Monitoring history and change trends of ambient air quality in China during the past four decades

Matching actions to needs: shifting policy responses to the changing health needs of Chinese children and adolescents

China is home to the second largest population of children and adolescents in the world. Yet demographic shifts mean that the government must manage the challenge of fewer children with the needs of an ageing population, while considering the delicate tension between economic growth and environmental sustainability. We mapped the health problems and risks of contemporary school-aged children and adolescents in China against current national health policies. We involved multidisciplinary experts, including young people, with the aim of identifying actionable strategies and specific recommendations to promote child and adolescent health and wellbeing. Notwithstanding major improvements in their health over the past few decades, contemporary Chinese children and adolescents face distinct social challenges, including high academic pressures and youth unemployment, and new health concerns including obesity, mental health issues, and sexually transmitted infections. Inequality by gender, geography, and ethnicity remains a feature of health risks and outcomes. We identified a mismatch between current health determinants, risks and outcomes, and government policies. To promote the health of children and adolescents in China, we recommend a set of strategies that target government-led initiatives across the health, education, and community sectors, which aim to build supportive and responsive families, safe communities, and engaging and respectful learning environments. TRANSLATION: For the Chinese translation of the abstract see Supplementary Materials section.

Hierarchical Computational Screening of Quantum Metal-Organic Framework Database to Identify Metal-Organic Frameworks for Volatile Organic-Compound Capture from Air

The design and discovery of novel porous materials that can efficiently capture volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from air are critical to address one of the most important challenges of our world, air pollution. In this work, we studied a recently introduced metal-organic framework (MOF) database, namely, quantum MOF (QMOF) database, to unlock the potential of both experimentally synthesized and hypothetically generated structures for adsorption-based n-butane (C4H10) capture from air. Configurational Bias Monte Carlo (CBMC) simulations were used to study the adsorption of a quaternary gas mixture of N2, O2, Ar, and C4H10 in QMOFs for two different processes, pressure swing adsorption (PSA) and vacuum-swing adsorption (VSA). Several adsorbent performance evaluation metrics, such as C4H10 selectivity, working capacity, the adsorbent performance score, and percent regenerability, were used to identify the best adsorbent candidates, which were then further studied by molecular simulations for C4H10 capture from a more realistic seven-component air mixture consisting of N2, O2, Ar, C4H10, C3H8, C3H6, and C2H6. Results showed that the top five QMOFs have C4H10 selectivities between 6.3 × 103 and 9 × 103 (3.8 × 103 and 5 × 103) at 1 bar (10 bar). Detailed analysis of the structure-performance relations showed that low/mediocre porosity (0.4-0.6) and narrow pore sizes (6-9 Å) of QMOFs lead to high C4H10 selectivities. Radial distribution function analyses of the top materials revealed that C4H10 molecules tend to confine close to the organic parts of MOFs. Our results provided the first information in the literature about the VOC capture potential of a large variety and number of MOFs, which will be useful to direct the experimental efforts to the most promising adsorbent materials for C4H10 capture from air.

Comparing sources of carbonaceous aerosols during haze and nonhaze periods in two northern Chinese cities

Radiocarbon (14C), stable carbon isotope (13C), and levoglucosan in PM2.5 were measured in two northern Chinese cities during haze events and nonhaze periods in January 2019, to ascertain the sources and their differences in carbonaceous aerosols between the two periods. The contribution of primary vehicle emissions (17.8 ± 3.7%) to total carbon in Beijing during that haze event was higher than that of primary coal combustion (7.3 ± 4.2%), and it increased significantly (7.1%) compared to the nonhaze period. The contribution of primary vehicle emissions (4.1 ± 2.8%) was close to that of primary coal combustion (4.3 ± 3.3%) during the haze event in Xi'an, and the contribution of primary vehicle emissions decreased by 5.8% compared to the nonhaze period. Primary biomass burning contributed 21.1 ± 10.5% during the haze event in Beijing and 40.9 ± 6.6% in Xi'an (with an increase of 3.3% compared with the nonhaze period). The contribution of secondary fossil fuel sources to total secondary organic carbon increased by 29.2% during the haze event in Beijing and by 18.4% in Xi'an compared to the nonhaze period. These results indicate that specific management measures for air pollution need to be strengthened in different Chinese cities in the future, that is, controlling vehicle emissions in Beijing and restricting the use of coal and biomass fuels in winter in Xi'an.

Trends of source apportioned PM2.5 in Tianjin over 2013-2019: Impacts of Clean Air Actions

A long-term (2013-2019) PM_2.5 speciation dataset measured in Tianjin, the largest industrial city in northern China, was analyzed with dispersion normalized positive matrix factorization (DN-PMF). The trends of source apportioned PM_2.5 were used to assess the effectiveness of source-specific control policies and measures in support of the two China's Clean Air Actions implemented nationwide in 2013-2017 and 2018-2020, respectively. Eight sources were resolved from the DN-PMF analysis: coal combustion (CC), biomass burning (BB), vehicular emissions, dust, steelmaking and galvanizing emissions, a mixed sulfate-rich factor and secondary nitrate. After adjustment for meteorological fluctuations, a substantial improvement in PM_2.5 air quality was observed in Tianjin with decreases in PM_2.5 at an annual rate of 6.6%/y. PM_2.5 from CC decreased by 4.1%/y. The reductions in SO₂ concentration, PM_2.5 contributed by CC, and sulfate demonstrated the improved control of CC-related emissions and fuel quality. Policies aimed at eliminating winter-heating pollution have had substantial success as shown by reduced heating-related SO₂, CC, and sulfate from 2013 to 2019. The two industrial source types showed sharp drops after the 2013 mandated controls went into effect to phaseout outdated iron/steel production and enforce tighter emission standards for these industries. BB reduced significantly by 2016 and remained low due to the no open field burning policy. Vehicular emissions and road/soil dust declined over the Action's first phase followed by positive upward trends, showing that further emission controls are needed. Nitrate concentrations remained constant although NO_X emissions dropped significantly. The lack of a decrease in nitrate may result from increased ammonia emissions from enhanced vehicular NO_X controls. The port and shipping emissions were evident implying their impacts on coastal air quality. These results affirm the effectiveness of the Clean Air Actions in reducing primary anthropogenic emissions. However, further emission reductions are needed to meet global health-based air quality standards.

PM2.5-related neonatal encephalopathy due to birth asphyxia and trauma: a global burden study from 1990 to 2019

Long-term exposure to fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) may increase the risk of neonatal encephalopathy due to birth asphyxia and trauma. However, little is known about the trends of PM_2.5-related neonatal encephalopathy burden under different levels of social and economic development. We studied the burden of PM_2.5-related neonatal encephalopathy due to birth asphyxia and trauma measured by the age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR) and the age-standardized disability-adjusted life years rate (ASDR), and its trends with the socio-demographic index (SDI) in 192 countries and regions from 1990 to 2019. This is a retrospective study using the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 (GBD2019) database. The age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR) and age-standardized disability-adjusted life years rate (ASDR) are used to measure the burden of PM_2.5-related neonatal encephalopathy in different countries and regions. The mortality rate (per 100 thousand) is used to evaluate the differences of PM_2.5-related neonatal encephalopathy burden in sex and age. The annual percentage changes (APCs) and the average annual percentage changes (AAPCs) are used to reflect the trends of PM_2.5-related neonatal encephalopathy burden over years (1990-2019) and are calculated using a Joinpoint model. The relationship of the socio-demographic index with the ASMR and ASDR is calculated using Gaussian process regression. In summary, the global burden of PM_2.5-related neonatal encephalopathy increased since 1990, especially in boys, early neonates, and regions with low-middle SDI. Globally, the ASMR and ASDR of PM_2.5-related neonatal encephalopathy burden in 2019 were 0.59 (95% CI: 0.40, 0.83) per 100,000 people and 52.59 (95% CI: 35.33, 73.67) per 100,000 people, respectively. From 1990 to 2019, the ASMR and ASDR of PM_2.5-related neonatal encephalopathy increased by 44.39% and 44.19%, respectively. The global average annual percentage changes of ASMR and ASDR were 1.3 (95% CI: 1.0, 1.6). The relationship between the socio-demographic index and the burden of PM_2.5-related neonatal encephalopathy presented negative correlation when the socio-demographic index was more than 0.60. Middle, high-middle, and high SDI regions had decreasing trends of PM_2.5-related neonatal encephalopathy, of which the AAPCs for both ASMR and ASDR ranged from - 0.3 to - 3.1. Besides improving the progress in national policy and the coverage rate of maternal and neonatal health care and facility-based delivery, air pollution control may also be a better way for countries with large and increasing amounts of exposure to PM_2.5 pollution to reduce neonatal encephalopathy. And our results also suggest that low and low-middle SDI countries should appropriately pay more attention to early newborns and boys.

An acid rain-friendly NH3 control strategy to maximize benefits toward human health and nitrogen deposition

Ammonia (NH₃) abatement remains controversial in China owing to its effectiveness in reducing PM_2.5 pollution and nitrogen deposition but with the potential risk of promoting acid rain formation, necessitating scientific guidance. Here, we propose a novel method for designing an NH₃ control strategy to mitigate both air pollution and nitrogen deposition without significantly exacerbating acid rain. This method involves extending the response surface model (RSM) to deposition using a delicately developed polynomial response function of deposition (i.e., dep-RSM). The Yangtze River Delta (YRD) dep-RSM application reveals that 16 out of 41 cities have NH₃ control potentials from 15 % to 71 %. Excellent NH₃ control potentials have been noted between April and June (78 %-92 %). From 2013 to 2017, the effective SO₂ and NO_x control significantly reduced wet sulfur and oxidized nitrogen deposition, providing considerable NH₃ abatement potentials (15 %-24 %) to further reduce PM_2.5 and nitrogen deposition by up to 2 % and 9 %, respectively, without acid rain exacerbation (the wet neutralization factor was maintained). Additionally, 57 % and 73 % NH₃ emission reduction potentials were obtained under acid rain constraints with 75 % and 86 % reductions in the other precursors to reduce the average PM_2.5 concentration below 25 and 15 μg/m³, and an additional 8408 and 14,459 premature deaths could only be avoided at an extra cost of 8.7 and 19.7 billion CNY, respectively. Meanwhile, the N deposition considerably reduced by 10 and 13 kgN/ha·yr. However, the YRD region could still simultaneously obtain substantial amounts of PM_2.5 and N deposition mitigation using the strategy proposed herein. The expanded optimization system can be directly adopted by policymakers to implement coordinated control in regions or countries facing the same NH₃ control conundrum.

Vehicle emissions of primary air pollutants from 2009 to 2019 and projection for the 14th Five-Year Plan period in Beijing, China

Over the past decade, the emission standards and fuel standards in Beijing have been upgraded twice, and the vehicle structure has been improved by accelerating the elimination of 2.95 million old vehicles. Through the formulation and implementation of these policies, the emissions of carbon monoxide (CO), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), nitrogen oxides (NO_x), and fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) in 2019 were 147.9, 25.3, 43.4, and 0.91 kton in Beijing, respectively. The emission factor method was adopted to better understand the emissions characteristics of primary air pollutants from combustion engine vehicles and to improve pollution control. In combination with the air quality improvement goals and the status of social and economic development during the 14th Five-Year Plan period in Beijing, different vehicle pollution control scenarios were established, and emissions reductions were projected. The results show that the emissions of four air pollutants (CO, VOCs, NO_x, and PM_2.5) from vehicles in Beijing decreased by an average of 68% in 2019, compared to their levels in 2009. The contribution of NO_x emissions from diesel vehicles increased from 35% in 2009 to 56% in 2019, which indicated that clean and energy-saving diesel vehicle fleets should be further improved. Electric vehicle adoption could be an important measure to reduce pollutant emissions. With the further upgrading of vehicle structure and the adoption of electric vehicles, it is expected that the total emissions of the four vehicle pollutants can be reduced by 20%-41% by the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan period.

Impact of distance between corporate registration and monitoring stations on environmental performance - Evidence from air quality monitoring stations

Several countries are adopting vertical environmental regulations (air quality monitoring stations) to control pollution. However, there is a relative lack of research analysing environmental regulations and performance from a geographic distance perspective. This study introduces atmospheric quality monitoring stations as a type of environmental regulation using data from Chinese listed companies from 2010 to 2019 to determine the effect of monitoring station distance on corporate environmental performance and the moderating role of corporate strategy. This analysis yielded the following findings. First, based on institutional and signalling theories, we find that monitoring station distance inhibits environmental performance. Second, disclosure, digital transformation, and environmental strategies can reverse the negative effects of monitoring stations. Third, while market drivers improve the ability to monitor station distances, political corruption hinders this. Fourth, firm heterogeneity analysis tells us that the "crowding out" effect of monitoring station distance is more significant for state-owned enterprises, high-tech firms, and heavy polluters. Finally, we found that the monitoring role of stations can be fully utilised only if they are established within a certain distance from the enterprise. These findings are important for establishing air quality monitoring stations and corporate environmental performance in developing countries, including China.

How Does Environmental Information Disclosure Affect Public Health? Evidence from the New Ambient Air Quality Standards

Using a quasi-natural experiment of the implementation of the new Ambient Air Quality Standards in China, this paper assessed the impact of environmental information disclosure on public health. Our empirical results showed that environmental information disclosure (EID) largely improved both physical health and mental health. Moreover, we further investigated the air pollution channel, and the empirical results showed that EID could reduce the concentration of PM_2.5, which could cause an increase in public health as the concentration of PM_2.5 decreases. In addition, in terms of individual characteristics, the impact of EID was larger for men, people living in the countryside and people older than 60. In terms of the heterogeneity of cities, the impact of EID was larger in cities with higher public environmental concerns, and the impact of EID was more pronounced in core cities. For regional heterogeneity, the impact of EID on physical health was more pronounced in more developed regions, whereas the impact EID on mental health was higher in less developed regions.

Can vertical environmental regulation induce enterprise green innovation? A new perspective from automatic air quality monitoring station in China

Based on panel data of listed companies in China from 2006 to 2020, this study takes the establishment of automatic air quality monitoring stations as a quasi-natural experiment and uses the staggered difference-in-differences method to explore whether the establishment of monitoring stations promotes green innovation of listed companies. The empirical results show that: (1) The green innovation of companies achieves an increase of 3.5% with monitoring stations in their locations, and an increase of 2.3% with the establishment of each additional monitoring station. This conclusion is valid after a series of robustness tests and exclusive tests. (2) The heterogeneity analyses show that monitoring stations have a greater role in promoting green innovation for non-state-owned enterprises, enterprises in heavy polluting industries and enterprises in key cities for environmental protection. (3) The transmission mechanism test results show that the establishment of automatic air monitoring station has crowding-out effect rather than leverage effect on green innovation, substantial innovation rather than strategic innovation. (4) The further analyses manifest the promotion of end-to-end green innovation, independent invention and quality of green patents.

Responses of nitrogen and sulfur deposition to NH3 emission control in the Yangtze River Delta, China

NH₃ emission control has proven to be of great importance in reducing PM_2.5 concentrations in China, while how it affects nitrogen/sulfur (N/S) deposition is still unclear. This study expanded the response surface model method to quantify the responses of N/S deposition to the emission control of precursors (NO_x, SO₂, NH₃, VOCs and primary PM_2.5) in the Yangtze River Delta, China. NH₃ control was found to have higher efficiency in reducing N/S deposition than NO_x and SO₂ alone. The reduced N deposition response to NH₃ emission control was higher in the northern part of the YRD region, whereas oxidized N deposition decreased sharply in the region with a low N critical load. Synergetic effect was found in reducing N deposition when we controlled the NH₃ and NO_x emissions simultaneously. Compared with the sum effect of individual NH₃ and NO_x emission control, the extra benefits from the synergy controls accounted for 4.4% (1.23 kg N·ha^-1·yr^-1) of the total N deposition, of which 81% came from the oxidized N deposition. The YRD region could receive the largest synergetic effect with a 1:1 ratio of NO_x:NH₃ emission reduction. The NH₃ emission control increases the dry deposition of acid substances and worsens acid rain though it reduces the wet S/oxidized N deposition. These findings highlight the effectiveness of NH₃ emission control and suggest a multi-pollutant control strategy for reducing N/S deposition. The response surface model method for deposition also provides a reference for other regions in China and other countries.

The Association between the Burden of PM2.5-Related Neonatal Preterm Birth and Socio-Demographic Index from 1990 to 2019: A Global Burden Study

BACKGROUND

Preterm birth (PTB) leads to short-term and long-term adverse effects on newborns. Exposure to fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) was positively related to PTB. However, the global annual average PM_2.5 was three times than the recommended value in 1998-2014. Socio-demographic index (SDI) is a new indicator that comprehensively reflects the overall development level of a country, partly because of "the epidemiological transition". Among other countries with higher and similar SDI levels, policy makers have the opportunity to learn from their successful experiences and avoid their mistakes by identifying whether their burdens of disease are higher or lower than the expected. However, it is unclear about the trends of the burden of PM_2.5-related preterm birth in different countries and different levels of SDI regions. Additionally, the relationship between the SDI and the burden in 1990-2019 is also unclear.

METHODS

This was a retrospective study based on the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 (GBD2019) database from 1990 to 2019. The burden of PM_2.5-related PTB was measured by the age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR), age-standardized disability-adjusted life years rate (ASDR), mortality rate, and the disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). The annual percentage changes (APCs) and the average annual percentage changes (AAPCs) were used to reflect the trends over the past 30 years, which were calculated using a joinpoint model. The relationships between the ASMR, ASDR, and SDI were calculated using a Gaussian process regression.

FINDINGS

In 2019, the entire burden of PM_2.5-related PTB was relatively high, where the ASMR and the ASDR were 0.76 and 67.71, increasing by 7.04% and 7.12%, respectively. It mainly concentrated on early neonates, boys, and on low-middle SDI regions. The increase in the burden of PM_2.5-related PTB in low and low-middle SDI regions is slightly higher than the decrease in other SDI regions. In 2019, the burden varied greatly among different levels of SDI regions where ASMRs varied from 0.13 in high SDI regions to 1.19 in low-middle regions. The relationship between the expected value of the burden of PM_2.5-related PTB and SDI presented an inverted U-shape, and it reached the maximum when SDI is around 0.50. The burdens in four regions (South Asia, North Africa and the Middle East, western sub-Saharan Africa, and southern sub-Saharan Africa) were much higher than the mean value. Boys bore more burden that girls. The sex ratio (boys:girls) of the burden showed a dramatically increasing trend in low SDI regions and a decreasing trend in middle SDI regions and high-middle SDI regions. These differences reflect the huge inequality among regions, countries, ages, and sex in the burden of PM_2.5-related PTB.

CONCLUSION

The overall burden of PM_2.5-related PTB in 2019 was relatively high, mainly concentrated on early neonates, boys, and on low-middle SDI regions. It showed an increasing trend in low-middle and low SDI regions. The association between the burden and the SDI presented an inverted U-shape. It is very necessary to promulgate policies to prevent and control air pollution in countries with large and increasing exposure to PM_2.5 pollution because it does not need action at an individual level. Focusing on public educational interventions, public and professional policies, and improving accessibility of prenatal care are other feasible ways for low and low-middle SDI countries. Policy makers should also appropriately allocate medical resources to boys and early newborns.

Variation of Aerosol Optical Depth Measured by Sun Photometer at a Rural Site near Beijing during the 2017–2019 Period

In recent years, the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region has become one of the worst areas for haze pollution in China. Sun photometers are widely used for aerosol optical property monitoring due to the advantages of fully automatic acquisition, simple maintenance, standardization of data processing, and low uncertainty. Research sites are mostly concentrated in cities, while the long-term analysis of aerosol optical depth (AOD) for the pollution transmission channel in rural Beijing is still lacking. Here, we obtained an AOD monitoring dataset from August 2017 to March 2019 using the ground-based CE-318 sun photometer at the Gucheng meteorological observation site in southwest Beijing. These sun photometer AOD data were used for the ground-based validation of MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) and AHI (Advanced Himawari Imager) AOD data. It was found that MODIS and AHI can reflect AOD variation trends by sun photometer on daily, monthly, and seasonal scales. The original AOD measurements of the sun photometer show good correlations with satellite observations by MODIS (R = 0.97), and AHI (R = 0.89), respectively, corresponding to their different optimal spatial and temporal windows for matching with collocated satellite ground pixels. However, MODIS is less stable for aerosols of different concentrations and particle sizes. Most of the linear regression intercepts between the satellite and the photometer are less than 0.1, indicating that the errors due to surface reflectance in the inversion are small, and the slope is least biased (AHI: slope = 0.91, MODIS: slope = 0.18) in the noon period (11 a.m.–2 p.m.) and most biased in summer (AHI: slope = 0.77, MODIS: slope = 1.31), probably due to errors in the aerosol model. The daily and seasonal variation trends between CE-318 AOD measurements in the Gucheng site and fine particulate observations from the national air quality site nearby were also compared and investigated. In addition, a typical haze–dust complex pollution event in North China was analyzed and the changes in AOD during the pollution event were quantified. In processing, we use sun photometer and satellite AOD data in combination with meteorological and PM data. Overall, this paper has implications for the study of AOD evolution patterns at different time scales, the association between PM2.5 concentrations and AOD changes, and pollution monitoring.

Temporal and Spatial Distribution Analysis of Atmospheric Pollutants in Chengdu-Chongqing Twin-City Economic Circle

In order to study the temporal and spatial distribution characteristics of atmospheric pollutants in cities (districts and counties) in the Chengdu–Chongqing Twin-city Economic Circle (CCEC) and to provide a theoretical basis for atmospheric pollution prevention and control, this paper combined Ambient Air Quality Standards (AAQS) and WHO Global Air Quality Guidelines (GAQG) to evaluate atmospheric pollution and used spatial correlation to determine key pollution areas. The results showed that the distribution of atmospheric pollutants in CCEC presents a certain law, which was consistent with the air pollution transmission channels. Except for particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter equal to or less than 2.5 μm (PM_2.5) and ozone (O₃), other pollutants reached Grade II of AAQS in 2020, among which particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter equal to or less than 10 μm (PM₁₀), PM_2.5, sulfur dioxide (SO₂), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and carbon monoxide (CO) have improved. Compared with the air quality guidelines given in the GAQG, PM₁₀, PM_2.5, NO₂ and O₃ have certain effects on human health. The spatial aggregation of PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 decreased year by year, while the spatial aggregation of O₃ increased with the change in time, and the distribution of NO₂ pollution had no obvious aggregation. Comprehensive analysis showed that the pollution problems of particulate matter, NO₂ and O₃ in CCEC need to be further controlled.

The effect of the revision and implementation for environmental protection law on ambient air quality in China

An unescapable fact is that air pollution has been a problem affecting residents' health and daily life. The Chinese government has been adopting measures to improve air quality for decades. The revise of Environmental Protection Law (the New Law hereafter) enforced in 2015 is one of them. The New Law encourages participations of multiple actors in environmental protection and aggressive punishments violations, playing the central role in the Chinese environmental law system. In order to understand its impacts, we employ the panel data analysis controlling city and month fixed terms to evaluate the effects of the New Law on air quality in 70 cities in China. Furthermore, we combine difference-in-differences (DID) to investigate the time variance of the effect. We find that the implementation of the New Law correlates with reduction of PM_2.5, SO₂ concentrations and Air Quality Comprehensive Index (AQCI). The effect is non-linear, reducing over time, especially on NO₂ concentration and AQCI. In our model, one document reduces NO₂ concentration and AQCI by 1.99 μg/m³ and 0.26 points, and the effects decay by 0.93 μg/m3 and 0.16 every year separately. The results indicate the effectiveness of the New Law, while at the same time, China experiences symbolic implementations from local authorizations resulted from environmental decentralization, ambiguous policy statements and interest conflicts.

Type 2 diabetes attributable to PM2.5: A global burden study from 1990 to 2019

BACKGROUND

Long-term exposure to fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D). However, limited data on trends in the global burden of T2D attributed to PM_2.5, particularly in different regions by social-economic levels. We evaluated the spatio-temporal changes in the disease burden of T2D attributed to PM_2.5 from 1990 to 2019 in 204 countries and regions with different socio-demographic indexes (SDI).

METHODS

This is a retrospective analysis with data from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 (GBD2019) database. The burden of T2D attributed to PM_2.5, age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR) and age-standardized disability-adjusted life year rate (ASDR) were estimated according to sex, age, nationality and SDI. The annual percentage change (APCs) and the average annual percentage change (AAPCs) were calculated by using the Joinpoint model to evaluate the changing trend of ASMR and ASDR attributed to PM_2.5 from 1990 to 2019. The Gaussian process regression model was used to estimate the relationship of SDI with ASMR and ASDR.

RESULTS

Overall, the global burden of T2D attributable to PM_2.5 increased significantly since 1990, particularly in the elderly, men, Africa, Asia and low-middle SDI regions. The ASMR and ASDR of T2D attributable to PM_2.5 in 2019 were 2.47 (95% CI: 1.71, 3.24) per 100,000 population and 108.98 (95% CI: 74.06, 147.23) per 100,000 population, respectively. From 1990 to 2019, the global ASMR and ASDR of T2D attributed to T2D increased by 57.32% and 86.75%, respectively. The global AAPCs of ASMR and ASDR were 1.57 (95% CI: 1.46, 1.68) and 2.17 (95% CI: 2.02, 2.32), respectively. Declining trends were observed in North America, South America, Europe, Australia, and other regions with high SDI.

CONCLUSIONS

Over this 30-years study, the global T2D burden attributable to PM_2.5 has increased particularly in regions with low-middle SDI. PM_2.5 remains a great concern on the global burden of diabetes.

Does national air quality monitoring reduce local air pollution? The case of PM2.5 for China

Fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) has become a major pressing challenge for China and remains a concern of its central government. This paper draws on a natural experiment generated by the National Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Network (NAAQMN) program in China to explore whether national air quality monitoring reduces local air pollution. In this study, we use a city-level dataset for 4200 Chinese cities covering 2001-2015 and a difference-in-differences (DID) assessment design to assess the impact of the NAAQMN program on local PM_2.5 emissions in China. The results suggest that the NAAQMN program significantly reduces the local PM_2.5 concentrations by 1.325 mg/m³, and each additional NAAQMN program will cause a decrease of 0.154 mg/m³ in the local PM_2.5 concentrations. Furthermore, we determine the heterogeneous impacts of the NAAQMN program on local PM_2.5 emission levels through the local government leaders' characteristics, PM_2.5 emission levels, and economic development levels. In addition, a mediation effect is found between the NAAQMN program and local PM_2.5 emissions through the efficiency of environmental governance. The Chinese government should continue to promote the implementation of the NAAQMN program by promoting the NAAQMN program to the county and rural areas as well as adding the sites of the NAAQMN program in the existing cities. Also, during the process of promoting the NAAQMN program, sufficient differentiation in policies should be developed for different cities.

A Methodology for Designing Short-Term Stationary Air Quality Campaigns with Mobile Laboratories Using Different Possible Allocation Criteria

Air quality monitoring and control are key issues for environmental assessment and management in order to protect public health and the environment. Local and central authorities have developed strategies and tools to manage environmental protection, which, for air quality, consist of monitoring networks with fixed and portable instrumentation and mathematical models. This study develops a methodology for designing short-term air quality campaigns with mobile laboratories (laboratories fully housed within or transported by a vehicle and maintained in a fixed location for a period of time) as a decision support system for environmental management and protection authorities. In particular, the study provides a methodology to identify: (i) the most representative locations to place mobile laboratories and (ii) the best time period to carry out the measurements in the case of short-term air quality campaigns. The approach integrates atmospheric dispersion models and allocation algorithms specifically developed for optimizing the measuring campaigns. The methodology is organized in two phases, each of them divided into several steps. Fourteen allocation algorithms dedicated to three type of receptors (population, vegetation and physical cultural heritage) have been proposed. The methodology has been applied to four short-term air quality campaigns in the Emilia-Romagna region.

Epidemiological characteristics of tuberculosis and effects of meteorological factors and air pollutants on tuberculosis in Shijiazhuang, China: A distribution lag non-linear analysis

BACKGROUND

Tuberculosis (TB) is a serious public health problem in China. There is evidence to prove that meteorological factors and exposure to air pollutants have a certain impact on TB. But the evidence of this relationship is insufficient, and the conclusions are inconsistent.

METHODS

Descriptive epidemiological methods were used to describe the distribution characteristics of TB in Shijiazhuang in the past five years. Through the generalized linear regression model (GLM) and the generalized additive model (GAM), the risk factors that affect the incidence of TB are screened. A combination of GLM and distribution lag nonlinear model (DLNM) was used to evaluate the lag effect of environmental factors on the TB. Results were tested for robustness by sensitivity analysis.

RESULTS

The incidence of TB in Shijiazhuang showed a downward trend year by year, with seasonality and periodicity. Every 10 μg/m³ of PM₁₀ changes, the RR distribution is bimodal. The first peak of RR occurs on the second day of lag (RR = 1.00166, 95% CI: 1.00023, 1.00390); the second risk period starts from 13th day of lag and peaks on15th day (RR = 1.00209, 95% CI: 1.00076, 1.00341), both of which are statistically significant. The cumulative effect of increasing 10 μg/m³ showed a similar bimodal distribution. Time zones where the RR makes sense are days 4-6 and 13-20. RR peaked on the 18th day (RR = 1.02239, 95% CI: 1.00623, 1.03882). The RR has a linear relationship with the concentration. Under the same concentration, the RR peaks within 15-20 days.

CONCLUSION

TB in Shijiazhuang City showed a downward trend year by year, with obvious seasonal fluctuations. The air pollutant PM₁₀ increases the risk of TB. The development of TB has a short-term lag and cumulative lag effects. We should focus on protecting susceptible people from TB in spring and autumn, and strengthen the monitoring and emission management of PM₁₀ in the atmosphere.

Substantial changes in PM2.5 pollution and corresponding premature deaths across China during 2015-2019: A model prospective

Long-term exposure to the ambient fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) is the major public health risk factor in China. Several past studies have assessed premature mortalities associated with PM_2.5 in China at varying levels of temporal and spatial scales using different methodological approaches. However, recently developed global exposure mortality model [GEMM NCD + LRI and GEMM 5-COD] provides a much more sophisticated methodology in capturing mortality due to PM_2.5-exposure than the commonly accepted integrated exposure-response (IER) model, which this study applied to China. This study provides a comparative assessment of the excess long-term PM_2.5-attributed nonaccidental deaths as well as cause-specific deaths for 349 cities in mainland China during five years (from 2015 to 2019) and compares the results with the spatial resolution scale of 0.1° × 0.1° across overall China. The results demonstrate that the national annual average PM_2.5 concentration declined from 51.9 ± 18.2 μg/m³ in 2015 to 39.0 ± 13.2 μg/m³ in 2019, and the overall annual negative trend was around -3.1 ± 2.2 μg/m³/year [-5.6 ± 3.4%/year] across China. Consequently, the number of PM_2.5-related deaths decreased by 383 thousand [95% CI: 331-429] to 1755 thousand [95% Confidence Interval: 1470-2025; GEMM NCD + LRI]; 315 thousand [95% CI: 227-370] to 1380 thousand [95% CI: 948-1740; GEMM 5-COD] and 125 thousand [95% CI: 64-140] to 876 thousand [95% CI: 394-1262; IER] in 2019, derived from the pre-established models (GEMM and IER). The estimate PM_2.5-attributed death with a spatial resolution of 0.1° × 0.1° was 2419 thousand [95% CI: 2041-2771; GEMM NCD + LRI], 1918 thousand [95% CI: 1333-2377; GEMM 5-COD] and 1162 thousand [95% CI: 534-1611; IER] in 2015, which is about 11-16% higher value than the city-level health risk assessment study. The estimated deaths by GEMM NCD + LRI and GEMM 5-COD were 104% and 61% higher than the estimated by IER, highlighting that total premature mortalities associated with PM_2.5 were substantially left behind based on the pre-existing model. The "other noncommunicable diseases" mortality, which IER method doesn't account for, was 375 thousand in 2019, 68 thousand less than in 2015. Such significant mortality was previously overlooked in estimation methods, which should now be considered for the air pollution-related policy development in China. The high number of premature deaths in central and northern parts of China, calls for the need for the Government to quickly impose even more stringent and effective pollution control measures.