The Health Effects of 72 Hours of Simulated Wind Turbine Infrasound: A Double-Blind Randomized Crossover Study in Noise-Sensitive, Healthy Adults.

Background: Large electricity-generating wind turbines emit both audible sound and inaudible infrasound at very low frequencies that are outside of the normal human range of hearing. Sufferers of wind turbine syndrome (WTS) have attributed their ill-health and particularly their sleep disturbance to the signature pattern of infrasound. Critics have argued that these symptoms are psychological in origin and are attributable to nocebo effects.

Ultrafine particle exposure and biomarkers of effect on small airways in children.

The small size and large surface area of ultrafine particles (UFP) enhance their ability to deposit in the lung periphery and their reactivity. The Ultrafine Particles from Traffic Emissions and Children's Health (UPTECH) cross-sectional study was conducted in 8-11-year-old schoolchildren attending 25 primary (elementary) schools, randomly selected from the Brisbane Metropolitan Area, Queensland, Australia. Main study findings outlined indirect evidence of distal airway deposition (raised C reactive protein) but as yet, there is no direct evidence in the literature of effects of UFP exposure on peripheral airway function.

Associations Between Ambient Particulate Air Pollution and Cognitive Function in Indonesian Children Living in Forest Fire-Prone Provinces.

Smoke from forest fires can reach hazardous levels for extended periods of time. We aimed to determine if there is an association between particulate matter ≤2.5 µm in aerodynamic diameter (PM) and living in a forest fire-prone province and cognitive function.

Policy Implications for Protecting Health from the Hazards of Fire Smoke. A Panel Discussion Report from the Workshop .

Globally, and nationally in Australia, bushfires are expected to increase in frequency and intensity due to climate change. To date, protection of human health from fire smoke has largely relied on individual-level actions. Recent bushfires experienced during the Australian summer of 2019-2020 occurred over a prolonged period and encompassed far larger geographical areas than previously experienced, resulting in extreme levels of smoke for extended periods of time.

Associations between long-term exposure to ambient air pollution and Parkinson's disease prevalence: A cross-sectional study.

Background: Epidemiological studies have reported contradictory results regarding the effects of ambient air pollution on Parkinson's disease (PD). This study investigated the associations between long-term exposure to particulate matter <2.5 μm in diameter (PM) and nitrogen dioxide (NO) and PD among participants in the 45 and Up Study, which comprised adults older than 45 years living in New South Wales, Australia.

Comparison of model estimates from an intra-city land use regression model with a national satellite-LUR and a regional Bayesian Maximum Entropy model, in estimating NO for a birth cohort in Sydney, Australia.

Background: Methods for estimating air pollutant exposures for epidemiological studies are becoming more complex in an effort to minimise exposure error and its associated bias. While land use regression (LUR) modelling is now an established method, there has been little comparison between LUR and other recent, more complex estimation methods. Our aim was to develop a LUR model to estimate intra-city exposures to nitrogen dioxide (NO) for a Sydney cohort, and to compare those with estimates from a national satellite-based LUR model (Sat-LUR) and a regional Bayesian Maximum Entropy (BME) model.

All-cause mortality and long-term exposure to low level air pollution in the '45 and up study' cohort, Sydney, Australia, 2006-2015.

Background: Epidemiological studies show that long-term exposure to ambient air pollution reduces life expectancy. Most studies have been in environments with relatively high concentrations such as North America, Europe and Asia. Associations at the lower end of the concentration-response function are not well defined.

Satellite-Based Land-Use Regression for Continental-Scale Long-Term Ambient PM Exposure Assessment in Australia.

Australia has relatively diverse sources and low concentrations of ambient fine particulate matter (<2.5 μm, PM). Few comparable regions are available to evaluate the utility of continental-scale land-use regression (LUR) models including global geophysical estimates of PM, derived by relating satellite-observed aerosol optical depth to ground-level PM ("SAT-PM").

Long-term exposure to low concentrations of air pollutants and hospitalisation for respiratory diseases: A prospective cohort study in Australia.

Background: Short- and long-term spatiotemporal variation in exposure to air pollution is associated with respiratory morbidity in areas with moderate-to-high level of air pollution, but very few studies have examined whether these associations also exist in areas with low level exposure.

Objectives: We assessed the association between spatial variation in long-term exposure to PM and NO and hospitalisation for all respiratory diseases, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and pneumonia, in older adults residing in Sydney, Australia, a city with low-level concentrations.

Methods: We recorded data on hospitalisations for 100,084 participants, who were aged >45 years at entry in 2006-2009 until June 2014.

A Comparison of the Health Effects of Ambient Particulate Matter Air Pollution from Five Emission Sources.

This article briefly reviews evidence of health effects associated with exposure to particulate matter (PM) air pollution from five common outdoor emission sources: traffic, coal-fired power stations, diesel exhaust, domestic wood combustion heaters, and crustal dust. The principal purpose of this review is to compare the evidence of health effects associated with these different sources with a view to answering the question: Is exposure to PM from some emission sources associated with worse health outcomes than exposure to PM from other sources? Answering this question will help inform development of air pollution regulations and environmental policy that maximises health benefits. Understanding the health effects of exposure to components of PM and source-specific PM are active fields of investigation.

Damp housing, gas stoves, and the burden of childhood asthma in Australia.

Objective: To determine the proportion of the national childhood asthma burden associated with exposure to dampness and gas stoves in Australian homes.

Design: Comparative risk assessment modelling study. Setting, participants: Australian children aged 14 years or less, 2011.

Childhood fish oil supplementation modifies associations between traffic related air pollution and allergic sensitisation.

Background: Studies of potential adverse effects of traffic related air pollution (TRAP) on allergic disease have had mixed findings. Nutritional studies to examine whether fish oil supplementation may protect against development of allergic disease through their anti-inflammatory actions have also had mixed findings. Extremely few studies to date have considered whether air pollution and dietary factors such as fish oil intake may interact, which was the rationale for this study.

Blending Multiple Nitrogen Dioxide Data Sources for Neighborhood Estimates of Long-Term Exposure for Health Research.

Exposure to traffic related nitrogen dioxide (NO) air pollution is associated with adverse health outcomes. Average pollutant concentrations for fixed monitoring sites are often used to estimate exposures for health studies, however these can be imprecise due to difficulty and cost of spatial modeling at the resolution of neighborhoods (e.g.

Independent Validation of National Satellite-Based Land-Use Regression Models for Nitrogen Dioxide Using Passive Samplers.

Including satellite observations of nitrogen dioxide (NO) in land-use regression (LUR) models can improve their predictive ability, but requires rigorous evaluation. We used 123 passive NO samplers sited to capture within-city and near-road variability in two Australian cities (Sydney and Perth) to assess the validity of annual mean NO estimates from existing national satellite-based LUR models (developed with 68 regulatory monitors). The samplers spanned roadside, urban near traffic (≤100 m to a major road), and urban background (>100 m to a major road) locations.

Neighbourhood walkability, road density and socio-economic status in Sydney, Australia.

Background: Planning and transport agencies play a vital role in influencing the design of townscapes, travel modes and travel behaviors, which in turn impact on the walkability of neighbourhoods and residents' physical activity opportunities. Optimising neighbourhood walkability is desirable in built environments, however, the population health benefits of walkability may be offset by increased exposure to traffic related air pollution. This paper describes the spatial distribution of neighbourhood walkability and weighted road density, a marker for traffic related air pollution, in Sydney, Australia.

Weighted road density and allergic disease in children at high risk of developing asthma.

Background: Evidence for an association between traffic-related air pollution and allergic disease is inconsistent, possibly because the adverse effects may be limited to susceptible subgroups and these have not been identified. This study examined children in the Childhood Asthma Prevention Study (CAPS), potentially susceptible to air pollution effects because of a family history of asthma.

Methods: We examined cross-sectional associations at age eight years between road density within 75 m and 50 m of home address weighted by road type (traffic density), as a proxy for traffic-related air pollution, on the following allergic and respiratory outcomes: skin prick tests (SPTs), total and specific serum IgE, pre- and post-bronchodilator lung function, airway hyperresponsiveness, exhaled NO, and reported asthma and rhinitis.

Respiratory health before and after the opening of a road traffic tunnel: a planned evaluation.

Objective: The construction of a new road tunnel in Sydney, Australia, and concomitant reduction in traffic on a major road presented the opportunity to study the effects of this traffic intervention on respiratory health.

Methods: We made measurements in a cohort of residents in the year before the tunnel opened (2006) and in each of two years afterwards (2007-2008). Cohort members resided in one of four exposure zones, including a control zone.

A randomised cross-over cohort study of exposure to emissions from a road tunnel ventilation stack.

Background And Objective: Road tunnels are increasingly important components of urban infrastructure. However, knowledge of their health impact on surrounding communities is limited. Our objective was to estimate the short-term respiratory health effects of exposure to emissions from a road tunnel ventilation stack.

Redistribution of traffic related air pollution associated with a new road tunnel.

The aim of this study was to assess the effect of a new road tunnel on the concentration and distribution of traffic-related air pollution (TRAP), specifically nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)) and particulate matter (PM), and to determine its relationship to change in traffic flow. We used continuously recorded data from four monitoring stations at nonroadside locations within the study area and three regional monitors outside the area. The four monitors in the study area were in background locations where smaller pollutant changes were expected compared with changes near the bypassed main road.

Effects of tap water processing on the concentration of disinfection by-products.

Aim: This study examined the effects on disinfection by-product (DBP) concentrations of common household methods for processing drinking water.

Methods: We investigated the effects of refrigerator storage, jug filtering, boiling in an electric kettle, and supply from an instant boiling water unit, with or without filtering, on four species of trihalomethanes (THMs) and nine species of haloacetic acids (HAAs) in water ready for consumption in Sydney, Australia. Water samples were processed in such a way as to simulate real life conditions for drinking filtered water or hot water drinks prepared from tap water drawn from public water supply systems.

Spatio-temporal variation in trihalomethanes in New South Wales.

Aim: This paper describes the spatio-temporal variation of trihalomethanes in drinking water in New South Wales, Australia from 1997 to 2007

Method: We obtained data on trihalomethanes (THMs) from two metropolitan and 13 rural water utilities and conducted a descriptive analysis of the spatial and temporal trends in THMs and the influence of season and drought.

Results: Concetrations of monthly THMs in the two metropolitan water utilities of Sydney/Illawarra (mean 66.8 μg/L) and Hunter (mean 62.