Long-term exposure of European population subgroups to PM2.5 and NO2

Abstract

Numerous epidemiological studies have demonstrated the damaging influence of air pollutants on human health. However, the environmental health studies up to now use urban background concentrations in the ambient air to estimate the health risks, while the inhalation of toxic substances, i.e. the concentration of pollutants, where the exposed person breathes, is the relevant indicator for estimating the health impacts. The main objective of this thesis is to assess the long-term exposure to fine particles and nitrogen dioxide for different European subgroups that are characterised by certain features including age, gender, region and socio-economic status. The exposure simulation is realised by developing a probabilistic model that incorporates an air quality model for estimating the ambient pollutant concentration, a mass-balance model for assessing the concentration of indoor micro-environments and a life course trajectory model for predicting retrospectively the transition between socio-economic states. The results of the exposure modelling are subsequently incorporated with exposure response functions (ERFs), aggregation factors and monetary values to assess health impacts and damage costs.