10) and SO(2) (24 h).

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Global review of national ambient air quality standards for PM(10) and SO(2) (24 h).

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