Assessment of Formaldehyde’s Impact on Indoor Environments and Human Health via the Integration of Satellite Tropospheric Total Columns and Outdoor Ground Sensors

Elena Barrese, Marco Valentini, Marialuisa Scarpelli, Pasquale Samele, Luana Malacaria, Francesco D’Amico () and Teresa Lo Feudo ()
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Elena Barrese: Department of Medicine, Epidemiology, Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, National Institute for Insurance Against Accidents at Work, Area Industriale Comp. 15, I-88046 Lamezia Terme, Catanzaro, Italy
Marco Valentini: Department of Medicine, Epidemiology, Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, National Institute for Insurance Against Accidents at Work, Area Industriale Comp. 15, I-88046 Lamezia Terme, Catanzaro, Italy
Marialuisa Scarpelli: Department of Medicine, Epidemiology, Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, National Institute for Insurance Against Accidents at Work, Area Industriale Comp. 15, I-88046 Lamezia Terme, Catanzaro, Italy
Pasquale Samele: Department of Medicine, Epidemiology, Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, National Institute for Insurance Against Accidents at Work, Area Industriale Comp. 15, I-88046 Lamezia Terme, Catanzaro, Italy
Luana Malacaria: Institute of Atmospheric Sciences and Climate, National Research Council of Italy, Area Industriale Comp. 15, I-88046 Lamezia Terme, Catanzaro, Italy
Francesco D’Amico: Institute of Atmospheric Sciences and Climate, National Research Council of Italy, Area Industriale Comp. 15, I-88046 Lamezia Terme, Catanzaro, Italy
Teresa Lo Feudo: Institute of Atmospheric Sciences and Climate, National Research Council of Italy, Area Industriale Comp. 15, I-88046 Lamezia Terme, Catanzaro, Italy

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 22, 1-21

Abstract: Formaldehyde (HCHO) is harmful to human health and an adequate assessment of its concentrations, both in outdoor and indoor environments, is necessary in the context of sustainable policies designed to mitigate health risks. In this research, ground indoor and outdoor HCHO measurements are integrated with the analysis of tropospheric total columns obtained by satellite surveys to assess the concentrations of HCHO in a number of environments, exploiting the proximity of a World Meteorological Organization—Global Atmosphere Watch (WMO/GAW) observation site in Calabria, Southern Italy to a National Institute for Insurance against Accidents at Work (INAIL) department in the municipality of Lamezia Terme. The meteorological parameters used by the WMO station are also used to provide additional data and test new correlations. Using statistical significance tests, this study demonstrates the presence of a correlation between indoor and outdoor HCHO concentrations, thus showing that an exchange between indoor and outdoor formaldehyde does occur. Rooms located in the local INAIL building where indoor measurements took place also demonstrate degrees of susceptibility to HCHO exposure, which are correlated with the orientation of prevailing wind corridors in the area. The new findings constitute an unprecedented characterization of HCHO hazards in Calabria and provide regulators with new tools with which to mitigate formaldehyde-related risks.

Keywords: Lamezia Terme; formaldehyde; sustainability; SP5; indoor air quality; outdoor air quality; urban planning (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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