Air Pollution : Effects and Dangers

Air pollution from anthropogenic sources has been and continues to be considered a serious environmental problem affecting public health. Its seriousness lies in the fact that it raises the level of pollutants in places where their impact on human health is most likely. Therefore, air pollution is a major threat to public health worldwide. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) over two million premature deaths per year are attributable to the effects of outdoor and indoor air pollution. More than half of this burden of disease is borne by populations in developing countries. Epidemiological studies in several countries have shown that chronic exposure to traffic-related pollutants and chemicals and petrochemicals, such as particulate matter (PM), metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) associated with PM, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and inorganic gases (SO2, NOx, O3) produce adverse effects on development and affect lung function; along with an increase in respiratory diseases, often expressed in terms of diagnosed asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and cardiovascular effects and increased mortality. For all this, it is important to characterise and quantify air pollution and to recognize and assess the associated health effects, and different tools can be used individually or together. These tools are presented in this book, initially in introductory form (Chapters 1 to 3) and then in applied form in different case studies (Chapters 4 to 10) for the assessment of air pollution and associated risk.

Air pollution from anthropogenic sources has been and continues to be considered a serious environmental problem affecting public health. Its seriousness lies in the fact that it raises the level of pollutants in places where their impact on human health is most likely. Therefore, air pollution is a major threat to public health worldwide. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) over two million premature deaths per year are attributable to the effects of outdoor and indoor air pollution. More than half of this burden of disease is borne by populations in developing countries. Epidemiological studies in several countries have shown that chronic exposure to traffic-related pollutants and chemicals and petrochemicals, such as particulate matter (PM), metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) associated with PM, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and inorganic gases (SO2, NOx, O3) produce adverse effects on development and affect lung function; along with an increase in respiratory diseases, often expressed in terms of diagnosed asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and cardiovascular effects and increased mortality. For all this, it is important to characterise and quantify air pollution and to recognize and assess the associated health effects, and different tools can be used individually or together. These tools are presented in this book, initially in introductory form (Chapters 1 to 3) and then in applied form in different case studies (Chapters 4 to 10) for the assessment of air pollution and associated risk.