Levels, seasonal variations, and health risks assessment of ambient air pollutants in the residential areas

People living in the urban area and the surrounding suburban area have disparities in exposure and health risks due to different levels of ambient air pollutants. The main objective of this study is to investigate the concentrations, seasonal variations, and related health risks of ambient air pollutants (PM10, NO2, and SO2) in urban and suburban areas of Ningbo, China. The results showed that the average PM10, NO2, and SO2 concentrations in the urban area were 85.2, 49.3, and 37.4 lg/m, which were 1.13, 1.25, and 1.41 times the values of the suburban area during the period of March 2009 to February 2010. For the potential health risk analysis, the residents have been divided into four age categories namely, infants, children (1 year), children (8–10 years), and adults. The analysis took into account age-specific breathing rates, body weights for different age categories. The results showed that the potential health risks to respiratory disease for all age categories living in urban area were higher than those in suburban area.