Air pollution has major impact on children in sport, study warns

Posted on February 12, 2020 by Respro® UK Ltd

Breathe GB warns of damage to lungs and performance in survey of training grounds

Britain’s future sporting performance could be hampered by air pollution because some training grounds are in areas with dangerously high pollution levels, a report has revealed.

The Breathe GB study analysed pollution levels at 94 sporting sites, with one of the highest recorded levels at Birmingham’s Perry Park, host of the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Other important training grounds, such as the running track where Sir Mo Farah and Christine Ohuruogu trained, have pollution levels that breach World Health Organization (WHO) recommended limits.

The study suggests children exercising in areas of high pollution will experience stunted lung function that will limit their future sporting performance.

Dr Ian Mudway, a senior lecturer in respiratory toxicology at King’s College London, said: “A child growing up with asthma in a polluted city will have worse symptoms that will limit their potential to train … which is likely to have an impact on their optimal level of performance.”

Jonathan Grigg, a professor of paediatric respiratory and environmental medicine at Queen Mary University, said: “There is very strong evidence that exposure to air pollution stunts children’s lung function. Children with clinically low lung function will have reduced exercise capacity.”

At the launch of the report on Tuesday morning, Mark Bergin, a PE teacher from Manorfield primary school in Poplar, east London, said: “There are elements that we can see now because there is such an increase in the number of children who have asthma pumps; I’ve noticed that over the last 10 years or so of working in education.”

To produce the report, campaign group The Air Team spoke with senior respiratory consultants, as well as leaders in physical education, to assess the effects of air pollution on children’s lung function and sporting ability.

They also assessed air pollution at 94 sports sites in England and found that 25 broke WHO recommended limits, while 52 came close to the threshold.

Perry Park was the third most polluted of the sites across London, Birmingham, Nottingham, Salford and Sheffield, with an annual mean level of 50 micrograms of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) a cubic metre of air (μg/m3) – the WHO recommends a safe level of 40μg/m3.

The training grounds of Ridgeway Rovers, where David Beckham and Harry Kane formerly played, and Alpha & Omega FC, Raheem Sterling’s former youth team, have fine particulate matter levels (PM2.5) of 11, above WHO recommended limits.

St Augustine’s Hall, home of the Victoria Park Harriers and Tower Hamlets athletics club, had the highest air pollution levels out of those assessed, with 67 NO2 μg/m3.

Ben Paul, an Air Team campaigner who lives in Bloomsbury, central London with his 10-year-old son, said: “It’s like how it took time for the full health impacts of smoking to be understood. I think this could be a ticking time bomb for our children.

“Kids’ lung capacity can reduce by up to 14% if they live in a high pollution area. Wouldn’t it be great if we could get 14% more medals at the next Olympics?”

The Air Team is calling on sports organisations, MPs, schools and athletes to back their Breathe GB campaign. Its spokeswoman, Anella Wickenden, said: “If you care about British sport, you need to care about air pollution.”

via Air pollution has major impact on children in sport, study warns | Environment | The Guardian

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Sofia’s Air is Dangerous Again

Posted on February 10, 2020 by Respro® UK Ltd

The air in Sofia was dangerously polluted last night, according to official data from the municipality, BNR reported. Exceedance of the reference limits for the content of fine particulate matter in the air has been reported by all stations except the one in the Kopitoto mountain area and the non-working one in the Nadezhda neighborhood.

Once again, Sofia ranked 18th in the world in terms of air pollution.

The pollution levels are not high enough for a green ticket to be introduced, but other measures, such as checks on construction sites and other industrial and household sources of pollution, will be in place.

According to the European Air Quality Index, except in Sofia, there are also dangerous exceedances of fine particulate matter in Plovdiv, Veliko Turnovo, Ruse and Pernik.

via Sofia’s Air is Dangerous Again – Novinite.com – Sofia News Agency

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Study details how auto emissions pose human health problems worldwide

Posted on February 7, 2020 by Respro® UK Ltd

Ultrafine particles in the atmosphere are unregulated, according to the World Health Organization, but a team of international researchers that includes a Texas A&M University professor and two graduate students has found that auto emissions are a key factor in the creation of the particles, and pose a significant health problem in many urban areas.

Renyi Zhang, Texas A&M distinguished professor of atmospheric sciences and the Harold J. Haynes Chair in Geosciences, and colleagues from the University of Texas at Austin, the University of California-San Diego, the California Institute of Technology, Johns Hopkins University and several Chinese universities have published their work in the latest issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The team studied auto emissions relevant to urban areas, especially Beijing, which has some of the highest levels of auto exhaust pollution in the world.

It found that auto exhaust plays a part in the creation of large amounts of ultrafine particles. These tiny particles have been proven detrimental to air quality and human health, and have been linked to birth defects.

“This has been an emerging area for research,” Zhang said. “Ultrafine particles can penetrate easily through human lungs and reach many vital organs. The impacts of ultrafine particles on human health can be far-reaching. Currently, ultrafine particles are unregulated. They can be present in high concentrations, but you still see blue sky.”

The air quality standards established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) only limit the mass concentration of PM2.5—referring to particles smaller than 2.5 microns—for human health concerns. Ultrafine particles have negligibly small masses and are produced more efficiently when the atmospheric PM2.5 levels are low, according to the study.

“Our measurements are representative of typical urban environments worldwide, since the gasoline fleet of the commonly used vehicle models in China is equivalent to those in Europe and the United States,” the researchers wrote in the paper.

“The problem of ultrafine particles is as important in China as in the U.S. Reduction in PM2.5 to improve air quality could exacerbate pollution of ultrafine particles,” Zhang said.

The implementation of the Clean Air Act in 1990 has resulted in noticeable reduction in PM2.5 over the United States. “Protecting public health needs simultaneous reduction in both types of particles,” Zhang said. “Sound science is essential to guide the regulatory policies.”

While finding ways to reduce ultrafine particles will require much more research, Zhang says drivers using electric cars would almost certainly help. But that could be years in the future, since electric vehicles currently make up less than 1 percent of over 1 billion vehicles on roads worldwide.

Zhang said the study shows for the first time “that traffic emissions are a major source for ultrafine particles. Our studies show that aromatic organic compounds from auto exhaust form these ultrafine particles. They form in any cities from car exhaust, such as Houston, New York City, and Washington, D.C. Residents who live close to highways or congested roads are particularly vulnerable.

“This is a frontier area in air pollution. Producing close to 1 million nanoparticles per cc in air is a serious matter of concern,” he said.

via Study details how auto emissions pose human health problems worldwide

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Nearly half of all childhood asthma cases in Barcelona are attributable to air pollution

Posted on February 6, 2020 by Respro® UK Ltd

As many as 1,230 cases of childhood asthma in Barcelona–48% of the total–could be attributable to air pollution each year. This is the main conclusion of a new study led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), a centre supported by “la Caixa”. The study also finds that childhood asthma related to air pollution may have a larger effect on the city’s less socially deprived children.

Asthma is the most common chronic childhood disease and has been associated with increased morbidity and mortality. A recent study by ISGlobal, which used the Health Impact Assessment (HIA) methodology, found that 33% of new childhood asthma cases in Europe were attributable to air pollution.

The new study used the same quantitative approach to estimate the number of childhood asthma cases in the city of Barcelona attributable to three main air pollutants: nitrogen dioxide (NO2), particulate matter (PM2.5) and black carbon (BC). The study, published in Environmental Research, relied on census data for the city of Barcelona. Asthma incidence rates in children between 1 and 18 years of age were collected from the Global Burden of Disease database. Exposure levels for the three pollutants were calculated using a land-use regression model (LUR).

To estimate the burden of childhood asthma, the researchers considered two different scenarios. The first scenario was based on the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines for maximum air pollution exposure levels. The second scenario reflected the minimum levels of air pollution reported in various scientific studies.

In the first scenario, the researchers found that if the WHO guidelines on annual exposure levels were met, as many as 478 childhood asthma cases attributable to PM2.5 (19% of all cases) and 454 cases attributable to NO2 (18%) could be prevented in Barcelona each year. In the second scenario, if air pollution were reduced to the minimum reported levels, as many as 1,230 childhood asthma cases attributable to NO2 (48% of all asthma cases), 992 cases attributable to PM2.5 (39%) and 789 cases attributable to BC (31%) could be prevented in Barcelona each year.

David Rojas, researcher at ISGlobal and the Colorado State University and coordinator of the study, commented: “This is the first quantitative health impact assessment to include multiple pollutants–NO2, PM2.5 and BC–and the development of childhood asthma, with an environmental health equity perspective in Barcelona.”

The study also described the distribution of air pollution impacts on the development of childhood asthma by socioeconomic status. Using the MEDEA index, which incorporates various indicators related to education and employment status, the researchers classified the population of Barcelona by deprivation level. In general, differences between socioeconomic groups were found for all of the air pollutants studied. David Rojas, coordinator of the study, commented: “Our analysis found more air pollution and subsequently more childhood asthma cases among the less disadvantaged groups in the city.” He also added “in Barcelona, unlike other cities, the wealthy population tends to live where more traffic and air pollution are.”

“Road transport is one of the major air pollution sources”, commented Mark Nieuwenhuijsen, director of the Urban Planning, Environment and Health Initiative at ISGlobal. “Barcelona urgently needs interventions to reduce the amount of motor-vehicle traffic, which has a negative impact on the health of the city’s children. “Reducing traffic does not only reduce air pollution, but also reduce noise and heat island effects and increases physical activity which are all beneficial to health”, he adds.

via Nearly half of all childhood asthma cases in Barcelona are attributable to air pollution | EurekAlert! Science News

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North Texans breathed polluted air nearly 30% of 2018, report says

Posted on February 6, 2020 by Respro® UK Ltd

Air quality in Dallas-Fort Worth reached above-normal pollution levels on 106 days, according to the report.

Air quality in Dallas-Fort Worth reached above-normal pollution levels on 106 days in 2018, according to a new report by the Environment Texas Research and Policy Center.

North Texans were among the 108 million Americans who lived in areas that saw more than 100 days of poor air quality in 2018, according to the report.

The Dallas-Fort Worth area’s 106 days of poor air quality put the metropolitan area at No. 10 among the country’s 10 most-populated metro areas with more than 100 days of poor air quality.

The Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario area in California, east of Los Angeles, took the top spot with 227 days with above-normal pollution levels, according to the report. It was followed by the San Diego area with 160 days.

The Houston area landed in the ninth spot, with 110 days with elevated air pollution.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality did not respond to a request for comment.

Air pollution in North Texas came from several sources, including, gasoline, diesel, natural gas, coal and fossil fuels used for transportation, and other industrial processes, according to the report. That pollution creates ozone, which is the main component of smog, and particulate matter.

Particulate matter can have harmful effects on cardiovascular and respiratory systems, leading to health problems such as asthma attacks, heart attacks and strokes, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Ozone pollution can also cause asthma attacks, and even cause lung damage after long-term exposure, according to the EPA.

A separate report released late last year by Environment Texas Research and Policy Center found that industrial facilities in North Texas released 78,737 pounds of pollution into the air during 2017 without a permit authorizing them to do so.

Across Texas, industrial facilities reported releasing more than 63 million pounds of pollution into the air without permission in 2017, an increase of 27 percent compared with the previous year, the report found. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has the authority to issue fines for as much as $2.3 billion for the violations, but the report found that the TCEQ issued only $1.2 million in fines in 2017.

In a changing climate, the center’s latest report warns that days when pollution levels are above normal could increase. Warmer weather, for example, could help the formation of ozone, and drier conditions combined with warm weather could also increase how often wildfires occur and how intense they could be, the report said.

via North Texans breathed polluted air nearly 30% of 2018, report says

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Global Transport of Smoke from Australian Bushfires

Posted on February 5, 2020 by Respro® UK Ltd

 

The local impacts of the Australian bushfires have been devastating to property and life in Australia while producing extreme air quality impacts throughout the region. As smoke from the massive fires has interacted with the global weather, the transport of smoke plumes around the global have accelerated through deep vertical transport into the upper troposphere and even the lowermost stratosphere, leading to long-range transport around the globe. The smoke from these bushfires will travel across the Southern Ocean completing a global circumnavigation back around to Australia and is particularly pronounced across the southern Pacific Ocean out to South America.

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New research shows outdoor workers are exposed to 15% more pollution than the average Londoner

Posted on February 4, 2020 by Respro® UK Ltd

We are building the evidence base that proves government must act on air quality says British Safety Council.

An app developed by King College London as part of the British Safety Council’s Time to Breathe campaign is building on a growing evidence base that proves outdoor workers are exposed to air pollution well above the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) recommended limits. However, huge variance in quality and coverage of air quality measurement across the UK suggests the problem could be greater than previously thought.

The app gathers data based on London’s air quality monitoring stations and gives individual users a read-out of the air pollution they are exposed to at work. The first data release from British Safety Council confirms that outdoor workers are put at more risk than average Londoners. The WHO says that air pollution is now the world’s largest single environmental health risk and that reducing air pollution could save millions of lives. As well as campaigning to improve ambient air quality the British Safety Council is working on practical solutions to reduce the risks for outdoor workers.

Over six months the Canairy app has gathered data from a sample of Londoners. Outdoor workers were exposed to air pollution averages higher than guidelines for NO2, particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) and Ozone. Some maximum exposures were nearly two thirds higher than recommended WHO limits. The workers were in two groups, some mostly working in offices and others mostly working outside. Although both groups were exposed to high levels of air pollution, those working outside are exposed to worse pollution than the average Londoner.

The British Safety Council launched Time to Breathe in March 2019. The campaign offers the Canairy app free to give workers and employers information about air pollution exposure as well as providing free advice and guidance. The British Safety Council has called on the government to adopt WHO guidelines in the new Environment Bill. In March 2020 the British Safety Council will be taking the campaign to Manchester to highlight the limitations of air pollution monitoring outside London.

Speaking today at the British Safety Council’s offices in London, head of campaigns Matthew Holder said:

“The first data release confirms that outdoor workers are being exposed to high levels of air pollution with all the health risks that carries. Canairy confirms what we also thought – if you work outside in a city or near a busy road you are putting your health at risk. What is new is that we now have the technology for individual workers to record their exposure. With Canairy and other forms of measurement we are building the evidence base that makes the case for change. As a first step we must urgently adopt the WHO guidelines on PM2.5. But we also need investment in measurement so we can understand who is at risk and how people can limit their exposure to harmful air pollution.”

He went on to say:

“I am really pleased that since we launched this campaign in 2019, we have seen employers ready to take responsibility for protecting their workers from pollution. A new steering group has been established of leading construction and infrastructure companies to look at how we can mitigate the impact of air pollution on outdoor workers. But as well as employers doing their bit, we need national and local government to invest in measurement across the country so that apps like Canairy can give an accurate picture of the pollution workers are breathing in.”

You can read the full report here: Outdoor worker exposure in London: first release from Canairy

via New research shows outdoor workers are exposed to 15% more pollution than the average Londoner | PoliticsHome.com

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Slovenia’s Worst Air Pollution in Celje, Zagorje & Murska Sobota

Posted on January 31, 2020 by Respro® UK Ltd

Slovenia’s most polluted cities are located in the east of the country, with air quality improving compared to the situation half a century ago, shows a survey by the National Institute of Public Health. However, air pollution is still the key environmental factor affecting health and premature mortality rates, the newspaper Delo reports Thursday.

The air in Celje and Zagorje in the east, and Murska Sobota in the north-east is found to be the most polluted in Slovenia in terms of particle pollution. The daily concentration of dust particles in these cities exceeds the statutory limit more than 35 times per year.

Excessive particle pollution was also recorded in Maribor, as well as Hrastnik and Trbovlje which, like Zagorje, are situated in the industry-heavy Zasavje region, shows the survey on Slovenians’ mortality rates in cities plagued by particle pollution.

Poor air quality has a significant detrimental effect on cardiovascular disease, according to the National Institute of Public Health. Between 2016 and 2018, when the study was conducted, almost 1,000 people died from pollution-related causes, accounting for almost 25% of all deaths in the cities in the study.

Up to 70 cardiac patients per year die due to air pollution health ramifications in Ljubljana, while in Celje citizens were exposed to excessive levels of PM10 particles in the air for almost a month and a half in total last year.

Due to air pollution, aggravated by traffic and, most notably, household emissions, Slovenia records 1,700 cases of premature deaths, shows the Environment Agency data.

via Slovenia’s Worst Air Pollution in Celje, Zagorje & Murska Sobota

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