In northern China, central heating, as an important source of urban particulate matter (UPM), causes more than half of the air pollution during the heating season and has significant spatial-temporal heterogeneity. Owing to the limitations of stationary air monitoring networks, few studies distinguish between heating/non-heating seasons and few have been conducted in urban areas. However, fixed monitoring cannot accurately capture the dynamic exposure of residents to UPM, and there is a lack of comprehensive evaluation of the factors affecting UPM.
Researchers from the Institute of Applied Ecology (IAE) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) used wearable equipment to monitor the concentrations of UPM (PM1, PM2.5, and PM10) in selected typical areas of Shenyang City, analyzed the contributions and marginal effects of multiple influences on UPM by random forest model combined with land use and point-of-interest data, in both heating and non-heating seasons.
Researchers found that in the eastern part of the study area, UPM showed completely opposite spatial distribution characteristics during the two seasons. Human impact on urban particulate matter raised 2-3 times in the heating season. Boilers were major impact on urban particulate matter apart from natural factors. The findings provide a scientific basis for urban planning and for health risk reduction for residents.
This work entitled “Natural and human factors influencing urban particulate matter concentrations in central heating areas with long-term wearable monitoring devices” has been recently published in Environmental Research by Chuyi Zhang, Yuanman Hu, Matthew D. Adams et al, and it was funded by the Natural Science Foundation of China.
