The Impact of Russia-Ukraine geopolitical conflict on the air quality and toxicological properties of ambient PM 2.5 in Milan, Italy.

Autor: Aghaei Y; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Southern California, 3620 S. Vermont Ave. KAP210, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, USA., Badami MM; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Southern California, 3620 S. Vermont Ave. KAP210, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, USA., Tohidi R; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Southern California, 3620 S. Vermont Ave. KAP210, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, USA., Subramanian PSG; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA., Boffi R; Fondazione IRCCS, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, Milan, Italy., Borgini A; Fondazione IRCCS, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, Milan, Italy., De Marco C; Fondazione IRCCS, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, Milan, Italy., Contiero P; Fondazione IRCCS, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, Milan, Italy., Ruprecht AA; Fondazione IRCCS, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, Milan, Italy.; International Society of Doctors for Environment (ISDE), Arezzo, Italy., Verma V; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA., Chatila T; Division of Immunology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA., Sioutas C; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Southern California, 3620 S. Vermont Ave. KAP210, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, USA. sioutas@usc.edu.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Scientific reports [Sci Rep] 2024 Mar 12; Vol. 14 (1), pp. 5996. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Mar 12.
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-55292-2
Abstrakt: The geopolitical conflict between Russia and Ukraine has disrupted Europe's natural gas supplies, driving up gas prices and leading to a shift towards biomass for residential heating during colder months. This study assessed the consequent air quality and toxicological impacts in Milan, Italy, focusing on fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 , d p  < 2.5 μm) emissions. PM 2.5 samples were analyzed for their chemical composition and assessed for their oxidative potential using the dithiothreitol (DTT) assay across three periods reflecting residential heating deployment (RHD): pre-RHD, intra-RHD, and post-RHD periods. During the intra-RHD period, PM 2.5 levels were significantly higher than those in other periods, with concentrations reaching 57.94 ± 7.57 μg/m 3 , indicating a deterioration in air quality. Moreover, levoglucosan was 9.2 times higher during the intra-RHD period compared to the pre-RHD period, correlating with elevated levels of elemental carbon (EC) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These findings were compared with previous local studies before the conflict, underscoring a significant rise in biomass-related emissions. DTT assay levels during the intra-RHD were 2.1 times higher than those observed during the same period in 2022, strongly correlating with biomass burning emissions. Our findings highlight the necessity for policies to mitigate the indirect health effects of increased biomass burning emissions due to the energy crisis triggered by the geopolitical conflict.
(© 2024. The Author(s).)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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