Department of Environmental Sciences

Urban air pollution is associated with significant adverse health effects. Model-based abatement strategies are required and developed for the growing urban populations. In the initial development stage, these are focussed on exceedances of air quality standards caused by high short-term pollutant concentrations. Prediction of health effects and implementation of urban air quality information and abatement systems require accurate forecasting of

Urban air pollution is associated with significant adverse health effects. Model-based abatement strategies are required and developed for the growing urban populations. In the initial development stage, these are focussed on exceedances of air quality standards caused by high short-term pollutant concentrations. Prediction of health effects and implementation of urban air quality information and abatement systems require accurate forecasting of air pollution episodes and population exposure, including modelling of emissions, meteorology, atmospheric dispersion and chemical reaction of pollutants, population mobility, and indoor-outdoor relationship of the pollutants. In the past, these different areas have been treated separately by different models and even institutions. Progress in computer resources and ensuing improvements in numerical weather prediction, air chemistry, and exposure modelling recently allow a unification and integration of the disjunctive models and approaches. The current work presents a novel approach that integrates the latest developments in meteorological, air quality, and population exposure modelling into Urban Air Quality Information and Forecasting Systems (UAQIFS) in the context of the European Union FUMAPEX project. The suggested integrated strategy is demonstrated for examples of the systems in three Nordic cities: Helsinki and Oslo for assessment and forecasting of urban air pollution and Copenhagen for urban emergency preparedness.

Ambient fine particle (PM 2.5 ) concentrations are associated with premature mortality and other health effects. Urban populations spend a majority of their time in indoor environments, and thus exposures are modified by building envelopes. Ambient particles have been found to penetrate indoors very efficiently (penetration efficiency PE1.0), where they are slowly removed by deposition, adsorption, and other mechanisms. Other particles are generated indoors, even in buildings with no obvious sources like combustion devices, cooking, use of aerosol products, etc.. The health effects of indoor generated particles are currently not well understood, and require information on concentrations and exposure levels.

Between 1998 and 2000 in Oxford, UK, simultaneous personal exposures and microenvironmental measurements (home indoor, home outdoor and work indoor) to fine particulate matters PM 2.5 , volatile organic compounds (VOC), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ) and carbon monoxide (CO) were carried out once per person among 50 adults over a 48-h period. Thirty-seven elements in PM 2.5 and 30 different VOCs were analysed. Questionnaires were distributed to record their time-activity patterns and exposure-related information. Results showed that participants spent more time (89.5%) in all indoors than in other microenvironments. Geometric mean (GM) of personal and home indoor levels of PM 2.-pinene and d-limonene) were over 20% higher than their GM outdoor levels. Those of NO 2 , 5 aromatic VOCs (benzene, o-xylene, ethylbenzene, propylbenzene, m,p-xylene) and 5 other elements (chlorine, magnesium, manganese, sulphur, zinc) were close to their GM outdoor levels. For PM 2.5 and TVOC, personal exposures and residential indoor levels (in GM) were about 2 times higher among the tobacco-smoke exposed group compared to the non-smoke exposed group, suggesting that smoking is an important determinant of these exposures. Determinants for CO were visualised by real-time monitoring, and we showed that the peak levels of personal exposure to CO were associated with smoking, cooking and transportation activities. Moderate to good correlations were only found between the AE International -Europe www.elsevier.com/locate/atmosenv 1352-2310/$ -see front matter r (M.J. Nieuwenhuijsen). personal exposures and residential indoor levels for both PM 2.5 (r ¼ 0:60; po0:001) and NO 2 (r ¼ 0:47; p ¼ 0:003).

PAHs are known to induce health effects on population due to the ability of airborne particulates to absorb and transport these species in the lungs. Since some PAHs are potent carcinogens by a genotoxic mode of action that adds to that of fine particles (e.g. PM 2.5), their levels in air should be kept as low as possible (WHO, 2013). Consequently, the assessment of PM 2.5 and PAHs exposures of the most sensitive populations living in urban areas represent a relevant issue, which was addressed by the EXPAH project (www.ispesl.it/expah). An integrated model is presented to estimate PM 2.5 and PAHs exposures of children and elderly people living in Rome, Italy. It is based on a microenvironment approach accounting for concentrations experienced by the target population in the most visited living environments. The model uses data provided by the EU LIFE+ EXPAH project: indoor/outdoor PM 2.5 /PAHs concentrations collected in homes, schools, offices and traffic (cars, buses) to derive in...

Several studies have reported laser printers as significant sources of nanosized particles (\0.1 lm). Laser printers are used occupationally in office environments and by consumers in their homes. The current work combines existing epidemiological and toxicological evidence on particlerelated health effects, measuring doses as mass, particle number and surface area, to estimate and compare the potential risks in occupational and consumer exposure scenarios related to the use of laser printers. The daily uptake of laser printer particles was estimated based on measured particle size distributions and lung deposition modelling. The obtained daily uptakes (particle mass 0.15-0.44 lg d -1 ; particle number 1.1-3.1 9 10 9 d -1 ) were estimated to correspond to 4-13 (mass) or 12-34 (number) deaths per million persons exposed on the basis of epidemiological risk estimates for ambient particles. These risks are higher than the generally used definition of acceptable risk of 1 9 10 -6 , but substantially lower than the estimated risks due to ambient particles. Toxicological studies on ambient particles revealed consistent values for lowest observed effect levels (LOELs) which were converted into equivalent daily uptakes using allometric scaling. These LOEL uptakes were by a factor of about 330-1,000 (mass) and 1,000-2,500 (particle surface area) higher than estimated uptakes from printers. This toxicological assessment would indicate no significant health risks due to printer particles. Finally, our study suggests that particle number (not mass) and mass (not surface area) are the most conservative risk metrics for the epidemiological and toxicological risks presented here, respectively.

Nanoparticles exhibit properties different from those of the same bulk materials leading to unknown toxicological implications that have evoked concern for (1) occupational, (2) consumer and (3) environmental safety. The current work utilizes epidemiological and toxicological data for screening level assessment of these risks using various suggested health relevant dose metrics (mass, particle number and surface area) to (i) quantify the potential risk levels and to (ii) compare the properties of these alternative risk assessment methods.

In the framework of the EXPOLIS study in Milan, Italy, 48-h carbon monoxide (CO) exposures of 50 office workers were monitored over a 1-year period. In this work, the exposures were assessed for different averaging times and were compared with simultaneous ambient fixed-site concentrations. The effect of gas cooking and smoking and different methods of commuting on the microenvironment and exposure levels of CO were investigated. During the sampling the subjects completed a time-microenvironment-activity diary differentiating 11 microenvironments and three exposure influencing activities: gas cooking, smoking and commuting. After sampling, all exposure and time allocation data were stored in a relational database that is used in data analyses. Ambient 48-h and maximum 8-h distributions were similar compared to the respective personal exposures. The maximum 1-h personal exposures were much higher than the maximum 8-h exposures. The maximum 1-h exposures were as well higher than the corresponding ambient distribution. These findings indicate that high short-term exposures were not reflected in ambient monitoring data nor by long-term exposures. When gas cooking or smoking was present, the indoor levels at ''home-'' and in ''other indoor'' microenvironments were higher than without their presence. Compared with ambient data, the latter source was the most affective to increase the indoor levels. Exposure during commuting was higher than in all other microenvironments; the highest daily exposure contribution was found during ''car/taxi'' driving. Most of the CO exposure is acquired in indoor microenvironments. For the indoor microenvironments, ambient CO was the weakest predictor for ''home indoor'' concentrations, where the subjects spent most of their time, and the strongest for ''other indoor'' concentrations, where the smallest fraction of the time was spent. Of the main indoor sources, gas cooking, on average, significantly raised the indoor exposure concentrations for 45 min and tobacco smoking for 30 min. The highest exposure levels were experienced in street commuting. Personal exposures were well predicted, but 1-h maximum personal exposures were poorly predicted, by respective ambient air quality data. By the use of time-activity diaries, ETS exposure at the workplaces were probably misclassified due to differences in awareness to tobacco smoke between smokers and nonsmokers.

Motivated by growing considerations of the scale, severity, and risks associated with human exposure to indoor particulate matter, this work reviewed existing literature to: (i) identify state-of-the-art experimental techniques used for personal exposure assessment; (ii) compare exposure levels reported for domestic/school settings in different countries (excluding exposure to environmental tobacco smoke and particulate matter from biomass cooking in developing countries); (iii) assess the contribution of outdoor background vs indoor sources to personal exposure; and (iv) examine scientific understanding of the risks posed by personal exposure to indoor aerosols. Limited studies assessing integrated daily residential exposure to just one particle size fraction, ultrafine particles, show that the contribution of indoor sources ranged from 19% to 76%. This indicates a strong dependence on resident activities, source events and site specificity, and highlights the importance of indoor sources for total personal exposure. Further, it was assessed that 10-30% of the total burden of disease from particulate matter exposure was due to indoor-generated particles, signifying that indoor environments are likely to be a dominant environmental factor affecting human health. However, due to challenges associated with conducting epidemiological assessments, the role of indoor-generated particles has not been fully acknowledged, and improved exposure/risk assessment methods are still needed, together with a serious focus on exposure control.

This study examines the extent to which Finnish human dietary intake of organochlorines (PCDD/Fs and PCBs) originating from Northern Baltic herring can be influenced by fisheries management. This was investigated by estimation of human intake using versatile modeling tools (e.g., a herring population model and a bioenergetics model). We used a probabilistic approach to account for the variation in human intake of organochlorines originating from the variation among herring individuals. Our estimates were compared with present precautionary limits and recommendation for use. The results show that present consumption levels and frequencies of herring give a high probability of exceeding recommended intake limits of PCDD/Fs and PCBs. Furthermore, our results clearly demonstrate that in the risk management of dioxinlike organochlorines, regulating fishing (in this case increasing fishing pressure) is a far less effective way to decrease the risk than regulating the consumption of herring. Increased fishing would only slightly decrease organochlorine concentrations of herring in the Finnish fish market.

Julkaisija Elintarviketurvallisuusvirasto Evira Julkaisun nimi Elintarvikkeiden ja talousveden kemialliset vaarat Tekijät Anja Hallikainen, Taneli Rautala, Ulla Karlström, Pirkko Kostamo, Pertti Koivisto, Raimo Pohjanvirta, Veli Hietaniemi, Liisa Rajakangas, Vesa Tuomaala, Harri ...

Sediments polluted with high concentrations of persistent organic pollutants, many of which are ligands of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR), are currently of concern around the industrialized world. Bioassays that can detect the presence of AhR ligands in environmental samples offer a relatively rapid and costeffective means of prioritizing samples before more elaborate, laborious, and costly chemical analyses are applied. This paper presents a new bioluminescent yeast assay based on transcriptional activation of AhR. Its applicability for determining AhR ligands in complex environmental samples was demonstrated by analyzing a set of sediment samples from the River Kymi, Finland. The results from the assay are shown to be consistent with those from both a chemical analysis and an H4IIE-luc bioassay. The yeast assay procedure is simple and can be performed within 1 day. The yeasts grow rapidly, are easy to handle, and do not require continuous cell culturing. Moreover, the robustness of the yeast allows the application of the test to crude extracts or even sediment suspensions. The yeast assay described in this paper can be useful in screening and prioritization of samples prior to chemical analysis. Moreover, the strain can be used in the construction of fibre-optic biosensors.

Recent survey results for polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs, dioxins) in Baltic Sea sediments from Finland, Sweden and Denmark were merged with previously published Baltic Sea data. Regional distribution of concentration levels, differences in congener patterns, and temporal changes in sediment profiles were examined. One of the main objectives was to study if any major point sources for different PCDD/F congeners could be identified on a regional scale, based on sediment records. The survey confirmed the impact of chlorophenol production derived highly chlorinated PCDF-congeners on the total toxicity in sediments in the Gulf of Finland near the Kymijoki river estuary. Signatures of other point sources or combined point sources pertinent to specific industry branches or particular production processes (such as pulp bleaching, vinyl chloride production, thermal processes) may be discerned. However, the findings did not support any of the known point sources significantly influencing those congeners that are most abundant in Baltic herring and salmon. Instead, regional distributions in the Baltic Sea indicate that atmospheric deposition may act as a major source for those congeners and especially for 2,3,4,7,8-PeCDF. There were clear indications of declines in levels in sediment in some areas, but generally the levels of highly chlorinated PCDD/Fs on the northern coast of the Gulf of Finland were still high when compared with other areas of the Baltic Sea. Major areas with data gaps cover the south-eastern and eastern coastal regions of the Baltic Proper and the southern Gulf of Finland.

Passive air samplers consisting of polyurethane foam (PUF) disks were deployed simultaneously over 2-4 month periods from April to July 2008 at 19 locations throughout the Tuscany Region at urban (n = 9), rural (n = 7) and agricultural sites (n = 3). The purpose of the study was to assess the gas-phase air concentrations of PCBs, OCPs, PBDEs and PAHs on a local and regional scale. Derived air concentrations (pg m -3 ) ranged from below detection limit (BDL) to 300 for ∑ 6 PCBs and from BDL to 30 for ∑ 3 PBDEs. As expected, the highest PCB concentrations (pg m -3 ) were observed at urban sites, peaking in Piombino (300). PBDEs, however, exhibited a "reverse gradient" (i.e. rural>agricultural>urban) with highest air concentration at the rural site, Arcidoso (30). Levels of OCPs showed less distinct differences among the three site types. The most frequently detected OCPs were Endosulfan I, γ-HCH and α-HCH. Endosulfan I ranged from BDL to 2 200 pg m -3 , α-HCH from BDL to 610, and γ-HCH from BDL to 1 100. The high air concentrations of HCHs were surprising and possibly due to continued and illegal use -especially at agricultural and urban sites that exhibited the highest levels in air. PAHs showed highest concentrations (pg m -3 ) at agricultural and urban sites, ranging from 290 to 4 700 and were generally consistent with other data sets from Europe. PAHs were dominated by the 3-ring PAHs (76 ± 6)%, with phenanthrene alone accounting for (45 ± 11%) of the total PAHs. This study demonstrates the feasibility of using PUF disks as time-integrating passive air samplers for assessing local and regional scale concentrations of a wide range of POPs in central Italy. Given their low cost and simplicity, passive air samplers are the preferred option for conducting concurrent sampling at multiple sites for monitoring and research purposes.

Ky mij oki, the fourth larg est river in Fin land, has been heav ily pol luted by pulp mill efflu ents as well as the chem i cal indus try. Up to 24 000 ton of wood preservative, chlo ro phe nol known as Ky-5, was man ufac tured in the upper reaches of the river, an unknown amount of which was dis charged into the river between 1940 and 1984. Poly chlo ri nated dibenzo-p-di ox ins and dib enzofu rans (PCDD/Fs) occurred as impu ri ties in the final Ky-5 prod uct. The PCDD/F con cen tra tions and bur den in the river sed i ments were stud ied and the trans port of PCDD/Fs from con tam i nated sites down stream and into the Gulf of Fin land in the Bal tic Sea was esti mated. More than 190 sed i ment cores were sam pled to esti mate the vol ume of con tam i nated sed i ments and the total PCDD/F bur den. The trans port of PCDD/Fs was esti mated using sed i ment traps placed at sev eral sites. The sur vey revealed that sed i ments in the river were heav ily polluted by PCDD/Fs, the main toxic con ge ner being 1,2,3,4,6,7,8-hep ta chlorodibenzofu ran, a major con tam inant in the Ky-5 prod uct. The mean total con cen tra tion at the most pol luted river site down stream from the main source was 42 000 lg kg ¡1 d.w. (106 lg I-TEQ kg ¡1 ). The ele vated con cen tra tions in the coastal region and the pres ent esti mated trans port from the River Ky mij oki con firm ear lier assess ments that the river is a major source of PCDD/F for the Gulf of Fin land.

Concentrations of 17 toxic 2,3,7,8-substituted polychlorinateddibenzo-p-dioxins(PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) have been determined in pooled samples of breast milk from 15 mothers living in two residential areas (Tarragona downtown and an industrial area) in the vicinity of a new hazardous waste incinerator (HWl), now under construction in Tarragona (southern Catalonia, Spain). PCDD/Fs in human milk samples ranged between 5.9 and 17.1 pg I-TEQ/g fat (162-498 pg I-TEQ/I), with a mean value of 11.8 pg I-TEQ/g fat (310.8 pg I-TEQ/I). The percentages of fat ranged between 1.53 and 3.52. Although PCDD/F levels in milk from mothers living in the industrial area were found to be slightly higher than those observed in women living Tarragona downtown, most differences did not reach the level of statistical significance. In general terms, PCDD/F concentrations in human milk (pooled) samples of mothers living in the area of Tarragona are similar or lower than those previously reported for most industrialized countries.