Chemical Engineering Department, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.
Water Resources and Environmental Engineering Department, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.
J Environ Manage. 2024 Nov;370:122975. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.122975. Epub 2024 Oct 22.
Cement factories significantly contribute to atmospheric pollution by generating fine particulate matter (PM), which can potentially increase the mortality risk. The lack of information on the health impacts of PM pollution from cement operations in Brazil prompted this investigation. We used corrected PM measurements from low-cost sensors from March 2021 to October 2022 in Rio Branco do Sul, city in the southern region of the country and home to Latin America's largest cement plant, to assess exposure data. Disability-adjusted life years (DALY) method was applied to estimate the years of life lost (YLL) and cost estimate due to deaths from non-accidental causes, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. The total YLL attributable to PM concentration was estimated by calculating the attributable fraction (AF) through relative risk. We also collected PM using a Harvard impactor to evaluate health risks from toxic metals components. During the study period, the analysis of chemical characterization of PM showed enrichment factors for most elements and the possible influence of the calcination process facilities on the PM levels. The mean concentration of PM exceeded the annual WHO air quality guideline (AQG) level, accounted for 3.5%, 4.7%, and 4.3% of total YLL from all causes, cardiovascular, and respiratory diseases, which corresponded to 0.23 (95% CI: 0.17-0.26), 0.06 (95% CI: 0.05-0.07) and 0.03 (95% CI: 0.01-0.06) years loss in life expectancy, respectively. An indirect health cost attributable to PM resulted in US$ 1.4 million, equivalent to about 3.5% of the total local annual health costs in Rio Branco do Sul, underscoring the significant financial burden of PM exposures. The greatest economic loss was found in the male age group of 40-69 years and among those with cardiovascular disease, rather than those with respiratory disease. Despite this, the carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks from inhalation of hazardous elements were within safe ranges. This work demonstrated PurpleAir's potential for air quality and public health applications. Our findings indicate health and economic benefits from reducing PM levels by adopting WHO air pollution standards. The results can guide policies toward delivering more effective health care.
水泥厂通过产生细颗粒物（PM）对大气污染造成重大影响，而这些细颗粒物可能会增加死亡率。由于巴西水泥厂的 PM 污染对健康的影响信息缺乏，因此开展了这项研究。我们使用 2021 年 3 月至 2022 年 10 月在该国南部地区的里奥布兰科杜苏尔市的低成本传感器进行修正后的 PM 测量值来评估暴露数据。我们应用校正生命年（DALY）方法来估计非意外原因、心血管和呼吸系统疾病导致的死亡人数的损失年数（YLL）和成本估算。通过相对风险计算归因分数（AF）来估计归因于 PM 浓度的总 YLL。我们还使用 Harvard 撞击器收集 PM，以评估有毒金属成分造成的健康风险。在研究期间，对 PM 的化学特征分析表明，大多数元素的富集因子以及煅烧过程设施对 PM 水平的可能影响。PM 的平均浓度超过了世界卫生组织（WHO）的年度空气质量指导值（AQG）水平，占所有原因、心血管和呼吸系统疾病的总 YLL 的 3.5%、4.7%和 4.3%，相当于预期寿命减少 0.23 年（95%CI：0.17-0.26）、0.06 年（95%CI：0.05-0.07）和 0.03 年（95%CI：0.01-0.06）。归因于 PM 的间接健康成本达到 140 万美元，相当于里奥布兰科杜苏尔市当年全部卫生费用的 3.5%左右，突显了 PM 暴露造成的巨大经济负担。经济损失最大的是 40-69 岁的男性年龄组和患有心血管疾病的人，而不是患有呼吸系统疾病的人。尽管如此，吸入危险元素造成的致癌和非致癌风险仍处于安全范围内。这项工作展示了 PurpleAir 在空气质量和公共卫生应用方面的潜力。我们的研究结果表明，通过采用世界卫生组织的空气污染标准，降低 PM 水平可以带来健康和经济效益。研究结果可以为制定更有效的医疗保健政策提供指导。
