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Air Pollution Characteristics and Health Risks in the Yangtze River Economic Belt, China during Winter

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  • Mao Mao

    (School of Binjiang, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Wuxi 214105, China
    Key Laboratory for Aerosol-Cloud-Precipitation of China Meteorological Administration, School of Atmospheric Physics, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing 210044, China)

  • Haofei Sun

    (Key Laboratory for Aerosol-Cloud-Precipitation of China Meteorological Administration, School of Atmospheric Physics, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing 210044, China)

  • Xiaolin Zhang

    (Key Laboratory for Aerosol-Cloud-Precipitation of China Meteorological Administration, School of Atmospheric Physics, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing 210044, China)

Abstract

The air pollution characteristics of six ambient criteria pollutants, including particulate matter (PM) and trace gases, in 29 typical cities across the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) from December 2017 to February 2018 are analyzed. The overall average mass concentrations of PM 2.5 , PM 10 , SO 2 , CO, NO 2 , and O 3 are 73, 104, 16, 1100, 47, and 62 µg/m 3 , respectively. PM 2.5 , PM 10 , and NO 2 are the dominant major pollutants to poor air quality, with nearly 83%, 86%, and 59%, exceeding the Chinese Ambient Air Quality Standard Grade I. The situation of PM pollution in the middle and lower reaches is more serious than that in the upper reaches, and the north bank is more severe than the south bank of the Yangtze River. Strong positive spatial correlations for PM concentrations between city pairs within 300 km is frequently observed. NO 2 pollution is primarily concentrated in the Suzhou-Wuxi-Changzhou urban agglomeration and surrounding areas. The health risks are assessed by the comparison of the classification of air pollution levels with three approaches: air quality index (AQI), aggregate AQI (AAQI), and health risk-based AQI (HAQI). When the AQI values escalate, the air pollution classifications based on the AAQI and HAQI values become more serious. The HAQI approach can better report the comprehensive health effects from multipollutant air pollution. The population-weighted HAQI data in the winter exhibit that 50%, 70%, and 80% of the population in the upstream, midstream, and downstream of the YREB are exposed to polluted air (HAQI > 100). The current air pollution status in YREB needs more effective efforts to improve the air quality.

Suggested Citation

  • Mao Mao & Haofei Sun & Xiaolin Zhang, 2020. "Air Pollution Characteristics and Health Risks in the Yangtze River Economic Belt, China during Winter," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(24), pages 1-17, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:24:p:9172-:d:458730
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Mao Mao & Xiaolin Zhang & Yan Yin, 2018. "Particulate Matter and Gaseous Pollutions in Three Metropolises along the Chinese Yangtze River: Situation and Implications," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-29, May.
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    5. J. Lelieveld & J. S. Evans & M. Fnais & D. Giannadaki & A. Pozzer, 2015. "The contribution of outdoor air pollution sources to premature mortality on a global scale," Nature, Nature, vol. 525(7569), pages 367-371, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Mao Mao & Liuxintian Rao & Huan Jiang & Siqi He & Xiaolin Zhang, 2022. "Air Pollutants in Metropolises of Eastern Coastal China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(22), pages 1-16, November.
    2. Weiguang Wang & Yangyang Wang, 2023. "Regional Differences, Dynamic Evolution and Driving Factors Analysis of PM 2.5 in the Yangtze River Economic Belt," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-24, February.
    3. Lining Zhu & Yu Zhang & Zheng Wu & Chengcheng Zhang, 2021. "Spatio-Temporal Characteristics of SO 2 across Weifang from 2008 to 2020," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(22), pages 1-17, November.
    4. Dan Yan & Guoliang Chen & Yu Lei & Qi Zhou & Chengjun Liu & Fan Su, 2022. "Spatiotemporal Regularity and Socioeconomic Drivers of the AQI in the Yangtze River Delta of China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(15), pages 1-19, July.

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