INVESTIGATION OF NOISE EXPOSURES, PERCEPTION, AND HEALTH EFFECTS IN DIFFERENT MICROENVIRONMENTS IN A UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY

This study aims to assess noise levels in selected outdoor and indoor microenvironments in a University community in Oman. The perception of noise levels within the Sultan Qaboos University campus was investigated through a survey study. Also, the effect of exposed noise levels on annoyance and sleep disturbance were predicted including their potential risk on cardiovascular health. Among all the measured parameters, it was found that outdoor (41.6%-50%) and indoor (38.5%-46.2%) microenvironments have exceeded the critical levels of 55 dB during morning and afternoon periods. The respondents (698 people) identified traffic and indoor building-related activities as the main sources of noise levels but the majority (44%) of them rated their impact as low. However, more than 30% of the respondents considered traffic as the main contributor to University noise levels. The percentage of highly annoyed persons was predicted to be high in outdoor areas especially in the residential (25%) and near the hospital (13%) areas. However, indoor environments including construction materials and structures labs (14%) showed similar annoyance rates. Also, the percentage of high sleep disturbed persons was found higher in residential areas (7.4%) areas compared to hospital areas (5.3%) locations. The study concluded that there might be an association between the exposed noise levels and the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. This is the first study that has provided a high spatial variability noise exposure levels across a University environment in Oman, this will contribute to designing future sustainable mitigation strategies to improve the health and well-being of the exposed population. The study has provided a baseline knowledge needed for future epidemiological studies

Long-term exposure to ambient PM2.5 and impacts on health in Rome, Italy

Abstract Objective The aim of this study was to estimate the impact of long-term exposure to PM2.5 on residents of Rome, Italy in terms of ischemic heart diseases (IHD), chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD), lung cancer (LC), stroke and the number of working days lost (WDL). Methods In this study, we estimated human health impacts from long-term exposure to ambient PM2.5 through application of linear RR and integrated exposure-response (IER) functions and the AirQ + software. Results In 2014, on average 1189, 348, 43, 301 and 387 cases of IHD, COPD, LC, stroke and WDL, respectively could be avoided in Rome if the annual mean PM2.5 concentration was reduced from 15.6 to 10.0 μg m−3. In 2014, 27.67% of IHD, 15.9% of COPD, 9.5% of LC, 19.9% of stroke as well as 2.5% of WDL are attributed to the long-term exposure to PM2.5 concentrations exceeding 10 μg m−3. Conclusion This may be achieved through adoption of stringent air pollution regulations and sustainable city planning. Increase in urban green infrastructures and improving road transportation will reduce PM2.5 levels in urban environment, thereby safeguarding human health from air pollution and improving citizens' well-being