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Evidence Supports Air Pollution
Unbelievable as it may seem, the quality of air you breath is making a significant
difference in your health outcome and operating system, as evidence from
the research that is steadily being presented.
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Research network has evidence to support air-pollution efforts
28 February 2007 - Waterloo Chronicle
A University of Waterloo-based research network says
scientific evidence of the effects of air pollution on human health
and the environment is clear enough to support global efforts to
continue reducing outdoor levels.
The Network for Risk Assessment and Management (NERAM) has developed
with international experts a 12-point plan -- parts of which have been
adopted in Europe -- to fight air pollution and improve public health.
The plan, a policy guidance document on air-quality management for
local, regional and national policy-makers, is the result of a
five-year NERAM colloquium series.
"It is now universally recognized that poor air quality has adverse
impacts on human health and research confirms that residents in
Southern Ontario and other parts of Canada are exposed to levels of
air pollutants associated with morbidity and mortality," says UW
professor emeritus John Shortreed, executive director of both NERAM
and UW's Institute for Risk Research.
"The University of Waterloo has done five years of work in translating
research from around the world for use in policies to improve health.
We are ready to battle the No. 1 environmental killer -- air
pollution."
The plan reflects the latest thinking of policy-makers and health
researchers from around the world. The fifth and final colloquium was
held in October in Vancouver.
Research shows that both short-term and long-term exposures to
particulate matter and other air pollutants are statistically
associated with serious human health effects, including premature
death, heart-and breathing-related hospital admissions and emergency
room visits, together with a worsening of asthma conditions.
"Scientific evidence of the effects of air pollutant exposure on human
health and on the environment is strong enough to justify global
efforts to continue to reduce outdoor concentrations, even in
locations that meet air pollutant standards," Shortreed says.
He adds that Europe and Britain are already implementing the interim
policies proposed by the NERAM colloquium series held in Rome in 2003
and in Mexico in 2005 to deal with hot spots, such as high traffic
areas in cities like Toronto.
"They are using an innovative approach to regulations that actually
allow some locations to exceed air-quality standards, while imposing
area-wide reductions that have many more health benefits -- the result
is more health outcomes for existing regulatory resources."
Shortreed says that air pollution typically causes a white, yellow or
brown haze that reduces visual range, affecting people's ability to
enjoy their surroundings. In places like Hong Kong, for instance, the
impaired visibility caused by haze or smog is used as a means to show
the public the link between high air-pollution concentrations and
increased health costs.
Topics covered in the NERAM document include air quality and human
health, emission inventories, air-quality management approaches and
evidence of effectiveness, as well as challenges and opportunities in
air-quality management. The document can be viewed at http://www.irr-neram.ca.
The plan includes the following strategic policy directions for
air-quality management:
* Communication of health effects is key to increasing public
awareness and demand for air-quality management policies.
* Increase awareness of linkages between air quality and climate
change.
* Cross-sectoral policies in energy, environment, climate, transport,
agriculture and health.
* Exposure reduction and continuous improvement policies are important
extensions to ambient air-quality standards.
* Reducing exposure to combustion-generated particles should be a
priority, such as fossil fuels and biomass.
* Evidence is sufficient to justify policies to reduce traffic
exposures.
* Prioritize pollutants and sources based on the potential for
exposure.
* Policies focused on improving visibility may gain greater support
than those focused solely on health.
* International harmonization of measurements and metrics, emission
inventories, modelling tools, assessment of health effects literature
and health-related guidelines.
* More research on toxicity-determining characteristics of particulate
matter and more evaluation of local, regional and global policies.
Shortreed says there are many epidemiological (human population)
studies carried out in North America and Europe that have demonstrated
statistically significant ties between ambient levels of particulate
matter and other air pollutants and a variety of human health
problems, including death and hospital admissions for cardiovascular
and respiratory diseases.
NERAM has already started a regional initiative in the Greater Toronto
Area along with Pollution Probe to apply some of the research results
in order to tackle the thousands of premature deaths every year in
Ontario.
The main goal of NERAM is to integrate the scientific knowledge and
expertise that exists across many diverse disciplines in Canada,
thereby providing a comprehensive approach to environmental risk
assessment and risk management. As a result, there will be more
effective and efficient environmental protection practices.
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The
The
Labors in the Spirits of
Science
Living on the Lost Planet 
