Health Risk Assessment of Inhalable Particulate Matter in Beijing Based on the Thermal Environment

Lin-Yu Xu, Hao Yin and Xiao-Dong Xie
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Lin-Yu Xu: State Key Joint Laboratory of Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, No. 19, Xinjiekouwai Street, Haidian District, Beijing 100875, China
Hao Yin: State Key Joint Laboratory of Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, No. 19, Xinjiekouwai Street, Haidian District, Beijing 100875, China
Xiao-Dong Xie: State Key Joint Laboratory of Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, No. 19, Xinjiekouwai Street, Haidian District, Beijing 100875, China

IJERPH, 2014, vol. 11, issue 12, 1-21

Abstract: Inhalable particulate matter (PM 10 ) is a primary air pollutant closely related to public health, and an especially serious problem in urban areas. The urban heat island (UHI) effect has made the urban PM 10 pollution situation more complex and severe. In this study, we established a health risk assessment system utilizing an epidemiological method taking the thermal environment effects into consideration. We utilized a remote sensing method to retrieve the PM 10 concentration, UHI, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), and Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI). With the correlation between difference vegetation index (DVI) and PM 10 concentration, we utilized the established model between PM 10 and thermal environmental indicators to evaluate the PM 10 health risks based on the epidemiological study. Additionally, with the regulation of UHI, NDVI and NDWI, we aimed at regulating the PM 10 health risks and thermal environment simultaneously. This study attempted to accomplish concurrent thermal environment regulation and elimination of PM 10 health risks through control of UHI intensity. The results indicate that urban Beijing has a higher PM 10 health risk than rural areas; PM 10 health risk based on the thermal environment is 1.145, which is similar to the health risk calculated (1.144) from the PM 10 concentration inversion; according to the regulation results, regulation of UHI and NDVI is effective and helpful for mitigation of PM 10 health risk in functional zones.

Keywords: PM 10; urban heat island (UHI); remote sensing; health risk (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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