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Tilley E, Chilunga H, Kwangulero J, Schöbitz L, Vijay S, Heilgendorff H, Kalina M. "It is unbearable to breathe here": air quality, open incineration, and misinformation in Blantyre, Malawi. Front Public Health 2023; 11:1242726. [PMID: 37905235 PMCID: PMC10613470 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1242726] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2023] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 11/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Blantyre, Malawi's Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH), or Queen's, as it's known locally, is the country's largest public hospital. However, Queen's is not served by regular municipal waste collection. Rather, most hospital waste (infectious and non-infectious) is gathered by grounds staff and openly burned, in several constantly smouldering piles, sending up clouds of smoke. Speaking directly to an identified knowledge gap on air quality impacts linked to trash burning and the paucity of African urban dwellers' voices on air quality issues, this study employed a mixed-methods approach to both quantitatively measure the air quality around QECH, and to qualitatively investigate the perceived impacts amongst staff and caregivers. Low-cost sensors measuring particulate matter (PM) with particle sizes less than 10 μm (PM10) and less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5), expressed as the mass of PM per volume of air (μg PMx/m3 air) were recorded every 5 min at 8 locations across the QECH for 2 months. Qualitative data collection consisted of 56 interviews with patients, caregivers and hospital staff (including janitorial and maintenance staff, nurses, doctors, and administrators). Our results show that safe air quality thresholds are consistently exceeded across space and time and that the most problematic air quality surrounds the shelter for caregivers and those receiving treatment for HIV/AIDS. Moreover, staff and visitors are severely impacted by the poor air quality within the space, but feel powerless to make changes or address complaints. Waste management interventions are desperately needed lest the patients who arrive at Queen's leave with more health issues than the ones with which they arrived.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth Tilley
- ETH Zurich, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, Global Health Engineering, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Hope Chilunga
- Department of Environmental Health, Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences, Blantyre, Malawi
| | - Jonathan Kwangulero
- Department of Environmental Health, Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences, Blantyre, Malawi
| | - Lars Schöbitz
- ETH Zurich, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, Global Health Engineering, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Saloni Vijay
- ETH Zurich, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, Global Health Engineering, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Heiko Heilgendorff
- School of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa
| | - Marc Kalina
- ETH Zurich, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, Global Health Engineering, Zurich, Switzerland
- School of Engineering, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa
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Gordon JND, Bilsback KR, Fiddler MN, Pokhrel RP, Fischer EV, Pierce JR, Bililign S. The Effects of Trash, Residential Biofuel, and Open Biomass Burning Emissions on Local and Transported PM 2.5 and Its Attributed Mortality in Africa. Geohealth 2023; 7:e2022GH000673. [PMID: 36743737 PMCID: PMC9884662 DOI: 10.1029/2022gh000673] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2022] [Revised: 12/22/2022] [Accepted: 01/03/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Long-term exposure to ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is the second leading risk factor of premature death in Sub-Saharan Africa. We use GEOS-Chem to quantify the effects of (a) trash burning, (b) residential solid-fuel burning, and (c) open biomass burning (BB) (i.e., landscape fires) on ambient PM2.5 and PM2.5-attributable mortality in Africa. Using a series of sensitivity simulations, we excluded each of the three combustion sources in each of five African regions. We estimate that in 2017 emissions from these three combustion sources within Africa increased global ambient PM2.5 by 2%, leading to 203,000 (95% confidence interval: 133,000-259,000) premature mortalities yr-1 globally and 167,000 premature mortalities yr-1 in Africa. BB contributes more ambient PM2.5-related premature mortalities per year (63%) than residential solid-fuel burning (29%) and trash burning (8%). Open BB in Central Africa leads to the largest number of PM2.5-attributed mortalities inside the region, while trash burning in North Africa and residential solid-fuel burning in West Africa contribute the most regional mortalities for each source. Overall, Africa has a unique ambient air pollution profile because natural sources, such as windblown dust and BB, contribute strongly to ambient PM2.5 levels and PM2.5-related mortality. Air pollution policies may need to focus on taking preventative measures to avoid exposure to ambient PM2.5 from these less-controllable sources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janica N. D. Gordon
- Department of PhysicsNorth Carolina Agricultural and Technical State UniversityGreensboroNCUSA
- Applied Sciences and Technology PhD programNorth Carolina Agricultural and Technical State UniversityGreensboroNCUSA
| | - Kelsey R. Bilsback
- Department of Atmospheric ScienceColorado State UniversityFort CollinsCOUSA
- PSE Healthy EnergyOaklandCAUSA
| | - Marc N. Fiddler
- Department of ChemistryNorth Carolina Agricultural and Technical State UniversityGreensboroNCUSA
| | - Rudra P. Pokhrel
- Department of PhysicsNorth Carolina Agricultural and Technical State UniversityGreensboroNCUSA
- NOAA Chemical Sciences LaboratoryBoulderCOUSA
- Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental SciencesUniversity of Colorado BoulderBoulderCOUSA
| | - Emily V. Fischer
- Department of Atmospheric ScienceColorado State UniversityFort CollinsCOUSA
| | - Jeffrey R. Pierce
- Department of Atmospheric ScienceColorado State UniversityFort CollinsCOUSA
| | - Solomon Bililign
- Department of PhysicsNorth Carolina Agricultural and Technical State UniversityGreensboroNCUSA
- Applied Sciences and Technology PhD programNorth Carolina Agricultural and Technical State UniversityGreensboroNCUSA
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Islam MR, Welker J, Salam A, Stone EA. Plastic Burning Impacts on Atmospheric Fine Particulate Matter at Urban and Rural Sites in the USA and Bangladesh. ACS Environ Au 2022; 2:409-417. [PMID: 36164352 PMCID: PMC9502013 DOI: 10.1021/acsenvironau.1c00054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
To better understand the impact of plastic burning on atmospheric fine particulate matter (PM2.5), we evaluated two methods for the quantification of 1,3,5-triphenylbenzene (TPB), a molecular tracer of plastic burning. Compared to traditional solvent-extraction gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GCMS) techniques, thermal-desorption (TD) GCMS provided higher throughput, lower limits of detection, more precise spike recoveries, a wider linear quantification range, and reduced solvent use. This method enabled quantification of TPB in fine particulate matter (PM2.5) samples collected at rural and urban sites in the USA and Bangladesh. These analyses demonstrated a measurable impact of plastic burning at 5 of the 6 study locations, with the largest absolute and relative TPB concentrations occurring in Dhaka, Bangladesh, where plastic burning is expected to be a significant source of PM2.5. Background-level contributions of plastic burning in the USA were estimated to be 0.004-0.03 μg m-3 of PM2.5 mass. Across the four sites in the USA, the lower estimate of plastic burning contributions to PM2.5 ranged 0.04-0.8%, while the median estimate ranged 0.3-3% (save for Atlanta, Georgia, in the wintertime at 2-7%). The results demonstrate a consistent presence of plastic burning emissions in ambient PM2.5 across urban and rural sites in the USA, with a relatively small impact in comparison to other anthropogenic combustion sources in most cases. Much higher TPB concentrations were observed in Dhaka, with estimated plastic burning impacts on PM2.5 ranging from a lower estimate of 0.3-1.8 μg m-3 (0.6-2% of PM2.5) and the median estimate ranging 2-35 μg m-3 (5-15% of PM2.5). The methodological advances and new measurements presented herein help to assess the air quality impacts of burning plastic more broadly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Md. Robiul Islam
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, United States
| | - Josie Welker
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, United States
| | - Abdus Salam
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Dhaka, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh
| | - Elizabeth A. Stone
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, United States,Department
of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, United States,
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Fedak KM, Good N, Dahlke J, Hecobian A, Sullivan A, Zhou Y, Peel JL, Volckens J. Chemical Composition and Emissions Factors for Cookstove Startup (Ignition) Materials. Environ Sci Technol 2018; 52:9505-9513. [PMID: 30011986 PMCID: PMC7050414 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.8b02218] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
Air pollution from cookstoves creates a substantial human and environmental health burden. A disproportionate fraction of emissions can occur during stove ignition (startup) compared to main cooking, yet startup material emissions are poorly quantified. Laboratory tests were conducted to measure emissions from startups using kerosene, plastic bags, newspaper, fabric, food packaging, rubber tire tubes, kindling, footwear, and wood shims. Measured pollutants included: fine particulate matter mass (PM2.5), PM2.5 elemental and organic carbon, methane, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, benzene, and formaldehyde. Results demonstrate substantial variability in the measured emissions across materials on a per-startup basis. For example, kerosene emitted 496 mg PM2.5 and 999 mg CO per startup, whereas plastic bags emitted 2 mg PM2.5 and 30 mg CO. When considering emissions on a per-mass basis, the ordering of materials from highest-to-lowest emissions changes, emphasizing the importance of establishing how much material is needed to start a stove. The proportional contribution of startups to overall emissions varies depending on startup material type, stove type, and cooking event length; however, results demonstrate that startup materials can contribute substantially to a cookstove's emissions. Startup material choice is especially important for cleaner stove-fuel combinations where the marginal benefits of reduced emissions are potentially greater.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristen M. Fedak
- Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
- CORRESPONDING AUTHOR:
| | - Nicholas Good
- Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| | - Jordyn Dahlke
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| | - Arsineh Hecobian
- Department of Atmospheric Science, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| | - Amy Sullivan
- Department of Atmospheric Science, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| | - Yong Zhou
- Department of Atmospheric Science, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| | - Jennifer L. Peel
- Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| | - John Volckens
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
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