Air Quality, Climate Change and Public Health

1
Air Quality, Climate Change and Public Health
Air Quality Climate Change Training Module

• Minnesota Climate and Health Program
• Minnesota Department of Health
• Environmental Impacts Analysis Unit
• October 2012

625 Robert Street North PO Box 64975 St. Paul, MN
55164-0975
2
Notice
MDH developed this presentation based on
scientific research published in peer-reviewed
journals. References for information can be found
in the relevant slides and/or at the end of the
presentation.
3
Outline

• Introduction to Air Quality and Public Health
• Climate Changes in MN
• Climate Change and Air Quality
• Particulate matter
• Ground-level ozone
• Allergens
• Public Health/Government Strategies

4
Air Quality and Public Health

• History
• In the twelfth century, air pollution was already
  associated with urban environments and their
  higher population densities
• 1948, Donora, PA smog event
• 20 dead, 4,000 hospitalized
• 1952, Great Smog in London, England
• 4,000 excess deaths during 5 day event (Dec 5
  9, 1952)
• 12,000 excess deaths estimated due to persisting
  effects between Dec 1952 Feb 1953

Donora, Oct 26-29, 1948
London, Dec 5-9, 1952
5
Air Quality and Public Health

• Air quality has been improving
• From 2001 to 2012
• Ground-level ozone is 13 lower
• Year-round particle pollution is 24 lower
• Short-term particle pollution is 28 lower
• However, we still have a ways to go
• Health impacts occur at lower levels of air
  pollutants than previously thought
• 41 of U.S. population lives in counties that
  have unhealthful levels of either ground-level
  ozone or particle pollution
• Ramsey County received an F in the American
  Lung Association 2012 State of the Air report for
  short-term particle pollution

6
Air Quality and Public Health

• People can be affected by poor air quality
• because of exposure and/or sensitivity
• Persons affected due to exposure
• Certain occupations, such as professional drivers
  (trucks, taxis), parking lot attendants,
  construction workers and others living and
  working near pollution sources
• Athletes and outdoor workers on high pollution
  days
• Persons affected due to sensitivity
• Have existing health conditions
• Asthma
• Chronic Obstructive
• Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
• Heart disease
• Allergies
• Young children
• Elderly

7

• Introduction to Air Quality and Public Health
• Climate Changes in Minnesota
• Climate Changes and Air Quality
• Particulate matter
• Ground-level ozone
• Allergens
• Public Health/Government Strategies

8
Weather versus Climate

• Weather conditions of the atmosphere over a
  short period of time
• Climate conditions of the atmosphere over long
  periods of time (30-year standard averaging
  period)

9
Climate Changes

• There have been three recent significant observed
  climate trends in Minnesota
• The average temperature is increasing
• The average number of days with a high dew point
  may be increasing
• The character of precipitation is changing

10
Climate Changes Temperature
Temperature has been rising in Minnesota.
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Climate Changes Temperature

• Three significant observations in this overall
  warming
• Winter temperatures have been rising about twice
  as fast as annual average temperatures
• Minimum or 'overnight low' temperatures have been
  rising faster than the maximum temperature, or
  daytime high
• Since the early 1980s, the temperature has risen
  slightly over 1F in southern Minnesota to a
  little over 2F in much of the northern part of
  the state

12
Climate Changes Dew Point

• Dew point definition Dew point is a measure of
  water vapor in the air
• The higher the dew point, the more difficult it
  is for people's sweat to evaporate, which is how
  we cool ourselves
• The number of days with high dew point
  temperatures ( 70F) may be increasing in
  Minnesota

13
Climate Changes Dew Point
Source Dr. Mark Seeley, Climatologist,
University of Minnesota
14
Climate Changes Precipitation
On average, the total precipitation in the state
has increased since the Dust Bowl era of the
1930s.
15
Climate Changes Precipitation

• The character of precipitation in Minnesota is
  changing
• More localized, heavy precipitation events
• Potential to cause both increased flooding and
  drought

16
Climate Changes

• What do the trends mean?
• Extreme Weather
• Increased extreme heat events and reduced cooling
  overnight
• Increased intense, localized storms and flooding
• Increased localized drought and fires
• Changing ecosystems
• Earlier ice out
• Earlier flowering and longer growing season

17
Climate Change
Climate changes have not only brought Minnesota
an earlier growing season but changes in the
types of plants that will thrive here
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Outline

• Introduction to Air Quality and Public Health
• Climate Change in Minnesota
• Climate Change and Air Quality
• Particulate matter
• Ground-level ozone
• Allergens
• Public Health/Government Strategies

19
Climate Change and Air Quality
One study estimates that each one degree Celsius
(1.8F) increase in temperature would cause about
1,000 additional deaths in the US associated with
air pollution. (Jacobson, 2008)
20
Climate Change and Air Quality

• Climate change may affect exposures to air
  pollutants by
• Creating both more windiness and more air
  stagnation events
• Increasing temperatures which . . .
• Increase pollution from fossil fuel combustion to
  meet electricity demand for increased air
  conditioner use
• Increase production of natural sources of air
  pollutant emissions
• Increase formation of ground-level ozone
• Lengthening the allergy season, creating more
  potent allergens

21
Outline

• Introduction to Air Quality and Public Health
• Climate Change in Minnesota
• Climate Change and Air Quality
• Particulate matter
• Ground-level ozone
• Allergens
• Public Health/Government Strategies

22
Particulate Matter

• Particulate matter is a major pollutant for which
  concentrations are anticipated to be affected by
  climate change, and is therefore emphasized for
  public health impacts.
• Particulate matter comes in different sizes
  (coarse and fine) from a number of sources
  including
• Dust and other small particles from construction,
  mining and agriculture
• Pollen
• Fine particles from burning fossil fuels in
  factories, power plants, and diesel- and
  gasoline-powered motor vehicles

23
Particulate Matter

• Particulate matter (PM) can have serious health
  impacts
• Effects of acute exposure
• Short-term decrease in lung function
• Exacerbation of respiratory and cardiovascular
  diseases
• Hospitalizations and deaths
• Effects of long term exposure
• Respiratory and cardiovascular diseases
• Cardiopulmonary and lung cancer deaths

24
Particulate Matter

• Populations at risk of health effects from
  particulate matter
• At risk from exposure
• Persons living or working in urban areas,
  especially near high-traffic corridors and/or
  stationary sources of PM (such as factories or
  power plants)
• At risk from sensitivity
• Persons with respiratory and cardiovascular
  diseases
• Elderly and children
• Persons with asthma and/or allergies

25
Particulate Matter

• Climate change may affect exposures to PM by
• Increasing emissions from fossil fuel-fired power
  plants due to demand for electricity for cooling
• Increasing natural sources of air pollutant
  emissions
• Wildfire smoke induced
• by drought and heat

26
Particulate Matter
2011 Boundary Waters Canoe Area wildfire burned
nearly 145 square miles and costs reached 21
million. Smoke and ash spread as far as northeast
Wisconsin and Traverse City, Michigan. (MPR
News, 2011)
27
Outline

• Introduction to Air Quality and Public Health
• Climate Change in Minnesota
• Climate Change and Air Quality
• Particulate matter
• Ground-level ozone
• Allergens
• Public Health/Government Strategies

28
Ground-Level Ozone

• Ground-level ozone is a main pollutant for which
  concentrations are anticipated to be affected by
  climate change, and is therefore emphasized for
  public health impacts.
• Ground-level ozone is formed by the reaction of
  volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and nitrogen
  oxide (NOx) in the presence of sunlight and heat.

Source American Lung Association
29
Ground-Level Ozone

• Ground-level ozone exposure is linked to harmful
  respiratory conditions and cardiopulmonary
  impacts
• Short-term exposure to elevated ozone can lead to
  hospitalizations or death
• Long-term exposure to lower levels of ozone can
  decrease lung function, and may also cause
  new-onset asthma
• Elevated ozone levels can exacerbate other
  conditions, such as asthma and allergies

30
Ground-Level Ozone

• Populations at risk of health effects from
  ground-level ozone
• At risk from exposure
• Healthy people, especially athletes and outdoor
  workers in landscape and construction who may be
  exposed to higher levels of ozone for longer
  periods of time on high pollution days
• At risk from sensitivity
• Persons with respiratory and cardiovascular
  diseases
• Older adults and children

31
Ground-Level Ozone

• Climate change could significantly increase
  summertime ground-level ozone by
• Increasing temperatures
• Creating stagnant air conditions
• Affecting natural sources of air pollutant
  emissions (biogenic VOCs)
• Overall, increase poor air quality index (AQI)
  days
• Effect is most likely during the summer months,
  downwind of urban areas

Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Air Quality
Index http//aqi.pca.state.mn.us/
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Outline

• Introduction to Air Quality and Public Health
• Climate Change in Minnesota
• Climate Change and Air Quality
• Particulate matter
• Ground-level ozone
• Allergens
• Public Health/Government Strategies

33
Allergens

• An allergy is the bodys immune system
  overreacting to certain substances
• Common allergens that may be affected by climate
  changes include
• Pollen
• Mold
• Approximately 25 million Americans suffer from
  hay fever (allergic rhinitis)
• It costs approximately 11.2 billion per year to
  treat allergic rhinitis in the U.S.

Giant Ragweed plant Source Mary Jelks, MD, AAAAI
34
Allergens

• Allergens can affect persons with allergies and
  asthma
• Allergens can interact with air pollution to
  amplify their individual effects
• When ground-level ozone levels are high, it takes
  much less ragweed pollen to trigger an asthmatic
  or allergic response
• Particulate matter also increases allergic
  responses by extending how long the allergens
  stay in the body

35
Climate Change Impacts on Pollen
Climate change impacts on pollen

• Increased pollen production, longer pollen
  season, increased potency airborne allergens 
• Proliferation of weedy plant species that are
  known producers of allergenic pollen
• Introduction of new allergen-producing plant
  species

Precipitation
36
Allergens Pollen

• Allergenic pollen will be worse in urban areas
  up to 7x higher than surrounding rural areas
• Minneapolis has already experienced a 16 day
  increase in length of ragweed pollen season from
  1995 to 2009

Check pollen report at http//pollen.aaaai.org/
37
Allergens Pollen
Source National Wildlife Federation, 2010
38
Allergens Mold

• Mold growth is enhanced by moisture
• Increase in precipitation/floods
• Increase in temperature and/or humidity
• Increase in plant growth/plant biomass decay
  (leaf litter)
• Improper installation or management of air
  conditioning systems can create conditions ripe
  for mold
• Mold can cause coughing,
• wheezing, nasal and throat
• conditions, and adversely affect
• persons with asthma or
• weakened immune systems

Extensive mold contamination of ceiling and
walls (Source Terry Brennan, http//www.epa.gov/mo
ld/moldcourse/imagegallery5.html)
39
Outline

• Introduction to Air Quality and Public Health
• Climate Change in Minnesota
• Climate Change and Air Quality
• Particulate matter
• Ground-level ozone
• Allergens
• Public Health/Government Strategies

40
Public Health/Govt Strategies

• Mitigation
• Effective policies to mitigate
• health impacts from exposure
• to air pollutants focus on the
• reduction of air pollutant
• emissions
• Reduce production of harmful air pollutants
• Improve energy efficiency
• Use alternatives to fossil fuels
• Reduce combustion of fossil fuels
• Reduce urban heat island effect
• Maintain green space

Example of urban heat island mitigation Target
Center Green Roof Minneapolis, MN
41
Public Health/Govt Strategies

• Adaptation
• Policies/strategies to adapt to health impacts
  from exposure to air pollutants include
• Monitor AQI days
• Promote awareness
• Support public health tracking of diseases such
  as asthma and allergic disease
• Utilize low allergenic pollen producing plants
  for landscaping

42
Summary

• Minnesotas climate is changing
• Increases in temperature
• Increases in high dew point temperatures
• Increases in extreme precipitation events
• Climate changes will likely increase
• Particulate matter
• Formation of ozone
• Pollen and mold
• Certain populations are at greater risk from
  exposure to pollution and allergens, especially
  those with existing respiratory and
  cardiovascular conditions, the elderly, and
  children
• Public health awareness, education and
  coordinated mitigation planning with other
  agencies can reduce the health impacts

43
Thank You
Questions?
Contact Minnesota Climate and Health
Program 651-201-4893 651-201-5759
TTY health.climatechange_at_state.mn.us http//www.he
alth.state.mn.us/divs/climatechange/index.html
October 3, 2012
44
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by cooperative agreement
5UE1EH000738 from the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention
Special thanks to the following people for their
contributions to the creation of this training
module Wendy Brunner, Minnesota Department of
Health Hillary Carpenter, Minnesota Department
of Health Anne Claflin, Minnesota Pollution
Control Agency Gregory Pratt, Minnesota Pollution
Control Agency Naomi Shinoda, Minnesota
Department of Health
45
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48
Photo Credits

• Slide 4 Top image of Donora, PA smog event of
  1948 from Prints and Photographs Collection,
  History of Medicine Division, National Library of
  Medicine, as cited in Helfand et al. 2001.
  Donora , Pennsylvania An Environmental Disaster
  of the 20th Century, American Journal of Public
  Health Vol 91, No 4, pp553. Bottom image of
  London, UK smog event of 1952 from Wikipedia
  Great Smog, available online
  http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Smog
• Slide 6 Image source Microsoft Clip Art
• Slide 8 Image source Microsoft Clip Art
• Slide 15 Image source Microsoft Clip Art
• Slide 17 2006 The National Arbor Day Foundation,
  taken from Extreme Allergies and Global Warming
  National Wildlife Federations 2010 available
  online at http//www.nwf.org//media/PDFs/Global-
  Warming/Reports/NWF_AllergiesFinal.ashx
• Slide 19 Image source Microsoft Clip Art
• Slide 20 Top Image source Microsoft Clip Art
  Bottom Image source Microsoft Clip Art
• Slide 22 Image source U.S. EPA, available
  online http//www.epa.gov/airscience/air-particul
  atematter.htm
• Slide 24 Image source Microsoft Clip Art
• Slide 25 Image source Microsoft Clip Art
• Slide 26 Image source Microsoft Clip Art
• Slide 28 Image source American Lung
  Association, available online http//www.stateoft
  heair.org/2012/health-risks/health-risks-ozone.htm
  l
• Slide 29 Image source Microsoft Clip Art
• Slide 30 Image source Microsoft Clip Art
• Slide 31 AQI image source Minnesota Pollution
  Control Agency, available online
  http//aqi.pca.state.mn.us/
• Slide 33 Giant Ragweed plant image source Mary
  Jelks, MD, AAAAI, available online
  http//www.aaaai.org/about-the-aaaai/newsroom/medi
  a-gallery/photos---graphics--plants.aspx
• Slide 34 Image source Microsoft Clip Art
• Slide 36 Screen shot of AAAAI pollen report
• Slide 37 Image source - National Wildlife
  Federation, 2010