Catastrophic impact of extreme 2019 Indonesian peatland fires on urban air quality and health.

ABSTRACT: Tropical peatland fires generate substantial quantities of airborne fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) and in Indonesia are intensified during El Niño-related drought leading to severe air quality impacts affecting local and distant populations. Limited in-situ data often necessitates reliance on air quality models, like that of the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, whose accuracy in extreme conditions is not fully understood. Here we demonstrate how a network of low-cost sensors around Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan during the 2019 fire season, quantified extreme air quality and city-scale variability. The data indicates relatively strong model performance. Health impacts are substantial with estimates of over 1200 excess deaths in the Palangka Raya region, over 3200 ac

SUBMITTER: Grosvenor MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11531407 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature