Existing Smog in Lahore, Pakistan: An Alarming Public Health Concern

There is no author summary for this article yet. Authors can add summaries to their articles on ScienceOpen to make them more accessible to a non-specialist audience.

Abstract

Lahore, the second-largest and most polluted city in Pakistan, has been plagued by a heavy blanket of smog recently. The ever-growing urbanization and industrialization have contributed to the worsening air quality of the city. Smog, being hazardous to health, is leading to a rapid sprout in multiple health-related problems, as well as raising concerns about the long-term deleterious effects on public health. The current situation is expected to worsen due to the lack of an active action plan from the government's side and a failure of concerned authorities to take note of the urgency of the situation. Hence, we aim to highlight this pressing issue in the light of previously published articles, to alert the relevant authorities regarding the detrimental consequences smog can have on public health and urge them to take immediate action to avoid further damage.

Related collections

Most cited references 4

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: found

Is Open Access

Blood pressure and particulate air pollution in schoolchildren of Lahore, Pakistan

Muhammad Sughis, Tim S. Nawrot, Syed Ihsan-ul-Haque … (2012)

Background Air pollution is a growing health problem for urban populations in emerging economies. The present study examines the (cross-sectional) relation between blood pressure and particulate air pollution in schoolchildren of Lahore (Pakistan). Methods We recruited a sample of 8–12 year-old children (mean age 9.9 years; 45% girls) from two schools in Lahore situated in areas with low (n = 79) and high (n = 100) air pollution, respectively. During the study period (January-April 2009) particulate pollution [PM10 and PM2.5 i.e. particles with aerodynamic diameters below 10 μm or 2.5 μm, respectively] was measured at the school sites with a laser operated device (Metone Aerocet 531). Blood pressure was measured, after 5 minutes of sitting rest, using an automated device (average of 5 consecutive measurements). Spot urine samples were also collected and concentrations of Na and K were measured. Results Mean daily values of PM2.5 were 28.5 μg/m3 (SD: 10.3) and 183 μg/m3 (SD: 30.2), in the low and high pollution areas, respectively. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure were significantly higher in children living in the high pollution area (115.9/70.9 mm Hg) than in the low pollution area (108.3/66.4 mm Hg), independently of age, gender, height, weight, socio-economic status, passive smoking and the urinary concentrations of Na, K, and creatinine. Conclusions In 8–12 year-old children, exposure to (traffic-related) air pollution was associated with higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure. These findings, if they persist, might have clinical relevance at older age.

0 comments Cited 27 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: not found

Characterization of five-year observation data of fine particulate matter in the metropolitan area of Lahore

Fatima Khanum, Muhammad Nawaz Chaudhry, Prashant Kumar (2017)

This study aims to assess the long-term trend of fine particles (PM2.5; ≤2.5 μm) at two urban sites of Lahore during 2007–2011. These sites represent two distinct areas: commercial (Townhall) and residential cum industrial (Township). The highest daily mean concentrations of PM2.5 were noted as 389 and 354 μg m−3 at the Townhall and Township sites, respectively. As expected, the annual seasonal mean of PM2.5 was about 53 and 101% higher during winter compared with the summer and monsoon/post-monsoon seasons, respectively. On contrary to many observations seen in developing cities, the annual mean PM2.5 during the weekends was higher than weekdays at both monitoring sites. For example, these were 100 (142) and 142 μg m−3 (148) during the weekdays (weekends) at the Townhall and Township sites, respectively. The regression analysis showed a significant positive correlation of PM2.5 with SO2, NO2 and CO as opposed to a negative correlation with O3. The bivariate polar plots suggested a much higher influence of localized sources (e.g., road vehicles) at the Townhall site as opposed to industrial sources affecting the concentrations at the Township site. The imageries from the MODIS Aqua/Terra indicated long-range transport of PM2.5 from India to Pakistan during February to October whereas from Pakistan to India during November to January. This study provides important results in the form of multiscale relationship of PM2.5 with its sources and precursors, which are important to assess the effectiveness of pollution control mitigation strategies in Lahore and similar cities elsewhere. Graphical abstract

0 comments Cited 13 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: not found

Impact of transport and industrial emissions on the ambient air quality of Lahore City, Pakistan.

Mahboob Ali, Makshoof Athar (2010)

Lahore's population is growing at a rate of 4% a year. It is widely perceived that because of this rapid growth, the level of services provided to the city's 7 million inhabitants has substantially deteriorated. This study presents the finding of ambient air quality monitoring carried out in Lahore City, Pakistan. The ambient air quality was monitored for criteria pollutants carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)), sulfur dioxide (SO(2)), ozone (O(3)), particulate matter (TSP and PM(10)), lead (Pb), and noise level at ten different locations of the city. The sampling locations were selected in a way to draw a representative profile of air quality, covering both newly developed as well as highly congested urban centers. The sulfur dioxide, lead, and suspended particulate concentration was found very high as compared to the ambient air quality standards of US Environmental Protection Agency and WHO guidelines. The 24-h average noise was exceeding the WHO limits at majority of the locations. The study presents the severity of air pollution in Lahore City, and findings would help city management to develop monitoring and mitigation measures to improve the air quality of the city.

0 comments Cited 7 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

All references

Author and article information

Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Cureus

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): Cureus

Journal ID (issn): 2168-8184

Title: Cureus

Publisher: Cureus (Palo Alto (CA) )

ISSN (Electronic): 2168-8184

Publication date (Electronic, pub): 25 January 2018

Publication date (Electronic, collection): January 2018

Volume: 10

Issue: 1

Electronic Location Identifier: e2111

Affiliations

[1 ] Dow Medical College, Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS), Karachi, Pakistan

Author notes

Ramsha Riaz ramshariaz1028@ 123456gmail.com

Article

DOI: 10.7759/cureus.2111

PMC ID: 5866107

PubMed ID: 29581923

SO-VID: 59ce4eb6-6fb3-4c6f-926f-95110e4c89dc

License:

This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Existing Smog in Lahore, Pakistan: An Alarming Public Health Concern

Read this article at

Abstract

Related collections

SciELO Public Health

Most cited references 4

Blood pressure and particulate air pollution in schoolchildren of Lahore, Pakistan

Characterization of five-year observation data of fine particulate matter in the metropolitan area of Lahore

Impact of transport and industrial emissions on the ambient air quality of Lahore City, Pakistan.

Author and article information

Journal

Affiliations

Author notes

Article

History

Categories

Comments

Comment on this article

Similar content 275

Cited by 5

Most referenced authors 19