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UNIVERSITY OF BUCHAREST
FACULTY OF PHYSICS Guest
2024-11-24 11:24 |
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Conference: Bucharest University Faculty of Physics 2021 Meeting
Section: Atmosphere and Earth Science; Environment Protection
Title:
Six-year monitoring of atmospheric pollen and major air pollutant concentrations in relation with meteorological factors in Bucharest, Romania
Authors:
AM Rosianu (1), PM Leru (2,3), S Stefan (1), G Iorga (1,4), L Marmureanu (5)
*
Affiliation:
1) University of Bucharest, Faculty of Physics, Atomistilor 405, Magurele, 077125 Bucharest, Romania
2) “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 050474 Bucharest, Romania
3) Colentina Clinical Hospital, 020125 Bucharest, Romania
4) University of Bucharest, Department of Physical Chemistry, Bd. Regina Elisabeta 4-12, 030018 Bucharest, Romania
5) Remote Sensing Department, National Institute of Research and Development for Optoelectronics INOE 2000, 077125 Magurele, Romania
E-mail
anarosianu3@yahoo.com
Keywords:
aerobiology, allergenic pollen, meteorological factors, urban air pollution
Abstract:
Air quality represents a significant problem, especially in rapidly urban developing areas, whose atmosphere contains a complex mixture of pollutants of various origins. Pollen grains are of particular interest due to their negative impact on human health, being responsible for the increasing prevalence of seasonal allergic diseases. However, the current knowledge on the correlations between air pollution, climate change and health impact of allergenic pollen is still limited, including Romania, where few studies have been performed until now.
This study aimed to analyze multiyear data between 2014-2019 of the pollen concentrations in correlation with major air pollutants and meteorological parameters from Bucharest, the city with the highest inhabitant density in Romania, in order to find potential links between them.
The pollen concentration was measured at Colentina Clinical Hospital using a Hirst-type spore trap that collects particles with an aerodynamic diameter between 2 µm and 200 µm on a weekly basis. Pollen particles data were classified by main species - trees, weeds and grasses depending on the flowering period and by the degree of spread (common or very common). Mass concentrations of PM10, PM2.5, NOx, CO, VOCs, O3, SO2 were obtained from the monitoring stations belonging to the National Air Quality Monitoring Network. Meteorology data were provided by the National Meteorological Agency. Pollen monitoring showed that maximum values of pollen concentration from trees are reached in early spring, from grasses in spring and early summer and from weeds in late summer and fall, corresponding to their flowering period.
The correlation analysis was performed using the Spearman correlation coefficient on annual and seasonal basis and revealed the influence of air pollutants and meteorological parameters on pollen concentrations. Despite the seasonal correlations, no monotonic decreasing or increasing trend was detected for Bucharest during the investigated 6-year period, but a general constant behavior.
Acknowledgement:
This work was supported by European Regional Development Fund through Competitiveness Operational Programme 2014–2020, Action 1.1.3 creating synergies with H2020 programme, project Support Center for European project management and European promotion, MYSMIS code 107874, ctr. no. 253/2.06.2020. AMR was supported by the University of Bucharest, PhD research grant. SS and GI acknowledge the support from NO Grants 2014-2021, under Project EEA-RO-NO-2019-0423, contract no 31/01.09.2020. The authors gratefully acknowledge the National Air Quality Monitoring Network (NAQMN, www.calitateaer.ro) for data providing.
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