Air pollution we breathe: Assessing the air quality and human health impact in a megacity of Southeast Asia.

With 24 million inhabitants and 6.6 million vehicles on the roads, Karachi, Pakistan ranks among the world's most polluted cities due to high levels of fine particulate matter (PM). This study aims to investigate PM mass, seasonal and temporal variability, chemical characterization, source apportionment, and health risk assessment at two urban sites in Karachi.

Beyond the outdoors: indoor air quality guidelines and standards - challenges, inequalities, and the path forward.

In the last few decades, indoor air quality (IAQ) has become a major threat to public health. It is the fifth leading cause of premature death globally. It has been estimated that people spend ∼90 % of their time in an indoor environment.

Fine particulate matter and its chemical constituents' levels: A troubling environmental and human health situation in Karachi, Pakistan.

Like many urban centers in developing countries, the effect of air pollution in Karachi is understudied. The goal of this study was to determine the chemical characterization, temporal and seasonal variability, sources, and health impacts of fine particulate matter (PM) in Karachi, Pakistan. Daily samples of PM were collected using a low-volume air sampler at two different sites (Makro and Karachi University) over the four seasons between October 2009 and August 2010.

State of gaseous air pollutants and resulting health effects in Karachi, Pakistan.

Karachi, Pakistan, is a priority site for air pollution research due to high emissions of air pollutants from vehicular traffic, industrial activities, and biomass burning, as well as rapid growth in population. The objectives of this study were to investigate the levels of gaseous pollutants (NO, NO, O, HNO, and SO) in Karachi, to determine temporal and seasonal variations, to compare Karachi's air quality with other urban centers, to identify relationships with meteorological conditions, to identify source characterization, and to perform a backward-in-time trajectory analysis and a health impact assessment. Daily samples of gaseous pollutants were collected for six consecutive weeks in each of the four seasons for a year.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in the atmospheric total suspended particles in Karachi, Pakistan: Profiles, potential sources, and daily intake estimates.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have received continuous attention; however, there is limited understanding of their sources in the atmosphere and related human exposure risks. This study measured PFAS in the atmospheric total suspended particles collected from Karachi, Pakistan, during the winter. Among the quantified PFAS, perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA) showed the highest average concentration (3.

Residential Proximity to Biorefinery Sources of Air Pollution and Respiratory Diseases in New York State.

Understanding potential health risks associated with biofuel production is critical to sustainably combating energy insecurity and climate change. However, the specific health impacts associated with biorefinery-related emissions are not yet well characterized. We evaluated the relationship between respiratory emergency department (ED) visits (2011-2015) and residential exposure to biorefineries by comparing 15 biorefinery sites to 15 control areas across New York (NY) State.

Identifying and evaluating school environmental health indicators.

Children's health, attendance, and academic performance may be affected by school environmental hazards. While prior studies evaluated home environment and health, few have evaluated indicators of school in-/outdoor environment and health. This study addresses this knowledge gap by systematically reviewing and evaluating outdoor and indoor indicators of school environment and student's health and performance in New York State (NYS).

Projecting life-cycle environmental impacts of corn production in the U.S. Midwest under future climate scenarios using a machine learning approach.

Climate change is exacerbating environmental pollution from crop production. Spatially and temporally explicit estimates of life-cycle environmental impacts are therefore needed for suggesting location and time relevant environmental mitigations strategies. Emission factors and process-based mechanism models are popular approaches used to estimate life-cycle environmental impacts.

Assessing the association between fine particulate matter (PM) constituents and cardiovascular diseases in a mega-city of Pakistan.

Concerning PM concentrations, rapid industrialization, along with increase in cardiovascular disease (CVD) were recorded in Pakistan, especially in urban areas. The degree to which air pollution contributes to the increase in the burden of CVD in Pakistan has not been assessed due to lack of data. This study aims to describe the characteristics of PM constituents and investigate the impact of individual PM constituent on cardiovascular morbidity in Karachi, a mega city in Pakistan.

Ambient air quality in the holy city of Makkah: A source apportionment with elemental enrichment factors (EFs) and factor analysis (PMF).

Air pollution remains a major global public health and environmental issue. We assessed the levels of PM and delineated the major sources in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. Fine particulate matter (PM) sampling was performed from February 26, 2014-January 27, 2015 in four cycles/seasons.

Fine particles exposure and cardiopulmonary morbidity in Jeddah: A time-series analysis.

Health effects linked to PM, have been extensively studied in developed countries of Europe and N. America. However, little has been done in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East.

Association of fine particulate air pollution with cardiopulmonary morbidity in Western Coast of Saudi Arabia.

To assess cardiopulmonary morbidity associated with daily exposures to PM2.5 in Western Coast of Saudi Arabia. Methods: We monitored 24-h PM2.

Multipathways human health risk assessment of trihalomethane exposure through drinking water.

Life-time human health risk of cancer attributed to trihalomethanes in drinking water in an urban-industrialized area of Karachi (Pakistan) was conducted through multiple pathways of exposure. The extent of cancer risk was compared with USEPA guidelines. Human health cancer risk for total trihalomethanes (TTHMs) through ingestion and dermal routes were estimated in "acceptable-low risk" (≥1.

Carbonyls and non-methane hydrocarbons at a rural mountain site in northeastern United States.

Measurements of carbonyls and C(2)-C(6) non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHCs) were made in ambient air at a rural site at the summit of Whiteface Mountain (WFM) in New York State. Alkanes dominated in the samples, with ethane and propane making up about 55% of the total on a carbon-atom basis. Ethane, the longest-lived of the NMHCs, showed a mixing ratio in the range of 0.

Lead content of petrol and diesel and its assessment in an urban environment.

Pakistan is one of the few countries in Asia that continues to use only leaded-petrol as vehicular fuel. The concentration of Pb in its petrol reported in 1991 was the highest (1.5-2.