Digital Commons Network^™

Emerging Stroke Risk Factors: A Focus On Infectious And Environmental Determinants, Sajid Hameed, Nurose Karim, Mohammad Wasay, Narayanaswamy Venketasubramanian

Section of Neurology

This review focuses on emerging risk factors for stroke, including air pollution and climate change, gut microbiota, high altitude, and systemic infection. Up to 14% of all stroke-associated mortality is attributed to air pollution and is more pronounced in developing countries. Fine particulate matter and other air pollutants contribute to an increased stroke risk, and this risk appears to increase with higher levels and duration of exposure. Short term air pollution exposure has also been reported to increase the stroke risk. The gut microbiota is a complex ecosystem of bacteria and other microorganisms that reside in the digestive system and …

Wildland Fires Worsened Population Exposure To Pm, Danlu Zhang, Wenhao Wang, Yuzhi Xi, Jianzhao Bi, Yun Hang, Qingyang Zhu, Qiang Pu, Howard Chang, Yang Liu

Journal Articles

As wildland fires become more frequent and intense, fire smoke has significantly worsened the ambient air quality, posing greater health risks. to better understand the impact of wildfire smoke on air quality, we developed a modeling system to estimate daily PM

Private Benefits From Ambient Air Pollution Reduction Policies Evidence From The Household Heating Stove Replacement Program In Chile, Adolfo Uribe, Randall Bluffstone, Carlos Chávez, Walter Gómez, Marcela Jaime

Economics Faculty Publications and Presentations

We estimate the key private benefits from a program to improve ambient air quality during winter in central Chile by replacing inefficient wood-fired home heating stoves with more efficient pellet stoves. We are interested in the private benefits to households because they represent the additional value of the program and likely drive private adoption. Combining electronic stove surface temperature and air pollution monitoring with household surveys, we estimate the effects of adoption on household fuel expenditures, indoor temperatures, and indoor air pollution concentrations (PM2.5). We also explore heterogeneous effects of the program by income group and energy poverty status. Our …

To What Extent Do Environmental Regulations Curb Air Pollution And Enhance Production, Productivity, And Innovation?, Emmanuel Wabi Wangi

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study delves into the fascinating relationship between environmental regulations, air pollution reduction, and their subsequent impact on production, productivity, and innovation. By adopting Porter’s hypothesis approach, the study aims to shed light on a crucial aspect overlooked in previous studies - the prerequisite of “well-designed environmental regulation,” as Porter’s hypothesis emphasizes. The study uses microeconomic principles, whose conclusions propose a novel framework for crafting effective policies that balance curbing air pollution and fostering economic growth. Specifically, the study advocates for a tax rate on pollution that aligns with the marginal cost of the polluter within the industry. This approach …

The Association Of Long-Term Exposure To Criteria Air Pollutants, Fine Particulate Matter Components, And Airborne Trace Metals With Late-Life Brain Amyloid Burden In The Atherosclerosis Risk In Communities (Aric) Study, Erin E Bennett, Dean F Wong, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Studies suggest associations between long-term ambient air pollution exposure and outcomes related to Alzheimer's disease (AD). Whether a link exists between pollutants and brain amyloid accumulation, a biomarker of AD, is unclear. We assessed whether long-term air pollutant exposures are associated with late-life brain amyloid deposition in Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study participants.

METHODS: We used a chemical transport model with data fusion to estimate ambient concentrations of PM

RESULTS: At PET imaging, eligible participants (N = 318) had a mean age of 78 years, 56% were female, 43% were Black, and 27% had mild cognitive impairment. We …

Fidelity And Adherence To A Liquefied Petroleum Gas Stove And Fuel Intervention: The Multi-Country Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (Hapin) Trial, Kendra N Williams, Lindsay J Underhill, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Reducing household air pollution (HAP) to levels associated with health benefits requires nearly exclusive use of clean cooking fuels and abandonment of traditional biomass fuels.

METHODS: The Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) trial randomized 3,195 pregnant women in Guatemala, India, Peru, and Rwanda to receive a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) stove intervention (n = 1,590), with controls expected to continue cooking with biomass fuels (n = 1,605). We assessed fidelity to intervention implementation and participant adherence to the intervention starting in pregnancy through the infant's first birthday using fuel delivery and repair records, surveys, observations, and temperature-logging stove …

Effects Of A Lpg Stove And Fuel Intervention On Adverse Maternal Outcomes: A Multi-Country Randomized Controlled Trial Conducted By The Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (Hapin), Ashley Younger, Ashley Toenjes, Lindsay Underhill, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Household air pollution from solid cooking fuel use during gestation has been associated with adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes. The Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) trial was a randomized controlled trial of free liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) stoves and fuel in Guatemala, Peru, India, and Rwanda. A primary outcome of the main trial was to report the effects of the intervention on infant birth weight. Here we evaluate the effects of a LPG stove and fuel intervention during pregnancy on spontaneous abortion, postpartum hemorrhage, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, and maternal mortality compared to women who continued to use solid …

Towards Cfd Investigations Into Particulate Air Pollution Of A Desert Urban Environment, Prosun Roy

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This dissertation has explored computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques for studying particulate air quality in the Las Vegas urban area. The dissertation is based on three research tasks:

• • High time-resolution fenceline air quality sensing and dispersion modeling for environmental justice-centered source attribution. (Chapter 2)
• • Pollen dispersion and deposition in real-world urban settings: A computational fluid dynamic study. (Chapter 3)
• • Effects of urban canopy parameterizations on modeling pollen dispersion and exposure. (Chapter 4)

In Chapter 2, we investigate the facilitation of low-cost air quality sensors (LCAQS) and CFD technique on exposure assessment of environmental justice (EJ) communities and …

Air Pollution, Regulations On Emission And Firms' Social Responsibility, Jun Myung Song

Sim Kee Boon Institute for Financial Economics

This paper examines whether firms adjust their strategy in emission when air pollution is severe. Considering high PM 2.5 as severe air pollution across 65 countries, I show that firms from countries with severe air pollution have low emission score, suggesting that they put less effort in reducing emission. This is because if they improve emission strategy, firm performance deteriorates. However, such relationship disappears when the government’s environmental stringency is strong, suggesting that government’s intervention is crucial for sustainable environment. This paper concludes with analysis on the factors which can mediate the negative impact of air pollution on firms’ emission …

Climate Change Imperils Pediatric Health: Child Advocacy Through Fossil Fuel Divestment., Sandra H. Jee, Elizabeth Friedman, Ruth A. Etzel, Vi T. Nguyen, Todd L. Sack, Kathi J. Kemper

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Climate change poses an existential threat to children's health. Divestment of ownership stakes in fossil fuel companies is one tool available to pediatricians to address climate change. Pediatricians are trusted messengers regarding children's health and therefore bear a unique responsibility to advocate for climate and health policies that affect children. Among the impacts of climate change on pediatric patients are allergic rhinitis and asthma; heat-related illnesses; premature birth; injuries from severe storms and fires; vector-borne diseases; and mental illnesses. Children are disproportionately affected as well by climate-related displacement of populations, drought, water shortages, and famine. The human-generated burning of fossil …

Data To Action: Community-Based Participatory Research To Address Concerns About Metal Air Pollution In Overburdened Neighborhoods Near Metal Recycling Facilities In Houston, Elaine Symanski, Heyreoun An Han, Sheryl Mccurdy, Loren Hopkins, Juan Flores, Inkyu Han, Mary Ann Smith, James Caldwell, Cecelia Fontenot, Bobbie Wyatt, Christine Markham

Journal Articles

BACKGROUND: Exposures to environmental contaminants can be influenced by social determinants of health. As a result, persons living in socially disadvantaged communities may experience disproportionate health risks from environmental exposures. Mixed methods research can be used to understand community-level and individual-level exposures to chemical and nonchemical stressors contributing to environmental health disparities. Furthermore, community-based participatory research (CBPR) approaches can lead to more effective interventions.

OBJECTIVES: We applied mixed methods to identify environmental health perceptions and needs among metal recyclers and residents living in disadvantaged neighborhoods near metal recycling facilities in Houston, Texas, in a CBPR study, Metal Air Pollution Partnership …

The Relationship Between Knowledge Economy And Environmental Pollution: Evidence From Arab Countries, Soulieka Alaeddine

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

Air pollution is among the most convincing environmental threats in the Arab region. The knowledge economy has the potential to significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions (CO2) by promoting sustainable development and encouraging the creation and implementation of clean technology products that are more efficient and less environmentally harmful. The knowledge-pollution relationship and the validity of the EKC hypothesis were examined in this paper during the period 2000–2020 for a sample of 11 Arab countries, namely: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, and Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia, using the extended environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) framework. The autoregressive distributed …

Differential Toxicity Of Pm2.5 Components And Modified Health Effects Modeling: A Case Study In Nepal, Jeremy Brownholtz

Masters Theses

During the latter part of the 20^th century, a transition away from coal as a major energy source in developed countries was accompanied by a notable decrease in air pollution-related deaths in those countries. Currently the same phenomenon is being observed in developing nations like China and India. However, many areas that do still rely on coal for their energy production or industrial needs also reflect a gap in research on the effects of those specific processes on local populations. Located in Nepal at the foot of the Himalayan Plateau, Kathmandu represents one such location. The local economy of …

Air Pollution And Acute Kidney Injury In The U.S. Medicare Population: A Longitudinal Cohort Study, Whanhee Lee, Ziyad Al-Aly, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Recent studies have reported the association between air pollution exposure and reduced kidney function. However, it is unclear whether air pollution is associated with an increased risk of acute kidney injury (AKI).

OBJECTIVES: To address this gap in knowledge, we investigated the effect estimates of long-term exposures to fine particulate matter [PM

METHODS: This nationwide population-based longitudinal cohort study included 61,300,754 beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Part A fee-for-service (FFS) who were

RESULTS: Exposure to

DISCUSSION: This study found an association between exposures to air pollution and the risk of the first hospital admission with AKI, and this association persisted …

Gentrification And Air Quality In A Large Urban County In The United States, Hollis Hutchings, Qiong Zhang, Sue Grady, Lainie Mabe, Ikenna C. Okereke

Public Health Sciences Articles

Introduction: Increases in industrialization and manufacturing have led to worsening pollution in some components of air quality. In addition, gentrification is occurring in large cities throughout the world. As these socioeconomic and demographic changes occur, there have been no studies examining the association of gentrification with air quality. To investigate this association, we studied the trends of gentrification, changes in racial distribution and changes in air quality in each zip code of a large urban county over a 40-year period.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective longitudinal study over 40 years in Wayne County, Michigan using socioeconomic and demographic data from …

The Economics Of Pollution: Policy, Productivity, And The Structure Of Road Networks, Michael Cary

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Air pollution impacts economic activity, and economic activity creates air pollution. Understanding this endogenous nexus is critical as any policy designed to affect one will inevitably affect the other. My research explores both sides of this nexus. Specifically, I identify the economic effects from the implementation of an international climate agreement (the Kyoto Protocol); I determine the impact of air pollution on physical productivity and determine which pollutants are responsible for this effect; and I link urban form to vehicular emissions via the structure of road networks.

The first chapter of this dissertation studies the impact of the Kyoto Protocol …

A Satellite-Driven Model To Estimate Long-Term Particulate Sulfate Levels And Attributable Mortality Burden In China, Xia Meng, Yun Hang, Xiuran Lin, Tiantian Li, Tijian Wang, Junji Cao, Qingyan Fu, Sagnik Dey, Kan Huang, Fengchao Liang, Haidong Kan, Xiaoming Shi, Yang Liu

Journal Articles

Ambient fine particulate matter (PM

Chemical Explosion, Covid-19, And Environmental Justice: Insights From Low-Cost Air Quality Sensors, Guning Liu, Katie Moore, Wei-Chung Su, George L Delclos, David Gimeno Ruiz De Porras, Bing Yu, Hezhong Tian, Bin Luo, Shao Lin, Grace Tee Lewis, Elena Craft, Kai Zhang

Journal Articles

OBJECTIVES: to examine the impact of the Intercontinental Terminals Company (ITC) fire and COVID-19 on airborne particulate matter (PM) concentrations and the PM disproportionally affecting communities in Houston using low-cost sensors.

METHODS: We compared measurements from a network of low-cost sensors with a separate network of monitors from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the Houston metropolitan area from Mar 18, 2019, to Dec 31, 2020. Further, we examined the associations between neighborhood-level sociodemographic status and air pollution patterns by linking the low-cost sensor data to EPA environmental justice screening and mapping systems.

FINDINGS: We found increased PM levels during …

Spatio-Temporal Analysis Of Roadside Transportation-Related Air Quality (Startraq 2021): A Characterization Of Bike Trails And Highways In The Fresno/Clovis Area, Jaymin Kwon, Yushin Ahn, Steve Chung

Mineta Transportation Institute

The San Joaquin Valley is identified as an area with a high level of particulate matter (PM) in the air, reaching above the federal and state clean air standards (EPA 2019). Many of the cities in the valley are classified as the most polluted cities in the United States for both particulate matter and ozone pollution (American Lung Association, 2021). To resolve this issue, alternative forms of transportation have been considered in transportation planning. In this study, active transportation mode air quality was monitored on selected Woodward Park and Old Clovis trails and urban bike lanes. Real-time aerosol monitors, and …

Exposure Contrasts Of Pregnant Women During The Household Air Pollution Intervention Network Randomized Controlled Trial, Michael Johnson, Lindsay J Underhill, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Exposure to

OBJECTIVES: This paper reports exposure reductions achieved by a liquified petroleum gas (LPG) stove and fuel intervention for pregnant mothers in the Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) randomized controlled trial.

METHODS: The HAPIN trial included 3,195 households primarily using biomass for cooking in Guatemala, India, Peru, and Rwanda. Twenty-four-hour exposures to

RESULTS: Median postrandomization exposures of particulate matter (PM) with aerodynamic diameter

DISCUSSION: Postintervention

Assessment Of Spatial And Temporal Trends Of Exposure To Ambient Fine Particulate Matter And Ozone In New York/New Jersey Metropolitan Area, Subraham Singh

Dissertations and Theses

Background. Exposures to fine particulate matter (PM_2.5; particles with diameter less than 2.5 μm) and ozone (O₃) affect premature respiratory and cardiovascular mortality, morbidity and contribute to the development and progression of sub-clinical and clinical disease. Climate change affects air quality directly by modifying the thermodynamic properties of formation mechanisms and transport patterns, and indirectly, through increased emissions of PM_2.5 and O₃ precursors. The resultant changes in air quality influence human health outcomes through mechanisms of varying scale, timing, and complexity. PM_2.5 and O₃ levels have been declining due to the implementation …

2022 Beijing Winter Olympics: Spotlight On Cardiac Metabolism, Heinrich Taegtmeyer, Vlad G Zaha, Darren K Mcguire

Journal Articles

No abstract provided.

Exploring The Spatial Distribution Of Air Pollutants And Covid-19 Death Rate: A Case Study For Los Angeles County, California, Akhil Mandalapu, Junfeng Jiao, Amin Azimian

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

Objective

Since March 2020, COVID-19 has rapidly spread across the world with over 240 million cases and over 5 million deaths as of November 2021. It has been unclear what role air pollutants may play in exacerbating respiratory illnesses such as COVID-19 due to their interaction with the respiratory system. The association with air pollutants and COVID-19 severity has been explored at the regional and metropolitan area, however it is unclear if such an association is consistent at the neighborhood level.

Methods

Weekly death rates from COVID-19 from March 2020 to November 2021 were compared using one-sided unpaired t-tests across …

Essays On The Effects Of Air Quality And Intra-Industry Trade On Labor Market Outcomes, Protika Bhattacharjee

Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines the impacts of poor air quality and the rise of intra-industry trade on different labor market outcomes like migration, workings hours, and wages. This thesis contributes two distinct strands of literature, literature on air pollution focusing on the economic consequences of poor air quality, and international trade literature. The first two essays examine how a moderate level of air pollution can drive migration decisions and impact working hours in the United States. The third essay investigates the role of the rise in within industry trade on occupational wages in the United States. This dissertation aims to contribute …

Outdoor Air Pollution And Psychological Well-Being: A Meta-Analysis, Jeremy Stanley Bekker

Theses and Dissertations

Human life takes place as part of a global ecosystem, meaning that human mental health is at least partially tied to the health of the planet. Health experts who seek to promote psychological well-being should consider how changes to the broad ecological system may impact their efforts. Given the potential impact of the environment on human well-being, we conducted a meta-analysis to assess the impact of air pollution on subjective well-being. The goal of this project was to outline the current state of the research on these constructs and provide a clear framework for what research is still needed. Nonsignificant …

Did The Clean Air Act Improve Environmental Justice Disparities?, Jared Jageler

Economics Honors Projects

This paper analyzes the differential impacts of the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) on the racial pollution exposure gap, also known as the Environmental Justice (EJ) gap. Using recently developed, Census tract-level satellite data of PM2.5 pollution, I test whether CAAA non-attainment status and resulting State Implementation Plans decreased pollution in high-percentage Black and Hispanic areas more than in non-high percentage Black and Hispanic tracts. My results confirm that the CAAA reduced overall pollution concentrations in the U.S. and decreased the absolute level of the Environmental Justice gap. A heterogeneity analysis provides evidence that the results are primarily driven …

Transboundary Air Pollution In Northeast Asia: Two Pathways Forward For China And South Korea, Yeeun Uhm, Creighton Barry

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

Simply put, air pollution kills. Each year, more than 5.5 million people die from illnesses caused by breathing polluted air worldwide. In 2013 alone, one in ten deaths globally were associated with air pollution. Such alarming statistics ought to provide governments a strong incentive to combat air pollution, but toxic air unrelentingly blankets places like New Delhi, Seoul, and Bangkok. Fundamentally, this may be because humans take the atmosphere for granted as a place to dump industrial waste. This article will discuss two alternative pathways to addressing transboundary air pollution between China and South Korea. One involves binding international dispute …

Facing The Realities Of Pragmatic Design Choices In Environmental Health Studies: Experiences From The Household Air Pollution Intervention Network Trial, William Checkley, Victor G Davila-Roman, Et Al

Open Access Publications

No abstract provided.

Spatial And Temporal Analysis Of Big Dataset On Pm2.5 Air Pollution In Beijing, China, 2014 To 2018, Hutong Fan

Great Lakes Center Masters Theses

Air particulate matter (PM_2.5) pollution is a critical environment problem worldwide and also in Beijing, China. We gathered five-year PM_2.5 contaminate concentrations from 2014 to 2018, from the Beijing Municipal Environmental Monitoring Center and China Air Quality Real-time Distribution Platform. This is a big dataset, and we collected with crawler technology from Python programming. After examining the quality of the recorded data, we determined to conduct the temporal and spatial analysis using 27 observation stations located in both urban and suburb area in the municipality of Beijing. The big dataset of five-year hourly PM_2.5 concentrations was …

Staying On Track: Air Pollution & Exercise On Campus, Selah Willis, Sabina Williams, Nicole Lyons, Karly Anderson, Haley Mcbride, Jim Johnston

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Which exercise location on campus has the lowest levels of PM_2.5 & PM₁₀? What time of day is the lowest concentration of pollutants?