| Title: | "Exposures to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and associated health risks of socio-economically disadvantaged population in a 'hot spot' in Camden, New Jersey" |
| Author(s): | Wu XM; Fan ZT; Zhu X; Jung KH; Ohman-Strickland P; Weisel CP; Lioy PJ; |
| Address: | "University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ), USA ; UMDNJ - Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, USA. University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ), USA ; UMDNJ - School of Public Health, USA" |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2012.04.029 |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1352-2310 (Print) 1352-2310 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "To address disparities in health risks associated with ambient air pollution for racial/ethnic minority groups, this study characterized personal and ambient concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in a suspected hot spot of air pollution - the Village of Waterfront South (WFS), and an urban reference community - the Copewood/Davis Streets (CDS) neighborhood in Camden, New Jersey. Both are minority-dominant, impoverished communities. We collected 24-h integrated personal air samples from 54 WFS residents and 53 CDS residents, with one sample on a weekday and one on a weekend day during the summer and winter seasons of 2004-2006. Ambient air samples from the center of each community were also collected simultaneously during personal air sampling. Toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes (TEX) presented higher (p < 0.05) ambient levels in WFS than in CDS, particularly during weekdays. A stronger association between personal and ambient concentrations of MTBE and TEX was found in WFS than in CDS. Fourteen to forty-two percent of the variation in personal MTBE, hexane, benzene, and TEX was explained by local outdoor air pollution. These observations indicated that local sources impacted the community air pollution and personal exposure in WFS. The estimated cancer risks resulting from two locally emitted VOCs, benzene and ethylbenzene, and non-cancer neurological and respiratory effects resulting from hexane, benzene, toluene, and xylenes exceeded the US EPA risk benchmarks in both communities. These findings emphasized the need to address disparity in health risks associated with ambient air pollution for the socio-economically disadvantaged groups. This study also demonstrated that air pollution hot spots similar to WFS can provide robust setting to investigate health effects of ambient air pollution" |
| Keywords: | Community air pollution Health risks Hot spot Personal exposure Socio-economically disadvantaged population VOCs; |
| Notes: | "PubMed-not-MEDLINEWu, Xiangmei May Fan, Zhihua Tina Zhu, Xianlei Jung, Kyung Hwa Ohman-Strickland, Pamela Weisel, Clifford P Lioy, Paul J eng P30 ES005022/ES/NIEHS NIH HHS/ England 2012/09/01 Atmos Environ (1994). 2012 Sep; 57:72-79. doi: 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2012.04.029" |
