Abstract
Objectives: Our objective was to estimate the burden of mortality attributable to long-term exposure to ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) among adults in two rural regions of British Columbia, the Interior and the North, in order to provide information for public health professionals setting health priorities.
Methods: We used the standard method to calculate the fraction of all-cause mortality among adults (≥30 years old) attributable to long-term exposure to ambient PM2.5 as described in the World Health Organization global burden of disease study. PM2.5 concentration was either locally measured using tapered element oscillating microbalance (TEOM) continuous monitors or estimated for unmonitored cities. For the base case, we used a conservative PM2.5 threshold (5.0 ug/m3); for sensitivity analysis, we set the threshold to estimate all mortality attributable to anthropogenic PM2.5 (3.1 ug/m3). We conducted sensitivity analysis for PM2.5 concentrations estimated in unmonitored cities.
Results and Conclusions: Mean annual PM2.5 concentration ranged from 3.1 to 7.4 ug/m3 across local health areas in Northern and Interior BC. Sixty percent of the adult population lived in monitored regions. PM2.5 was estimated to cause 0.20% of all-cause mortality among adults (16 deaths/year). Anthropogenic PM2.5 was estimated to cause 0.93% of all-cause mortality among adults (74 deaths/year). Estimates were sensitive to both PM2.5 threshold and estimated PM2.5 in unmonitored communities. This demonstrates that ambient PM2.5 air pollution does have an important mortality burden, even in a region with relatively low PM2.5 concentrations.
Keywords: Air pollution, particulate matter, public health, British Columbia, Canada, mortality
Résumé
Objectifs: Estimer le fardeau de la mortalité attribuable à l’exposition à long terme aux particules fines dans l’air ambiant (PM2,5) chez les adultes de deux régions de la Colombie-Britannique, l’Intérieur et le Nord, afin de donner de l’information aux professionnels de santé publique qui établissent les priorités de santé.
Méthode: Nous avons utilisé la méthode standard pour calculer la fraction de la mortalité toutes causes confondues chez les adultes (≥30 ans) attribuable à l’exposition à long terme aux PM2,5 dans l’air ambiant comme décrite dans l’étude de l’Organisation mondiale de la Santé sur la charge mondiale de morbidité. La concentration en PM2,5 a été soit mesurée localement à l’aide d’échantillonneurs en continu à microbalance à oscillation, soit estimée (pour les villes sans relevé local). Pour le scénario de base, nous avons utilisé un seuil modeste de PM2,5 (5,0 µg/m3); pour l’analyse de sensibilité, nous avons fixé le seuil de manière à estimer la mortalité toutes causes confondues attribuable aux PM2,5 d’origine anthropique (3,1 µg/m3). Nous avons réalisé des analyses de sensibilité pour les concentrations estimatives en PM2,5 dans les villes sans relevé local.
Résultats et conclusions: La concentration annuelle moyenne en PM2,5 s’échelonnait de 3,1 à 7,4 µg/m3 dans les régions sanitaires locales du Nord et de l’Intérieur de la C.-B. Soixante pour cent de la population adulte vivait dans des régions avec relevé local. Nous estimons que les PM2,5 et les PM d’origine anthropique ont causé respectivement 0,20 % et 0,93 % de la mortalité toutes causes confondues chez les adultes (respectivement 16 et 74 décès/an). Les estimations étaient sensibles à la fois au seuil des PM2,5 et au seuil estimatif dans les communautés sans relevé local. Cela démontre que la pollution de l’air ambiant par les PM2,5 contribue à la charge de mortalité, même dans les régions à concentration relativement faible en PM2,5.
Motsclés: pollution de l’air, particules; santé publique, Colombie-Britannique, Canada, mortalité
Footnotes
Conflict of Interest: None to declare.
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