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Air Air quality PM10
Case study: Health and air pollution
Human exposure to air pollution can create health risks that may lead or contribute to various health conditions. The Health and Air Pollution in New Zealand report discusses these effects in detail and provides information on air pollution in 67 areas around New Zealand.
Sources of air pollution identified in the report are:
- Households – emissions from the use of wood and coal for home heating.
- Vehicles – emissions from motorised vehicles on New Zealand roads, which use petrol and diesel as fuel.
- Industrial – emissions from all major industries, as well as some smaller commercial activities.
Health effects of air pollution in New Zealand, by source and effect, 2001
Note: Proportion of cases in the population over 30 years of age.
Data source: HAPINZ main report.
The report identified households as the major source of air pollution that harmed human health in New Zealand in 2001. Air pollution from households was associated with nearly 60 per cent of bronchitis cases, acute respiratory hospitalisations and acute cardiac hospitalisations. It was also the main source of air pollution associated with restricted-activity days – days on which people cannot do the things they might otherwise have done if air pollution was not present.
Air pollution from vehicles was associated with nearly half of the total cases of premature deaths due to carbon monoxide (CO), PM10 and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) poisoning in New Zealand in 2001, as well the largest cause of cancer related to air pollution.
Rates of death from air pollution vary in the report from a low of 0.18 per 1000 people each year in New Plymouth, to a high of 0.74 in central Christchurch. This difference may be attributed to the number and type of air pollution sources in each area, the topography and local weather patterns.
The report also discussed the link between exposure and levels of air pollution with the resulting changes in death rates. Exposure to air pollution may be categorised into short exposure (eg, daily) and long-term (eg, annual) exposure. The report found that long-term exposure to increased levels of particulates in the air has a greater effect on premature death rates than short-term exposure. This emphasises the need for continuous monitoring of PM10 to obtain both short and long-term data sets to support evidence-based policy-making.
Want to know more about human health and air pollution?
The final report for the New Zealand study on Health and Air Pollution was published in June 2007.
The above information has come from the latest environmental report card on PM10.
Return to main air quality reporting page.
Last updated: February 2009
