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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

Public health implications of particulate matter inside bus terminals in Sao Paulo, Brazil

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Author(s):
Nogueira, Thiago [1, 2, 3] ; Kumar, Prashant [3, 4] ; Nardocci, Adelaide [1] ; Andrade, Maria de Fatima [2]
Total Authors: 4
Affiliation:
[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Saude Ambiental, Fac Saude Publ, Av Dr Arnaldo 715, BR-01246904 Sao Paulo - Brazil
[2] Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Ciencias Atmosfer, Inst Astron Geofis & Ciencias Atmosfer IAG, BR-05508090 Sao Paulo - Brazil
[3] Univ Surrey, Fac Engn & Phys Sci, GCARE, Dept Civil & Environm Engn, Guildford GU2 7XH, Surrey - England
[4] Trinity Coll Dublin, Sch Engn, Dept Civil Struct & Environm Engn, Dublin - Ireland
Total Affiliations: 4
Document type: Journal article
Source: Science of The Total Environment; v. 711, APR 1 2020.
Web of Science Citations: 0
Abstract

Good quality ambient air is recognised as an important factor of social justice. In addition, providing access to high-capacity public transportation in big cities is known to be a good practice of social equity, as well as economic and environmental sustainability. However, the health risks associated with air pollution are not distributed equally across cities; the most vulnerable people are more exposed to ambient air as they commute to work and wait for buses or trains at the stations. The overall goal of this work was to assess the determinants of human exposure to particulate matter (PM) during commuting time spent inside bus terminals in the Metropolitan Area of Sao Paulo (MASP), in Brazil. Fine and coarse particles were collected at four bus terminals in the MASP. The concentrations of PM and its harmful constituents (black carbon and metals) were used in order to estimate potential doses and the associated health risk during the time spent at bus terminals in the MASP. Our findings show that bus commuters travelling through the bus terminal in the MASP on weekdays inhaled up to 94% higher doses of PM10 than did those travelling outside the terminal; even on weekends, that difference was as high as 88%. Our risk assessment indicated that time spent inside a bus terminal can result in an intolerable health risk for commuters, mainly because of the Cr present in fine particles. Although bus commuters are exposed to fine particle concentrations up to 2 times lower than the worldwide average, we can affirm that inhalable particles in the MASP bus terminals pose a high carcinogenic risk to the daily users of those terminals, mainly those in the most susceptible groups, which include people with heart or lung disease, older adults and children. (C) 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 15/50128-9 - Astrid - accessibility, social justice and transport emission impacts of transit-oriented development strategies
Grantee:Adalgiza Fornaro
Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
FAPESP's process: 18/07848-9 - Chemical and toxicological source profiling of particulate matter in urban air - SOPRO
Grantee:Maria de Fátima Andrade
Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
FAPESP's process: 16/18438-0 - São Paulo Metropolitan Area, jointly tracking climate change and air quality - METROCLIMA-MASP
Grantee:Maria de Fátima Andrade
Support Opportunities: Research Program on Global Climate Change - Thematic Grants