Air Pollution Science

Air Pollution Science term used interchangeably with air quality research physics and chemistry of the atmosphere as they pertain to air pollution outdoor aka ambient air, not indoor (domestic) air occupational air other air pollution exposure environments meteorology relevant to air pollution Page 2 January-28-13

Overview Part I: Air Pollution from Emission to Exposure Part II: Pollutants in Ambient Air Part III: Creating Better Connections Page 3 January-28-13

Part I: Air Pollution From Emission to Exposure Page 4 January-28-13 http://iaqanews.com/?p=161

The Earth s Atmosphere air mostly gas particles water/aqueous droplets weather radiation transmission and absorption Page 5 January-28-13 from Lutgens and Tarbuck, 2001

Solar Radiation Science Learning Hub (NZ) http://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/science-stories/harnessing-the-sun/sci-media/animations-and-interactives/the-electromagnetic-spectrum Page 6 January-28-13

The Earth s Atmosphere ozone (O 3 ) layer Page 7 January-28-13 from Lutgens and Tarbuck, 2001

Stratospheric Ozone Depletion ozone depletion allows more UV to reach surface adverse health effects international treaty (Montreal Protocol) public communication tool (UV Index) Page 8 January-28-13

The UV Index http://www.ec.gc.ca/publications/default.asp?lang=en&xml=9c0a3543-2db7-4673-905d-0541e9622c68 Page 9 January-28-13

Ozone One Compound, Two Problems Stratospheric ozone problem is depletion depletion of natural compound by human-made chemicals reacting in the stratosphere Tropospheric ozone (ground-level ozone) problem is excess excess caused by natural and human-made chemicals reacting in the troposphere ground-level ozone is a secondary pollutant Page 10 January-28-13

Primary and Secondary Pollutants primary pollutant emitted from source in same form as it appears in ambient air peaks near source secondary pollutant emitted from source and transformed by physical and/or chemical processes in ambient air peaks downwind of source Page 11 January-28-13

Air Pollution Processes From Emission to Ambient Air transformation POLLUTED AIR R x secondary pollutant emission primary pollutant SOURCES Page 12 January-28-13

Air Pollution Processes From Emission to Inhalation Exposure transformation POLLUTED AIR R x emission secondary pollutant primary pollutant inhalation EXPOSED HUMAN POPULATION SOURCES Page 13 January-28-13

USDA Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Electron Microscopy Unit http://www.giss.nasa.gov/research/briefs/hansen_10/ Atmospheric Deposition transfer of pollutants between air and surface wet deposition rain snow dry deposition dustfall gas transfer subsequent storage in water, soil, vegetation accumulation in biota Page 14 January-28-13

Air Pollution Processes From Emission to Exposure transformation POLLUTED AIR R x emission SOURCES secondary pollutant primary pollutant deposition ECOSYSTEM inhalation ingestion EXPOSED HUMAN POPULATION Page 15 January-28-13

Air Pollution Processes Where Air Quality and Public Health Meet transformation POLLUTED AIR R x emission SOURCES secondary pollutant primary pollutant deposition ECOSYSTEM inhalation ingestion EXPOSED HUMAN POPULATION AQ Page 16 January-28-13 PH

NAPS Network Stations http://www.ec.gc.ca/rnspa-naps/default.asp?lang=en&n=8be12df0-1 Page 17 January-28-13

Filling in Measurement Gaps Correlation Methods Wheeler et al. (2008) Env. Res. 106:7-16. Page 18 January-28-13

Filling in the Gaps AQ Modelling http://www.ec.gc.ca/air/default.asp?lang=en&n=72f82c27-1&offset=5 Page 19 January-28-13

Part II: Pollutants in Ambient Air Page 20 January-28-13 Galarneau Kaohsiung, Taiwan, 2007

Smog Smog = Smoky Fog Great Smog of 1952 London, UK 4,000 deaths soot from coal burning Page 21 January-28-13 Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images http://www.theworld.org/2012/12/londons-great-smog-of-1952/

Photochemical Smog particulate matter (PM) + ground-level ozone http://www.torontosun.com/2012/05/25/the-inconvenient-truth Page 22 January-28-13

PM Size Range http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/file:airborne-particulate-size-chart.jpg Page 23 January-28-13

http://www.smuc.ac.uk/sport/facilit ies/athletics-track.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ File:Squash_1.jpg PM Size Range Context Squash ball 40 mm Running oval 400 m = 400,000 mm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/file:airborne-particulate-size-chart.jpg Page 24 January-28-13

PM Size Determines Lung Penetration Andrade et al. (2011) Nanomedicine 6:123-141 Page 25 January-28-13

PM Size Terminology TSP Total suspended particles PM 10 Particulate matter less than 10 mm in diameter PM 2.5 Particulate matter less than 2.5 mm in diameter Coarse particles Between 2.5 and 10 mm Fine particles Less than 2.5 mm Ultrafine particles (UFP) Less than 0.1 mm in diameter Page 26 January-28-13

Interface Between PH and AQ PH What is the target level of PM 2.5? Canada-Wide Standard = 30 mg/m3 98 th percentile of 24-hr average concentrations for each year averaged over 3 years AQ What is the actual level of PM 2.5? Measured concentration Page 27 January-28-13

Map of PM 2.5 Canada-Wide Standard Page 28 January-28-13

How Can PM Be Reduced? we can t control natural emissions transformation removal we can control anthropogenic emissions determine anthropogenic emission contribution to ambient concentration Page 29 January-28-13

Source Apportionment Receptor Modelling emission profiles relative abundance of chemical constituents by source COMPARE TO ambient concentration profile relative abundance of chemical constituents in ambient air BUT emission profiles must have unique characteristics for each source profiles must not be altered by transformations and losses between emission and ambient air Page 30 January-28-13

Flowchart of an Air Quality Model INPUT Emissions Meteorology Processes (transformation, deposition, etc.) OUTPUT Ambient Concentrations Indices, Exceedances Page 31 January-28-13

Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) Combines data for three pollutants Ozone PM Nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ) http://www.ec.gc.ca/cas-aqhi/ Page 32 January-28-13

AQHI Health Messages Page 33 January-28-13

Air Pollution Issues at EC stratospheric ozone depletion smog/visibility particulate matter ground-level ozone acid rain ecosystem health issue hazardous air pollutants/air toxics POPs and mercury other air toxics Page 34 January-28-13

POPs and Mercury persistent organic pollutants legacy POPs: pesticides (DDT), industrial chemicals (PCBs), combustion by-products (dioxins) emerging POPs: flame retardants, plasticizers, personal care products human and ecosystem effects through deposition followed by magnification in the food chain capable of long-range transport found in Canadian Arctic far from local sources due to grasshopper effect Page 35 January-28-13

The Grasshopper Effect http://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/nym2/page005.html Page 36 January-28-13

POPs Properties PBT = persistent + bioaccumulative + toxic legacy POPs banned in Canada for decades fish consumption advisories in Ontario still due to dioxins, toxaphene and mercury emerging POPs identified by similarity to legacy POPs Page 37 January-28-13

Mature vs. Emerging Issues Mature science well-understood programs and treaties in place public awareness through education and communication tools Emerging science is exploratory research programs with little source control in place less public awareness Page 38 January-28-13

Air Toxics/Hazardous Air Pollutants US: National Air Toxics Assessment (NATA) program determine risk associated with exposure to ambient air pollution Canada: Air Toxics in Canada (ATiC) US Clean Air Act list of HAPs ambient concentrations national multi-year average and maximum values air quality standards Ontario AAQCs Page 39 January-28-13

Hazard Quotient Ambient Hazard Quotients 10000 1000 100 10 1 0.1 0.01 0.001 0.0001 Benzo[a]pyrene Ethylene oxide Benzene (including benzene from gasoline) Acrolein Acrylonitrile Carbon tetrachloride Dioxin TEQ Chloroform Ethylene dichloride (1,2-Dichloroethane) Formaldehyde Pentachlorophenol Vinyl chloride Cadmium Compounds 1,3-Butadiene Naphthalene Trichloroethylene Lead Compounds Manganese Compounds Nickel Compounds Xylenes (isomers and mixture) Arsenic Compounds (inorganic including arsine) Methylene chloride (Dichloromethane) 1,4-Dichlorobenzene(p) Tetrachloroethylene (Perchloroethylene) Styrene Mean Maximum Galarneau and Dann (2011) Page 40 January-28-13

ATiC Future Work total exposure relative to ambient air air quality standards Precautionary Principle compound list mixtures Page 41 January-28-13

Part III: Creating Better Connections Page 42 January-28-13

http://cires.colorado.edu/jim enez-group/hramssd/ AQ Measurement Trends more chemical species, size segregation, faster time resolution http://www.npl.co.uk/science-technology/chemicalmetrology/research/ion-chromatography 0.1 0.5 mm 2.5 5.0 mm Galarneau Page 43 January-28-13

Questions for Public Health Professionals How can air quality measurements be of better use to you? Frequency of measurements Spatial distribution of measurements Which compounds need more attention? Page 44 January-28-13

Some Useful AQ Tools Emissions National Pollutant Release Inventory Ambient Concentrations NAPS CAPMoN IADN Page 45 January-28-13

National Pollutant Release Inventory Page 46 January-28-13

NPRI Query Result Page 47 January-28-13

Ambient Concentrations in Canada NAPS http://www.ec.gc.ca/rnspa-naps/ CAPMoN http://www.ec.gc.ca/rsmn/default.asp?lang=en&n=752ce271-1 IADN https://www.ec.gc.ca/rsmn/default.asp?lang=en&n=bfe9d3a3-1 Page 48 January-28-13

Comments or Questions? Elisabeth Galarneau Air Quality Research Division Environment Canada elisabeth.galarneau@ec.gc.ca Page 49 January-28-13