| 361. |
- Flanagan, Erin, et al.
(författare)
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Ambient and indoor air pollution exposure and adverse birth outcomes in Adama, Ethiopia
- 2022
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Ingår i: Environment International. - : Elsevier. - 0160-4120. ; 164
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Air pollution poses a threat to human health, with pregnant women and their developing fetuses being particularly vulnerable. A high dual burden of ambient and indoor air pollution exposure has been identified in Ethiopia, but studies investigating their effects on adverse birth outcomes are currently lacking. This study explores the association between ambient air pollution (NOX and NO2) and indoor air pollution (cooking fuel type) and fetal and neonatal death in Adama, Ethiopia. A prospective cohort of mothers and their babies was used, into which pregnant women were recruited at their first antenatal visit (n = 2085) from November 2015 to February 2018. Previously developed land-use regression models were utilized to assess ambient concentrations of NOX and NO2 at the residential address, whereas data on cooking fuel type was derived from questionnaires. Birth outcome data was obtained from self-reported questionnaire responses during the participant's postnatal visit or by phone if an in-person meeting was not possible. Binary logistic regression was employed to assess associations within the final study population (n = 1616) using both univariate and multivariate models; the latter of which adjusted for age, education, parity, and HIV status. Odds ratios (OR) and their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) were reported. Within the cohort, 69 instances of fetal death (n = 16 miscarriages; n = 53 stillbirths) and 16 cases of neonatal death were identified. The findings suggest a tendency towards an association between ambient NOX and NO2 exposure during pregnancy and an increased risk of fetal death overall as well as stillbirth, specifically. However, statistical significance was not observed. Results for indoor air pollution and neonatal death were inconclusive. As limited evidence on the effects of exposure to ambient air pollution on adverse birth outcomes exists in Sub-Saharan Africa and Ethiopia, additional studies with larger study populations should be conducted.
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| 362. |
- Flanagan, Erin, et al.
(författare)
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Health impact assessment of road traffic noise exposure based on different densification scenarios in Malmö, Sweden
- 2023
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Ingår i: Environment International. - : Elsevier. - 0160-4120. ; 174
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- While urbanization provides many opportunities to those arriving in thriving urban areas, a greater number of residents necessitates the expansion of housing and infrastructure. This is often achieved through densification, which can lead to increased noise, particularly through increased road traffic. A key challenge of promoting healthy urban planning is to understand potential health effects, especially on the local level. The aim of the present study is, therefore, to estimate and compare the health impacts of road traffic noise exposure for various urban densification scenarios within a neighborhood (Lorensborg) in Malmö, Sweden. The three scenarios include 1) Present-day, representing the study area as it is presently organized; 2) Planned municipal strategy (the city of Malmö’s own densification plans) and 3) Health-centred, which involves major structural alterations and reflects an effort prioritize a health-centred approach. Noise was modelled using the Nordic prediction method for road traffic. Health outcomes included noise annoyance, adverse sleep disturbance, ischemic heart disease (IHD) incidence and mortality. Within all scenarios, a large proportion of the study population was exposed above the WHO's health-based guideline value (Lden 53 dB): >80% for Present-day and Planned municipal strategy scenarios, and almost 50% in the Health-centred scenario. Still, densifying Lorensborg (population ≈9,600) according to the Health-centred scenario could prevent 549 cases of highly annoyed, 193 cases of adverse sleep disturbance, 4.7 new cases of IHD (8.9% of total cases), and 1.5 deaths due to IHD (17.8% of IHD mortality) annually. The results demonstrated that it is possible to considerably lower the health impact with a more health-centred densification strategy. Important co-benefits for public and environmental health include air pollution reduction and green space creation, although their health effects were not quantified in the present study. Urban planning initiatives must be more ambitious in order to create healthy, sustainable cities.
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| 363. |
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| 364. |
- Giffin, Andrew, et al.
(författare)
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Pyrimethanil and chlorpyrifos air concentrations and pregnant women's urinary metabolites in the Infants’ Environmental Health Study (ISA), Costa Rica
- 2022
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Ingår i: Environment International. - : Elsevier. - 0160-4120. ; 166
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Only few studies have compared environmental pesticide air concentrations with specific urinary metabolites to evaluate pathways of exposure. Therefore, we compared pyrimethanil and chlorpyrifos concentrations in air with urinary 4-hydroxypyrimethanil (OHP, metabolite of pyrimethanil) and 3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridinol (TCPy, metabolite of chlorpyrifos) among pregnant women from the Infant's Environmental Health Study (ISA) in Matina County, Costa Rica. Methods: During pregnancy, we obtained repeat urinary samples from 448 women enrolled in the ISA study. We extrapolated pyrimethanil and chlorpyrifos concentrations measured with passive air samplers (PAS) (n = 48, from 12 schools), across space and time using a Bayesian spatiotemporal model. We subsequently compared these concentrations with urinary OHP and TCPy in 915 samples from 448 women, using separate mixed models and considering several covariables. Results: A 10% increase in air pyrimethanil (ng/m3) was associated with a 5.7% (95% confidence interval (CI 4.6, 6.8) increase in OHP (μg/L). Women living further from banana plantations had lower OHP: −0.7% (95% CI −1.2, −0.3) for each 10% increase in distance (meters) as well as women who ate rice and beans ≥15 times a week −23% (95% CI −38, −4). In addition, each 1 ng/m3 increase in chlorpyrifos in air was associated with a 1.5% (95% CI 0.2, 2.8) increase in TCPy (μg/L), and women working in agriculture tended to have increased TCPy (21%, 95% CI −2, 49). Conclusion: The Bayesian spatiotemporal models were useful to estimate pyrimethanil and chlorpyrifos air concentrations across space and time. Our results suggest inhalation of pyrimethanil and chlorpyrifos is a pathway of environmental exposure. PAS seems a useful technique to monitor environmental current-use pesticide exposures. For future studies, we recommend increasing the number of locations of environmental air measurements, obtaining all air and urine measurements during the same month, and, ideally, including dermal exposure estimates as well.
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| 365. |
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| 366. |
- Gómez-Ramírez, P, et al.
(författare)
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An overview of existing raptor contaminant monitoring activities in Europe
- 2014
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Ingår i: Environment International. - : Elsevier. - 0160-4120. ; 67, s. 12-21
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Biomonitoring using raptors as sentinels can provide early warning of the potential impacts of contaminants on humans and the environment and also a means of tracking the success of associated mitigation measures. Examples include detection of heavy metal-induced immune system impairment, PCB-induced altered reproductive impacts, and toxicity associated with lead in shot game. Authorisation of such releases and implementation of mitigation is now increasingly delivered through EU-wide directives but there is little established pan-European monitoring to quantify outcomes. We investigated the potential for EU-wide coordinated contaminant monitoring using raptors as sentinels. We did this using a questionnaire to ascertain the current scale of national activity across 44 European countries. According to this survey, there have been 52 different contaminant monitoring schemes with raptors over the last 50 years. There were active schemes in 15 (predominantly western European) countries and 23 schemes have been running for >20 years; most monitoring was conducted for >5 years. Legacy persistent organic compounds (specifically organochlorine insecticides and PCBs), and metals/metalloids were monitored in most of the 15 countries. Fungicides, flame retardants and anticoagulant rodenticides were also relatively frequently monitored (each in at least 6 countries). Common buzzard (Buteo buteo), common kestrel (Falco tinnunculus), golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), white-tailed sea eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla), peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus), tawny owl (Strix aluco) and barn owl (Tyto alba) were most commonly monitored (each in 6–10 countries). Feathers and eggs were most widely analysed although many schemes also analysed body tissues. Our study reveals an existing capability across multiple European countries for contaminant monitoring using raptors. However, coordination between existing schemes and expansion of monitoring into Eastern Europe is needed. This would enable assessment of the appropriateness of the EU-regulation of substances that are hazardous to humans and the environment, the effectiveness of EU level mitigation policies, and identify pan-European spatial and temporal trends in current and emerging contaminants of concern.
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| 367. |
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| 368. |
- Kamali, Mohammadreza, et al.
(författare)
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Sustainability criteria for assessing nanotechnology applicability in industrial wastewater treatment : Current status and future outlook
- 2019
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Ingår i: Environment International. - : Elsevier. - 0160-4120. ; 125, s. 261-276
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Application of engineered nanomaterials for the treatment of industrial effluents and to deal with recalcitrant pollutants has been noticeably promoted in recent years. Laboratory, pilot and full-scale studies emphasize the potential of this technology to offer promising treatment options to meet the future needs for clean water resources and to comply with stringent environmental regulations. The technology is now in the stage of being transferred to the real applications. Therefore, the assessment of its performance according to sustainability criteria and their incorporation into the decision-making process is a key task to ensure that long term benefits are achieved from the nano-treatment technologies. In this study, the importance of sustainability criteria for the conventional and novel technologies for the treatment of industrial effluents was determined in a general approach assisted by a fuzzy-Delphi method. The criteria were categorized in technical, economic, environmental and social branches and the current situation of the nanotechnology regarding the criteria was critically discussed. The results indicate that the efficiency and safety are the most important parameters to make sustainable choices for the treatment of industrial effluents. Also, in addition to the need for scaling-up the nanotechnology in various stages, the study on their environmental footprint must continue in deeper scales under expected environmental conditions, in particular the synthesis of engineered nanomaterials and the development of reactors with the ability of recovery and reuse the nanomaterials. This paper will aid to select the most sustainable types of nanomaterials for the real applications and to guide the future studies in this field.
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| 369. |
- Li, Longxiang, et al.
(författare)
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A spatiotemporal ensemble model to predict gross beta particulate radioactivity across the contiguous United States
- 2021
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Ingår i: Environment International. - : Elsevier. - 0160-4120. ; 156
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Particulate radioactivity, a characteristic of particulate matter, is primarily determined by the abundance of radionuclides that are bound to airborne particulates. Exposure to high levels of particulate radioactivity has been associated with negative health outcomes. However, there are currently no spatially and temporally resolved particulate radioactivity data for exposure assessment purposes. We estimated the monthly distributions of gross beta particulate radioactivity across the contiguous United States from 2001 to 2017 with a spatial resolution of 32 km, via a multi-stage ensemble-based model. Particulate radioactivity was measured at 129 RadNet monitors across the contiguous U.S. In stage one, we built 264 base learning models using six methods, then selected nine base models that provide different predictions. In stage two, we used a non-negative geographically and temporally weighted regression method to aggregate the selected base learner predictions based on their local performance. The results of block cross-validation analysis suggested that the non-negative geographically and temporally weighted regression ensemble learning model outperformed all base learning model with the smallest rooted mean square error (0.094 mBq/m3). Our model provided an accurate estimation of particulate radioactivity, thus can be used in future health studies.
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| 370. |
- Lindén, Jenny, 1975, et al.
(författare)
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Intra-urban air pollution in a rapidly growing Sahelian city
- 2012
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Ingår i: Environmental International. - : Elsevier BV. - 0160-4120. ; 40, s. 51-62
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this paper we analyze spatial and temporal variations of air pollution (PM1, PM2.5, PM10, CO, NOx, O3, Toluene and Benzene) and climate in areas of different development typology in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Analyses are based on measurements from fixed sites and car traverse measurements during field studies in 2007 and 2010. Large spatial and temporal variations were found, showing a generally poor air quality situation, with extreme levels of PM10, commonly exceeding air quality guidelines of WHO. Pollution levels increase considerably with increased atmospheric stability. Important sources were transported dust and re-suspension of dust from unpaved roads, but also traffic emissions and biomass burning. The spatial variations are examined with focus on effects for variations in potential exposure depending on for example area of residence and daily activity pattern, showing that great differences are likely to exist. Ouagadougou, like most developing countries worldwide, currently experiences an extremely rapid population growth in combination with limited financial means. This is likely to create increasingly harmful air pollution situations for the rapidly growing populations of these areas, and shows an urgent need for increased understanding of the pollution situation as well as development of mitigation strategies.
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