Dataset Information

Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Impacts of Hurricane Florence on Criteria Air Pollutants and Air Toxics in Eastern North Carolina.

ABSTRACT: Natural and anthropogenic disasters are associated with air quality concerns due to the potential redistribution of pollutants in the environment. Our objective was to conduct a spatiotemporal analysis of air concentrations of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzne, and xylene (BTEX) and criteria air pollutants in North Carolina during and after Hurricane Florence. Three sampling campaigns were carried out immediately after the storm (September 2018) and at four-month intervals. BTEX were measured along major roads. Concurrent criteria air pollutant concentrations were predicted from modeling. Correlation between air pollutants and possible point sources was conducted using spatial regression. Exceedances of ambient air criteria were observed for benzene (in all sampling periods) and PM2.5 (mostly immediately after Florence). For both, there was an association between higher concentrations and fueling stations, particularly immediately after Florence. For other pollutants, concentrations were generally below levels of regulatory concern. Through characterization of air quality under both disaster and "normal" conditions, this study demonstrates spatial and temporal variation in air pollutants. We found that only benzene and PM2.5 were present at levels of potential concern, and there were localized increases immediately after the hurricane. These substances warrant particular attention in future disaster response research (DR2) investigations.

SUBMITTER: Bhandari S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8835244 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Impacts of Hurricane Florence on Criteria Air Pollutants and Air Toxics in Eastern North Carolina.

Bhandari Sharmila S Casillas Gaston G Aly Noor A NA Zhu Rui R Newman Galen G Wright Fred A FA Miller Anthony A Adler Gabriela G Rusyn Ivan I Chiu Weihsueh A WA

International journal of environmental research and public health 20220203 3

Natural and anthropogenic disasters are associated with air quality concerns due to the potential redistribution of pollutants in the environment. Our objective was to conduct a spatiotemporal analysis of air concentrations of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzne, and xylene (BTEX) and criteria air pollutants in North Carolina during and after Hurricane Florence. Three sampling campaigns were carried out immediately after the storm (September 2018) and at four-month intervals. BTEX were measured along ...[more]

PMID: 35162780

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Project description:In September 2018, Hurricane Florence caused extreme flooding in eastern North Carolina, USA, a region highly dense in concentrated animal production, especially swine and poultry. In this study, floodwater samples (n = 96) were collected as promptly post-hurricane as possible and for up to approximately 30 days and selectively enriched for Campylobacter using Bolton broth enrichment and isolation on modified charcoal cefoperazone deoxycholate agar (mCCDA) microaerobically at 42°C. Only one sample yielded Campylobacter, which was found to be Campylobacter jejuni with the novel sequence type 2866 (ST-2866). However, the methods employed to isolate Campylobacter readily yielded Arcobacter from 73.5% of the floodwater samples. The Arcobacter isolates failed to grow on Mueller-Hinton agar at 25, 30, 37, or 42°C microaerobically or aerobically but could be readily subcultured on mCCDA at 42°C microaerobically. Multilocus sequence typing of 112 isolates indicated that all were Arcobacter butzleri The majority (85.7%) of the isolates exhibited novel sequence types (STs), with 66 novel STs identified. Several STs, including certain novel ones, were detected in diverse waterbody types (channel, isolated ephemeral pools, floodplain) and from multiple watersheds, suggesting the potential for regionally dominant strains. The genotypes were clearly partitioned into two major clades, one with high representation of human and ruminant isolates and another with an abundance of swine and poultry isolates. Surveillance of environmental waters and food animal production systems in this animal agriculture-dense region is needed to assess potential regional prevalence and temporal stability of the observed A. butzleri strains as well as their potential association with specific types of food animal production.IMPORTANCE Climate change and associated extreme weather events can have massive impacts on the prevalence of microbial pathogens in floodwaters. However, limited data are available on foodborne zoonotic pathogens such as Campylobacter or Arcobacter in hurricane-associated floodwaters in rural regions with intensive animal production. With a high density of intensive animal production as well as pronounced vulnerability to hurricanes, eastern North Carolina presents unique opportunities in this regard. Our findings revealed widespread incidence of the emerging zoonotic pathogen Arcobacter butzleri in floodwaters from Hurricane Florence. We encountered high and largely unexplored diversity while also noting the potential for regionally abundant and persistent clones. We noted pronounced partitioning of the floodwater genotypes into two source-associated clades. The data will contribute to elucidating the poorly understood ecology of this emerging pathogen and highlight the importance of surveillance of floodwaters associated with hurricanes and other extreme weather events for Arcobacter and other zoonotic pathogens.

Project description:Recently released hourly particular matter (PM:PM2.5 and PM10) and gaseous pollutants (SO2, NO2, CO, and O3) data observed in Qingdao, Hangzhou, and Xiamen from 2015 to 2019 were utilized to reveal the current situation of air pollution over eastern coastal China. The PM pollution situation over the three metropolises ameliorated during studied period with the concentrations decreasing about 20-30%. Gas pollutants, excepting SO2, generally exhibit no evident reduction tendencies, and a more rigorous control standard on gaseous pollutants is neededEven for the year 2018 with low pollution levels among the study period, these levels (<10% of PM2.5, <6% of PM10, and <15% of O3) surpass the Grade II of the Chinese Ambient Air Quality Standard (CAAQS) over these metropolises of eastern coast China. No matter in which year, both SO2 and CO concentrations are always below the Grade-II standards. According to the comparative analysis of PM2.5/PM10 and PM2.5/CO during episode days and non-episode days, the formation of secondary aerosols associated with stagnant weather systems play an important role in the pollutant accumulation as haze episodes occurred. The stronger seasonal variations and higher magnitude occur in Qingdao and Hangzhou, while weaker seasonal variations and lower magnitudes occur in Xiamen. In Qingdao and Hangzhou, PM, NO2, SO2, and CO show relatively high levels in the cold wintertime and low levels in summer, whereas O3 shows a completely opposite pattern. Xiamen exhibits high levels of all air pollutants except O3 in spring due to its subtropical marine monsoon climate with mild winters. According to the back trajectory hierarchical clustering and concentration weighted trajectory (CWT) analysis, the regional transmission from adjacent cities has a significant impact on the atmospheric pollutant concentrations under the control of the prejudiced winds. Thus, besides local emission reduction, strengthening regional environmental cooperation and implementing joint prevention are effective measures to mitigate air pollution in the eastern coastal areas of China.

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Project description:Public health protection from air pollution can be achieved more effectively by shifting from a single-pollutant approach to a multi-pollutant approach. To develop such multi-pollutant approaches, identifying which air pollutants are present most frequently is essential. This study aims to determine the frequently found carcinogenic air toxics or hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) combinations across the United States as well as to analyze the health impacts of developing cancer due to exposure to these HAPs. To identify the most commonly found carcinogenic air toxics combinations, we first identified HAPs with cancer risk greater than one in a million in more than 5% of the census tracts across the United States, based on the National-Scale Air Toxics Assessment (NATA) by the U.S. EPA for year 2005. We then calculated the frequencies of their two-component (binary), and three-component (ternary) combinations. To quantify the cancer-related health impacts, we focused on the 10 most frequently found HAPs with national average cancer risk greater than one in a million. Their cancer-related health impacts were calculated by converting lifetime cancer risk reported in NATA 2005 to years of healthy life lost or Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs). We found that the most frequently found air toxics with cancer risk greater than one in a million are formaldehyde, carbon tetrachloride, acetaldehyde, and benzene. The most frequently occurring binary pairs and ternary mixtures are the various combinations of these four air toxics. Analysis of urban and rural HAPs did not reveal significant differences in the top combinations of these chemicals. The cumulative annual cancer-related health impacts of inhaling the top 10 carcinogenic air toxics included was about 1,600 DALYs in the United States or 0.6 DALYs per 100,000 people. Formaldehyde and benzene together contribute nearly 60 percent of the total cancer-related health impacts. Our study shows that although there are many carcinogenic air toxics, only a few of them affect public health significantly at the national level in the United States, based on the frequency of occurrence of air toxics mixtures and cancer-related public health impacts. Future research is needed on their joint toxicity and cumulative health impacts.

Dataset Information

Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Impacts of Hurricane Florence on Criteria Air Pollutants and Air Toxics in Eastern North Carolina.

Publications

Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Impacts of Hurricane Florence on Criteria Air Pollutants and Air Toxics in Eastern North Carolina.

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