Airborne Particulate Pollution Measured in Bangladesh from 2014 to 2017

Abstract

ABSTRACT Recently, the World Health Organization ranked Narayanganj, Chittagong, and Dhaka among the top 25, 40, and 45 cities, respectively, for high ambient PM2.5 concentrations. Bangladesh has instituted an air quality monitoring system operated by the Department of Environment. PM2.5 and PM10 were measured hourly from January 2014 through December 2017 in Dhaka, Gazipur, Narayanganj, Chittagong, Sylhet, and Barisal. All sites registered concentrations for both pollutants that exceeded the 24-h Bangladesh National Ambient Air Quality Standards. The particulate matter (PM) concentrations varied significantly seasonally and with different diel patterns from city to city. The highest concentrations were observed during the winter, typically when wind speeds and mixed layer heights are low and pollutant concentrations are increased by transport from the northwest. The PM2.5 concentrations from the 1st quarters of 2014 and 2015 were compared to assess whether political unrest that appeared to reduce vehicular moment to very low levels affected the observed values. However, the PM2.5 concentrations were statistically similar at the Dhaka, Narayanganj, and Sylhet sites and different for the Gazipur, Chittagong, and Barisal locations. Thus, the PM2.5 concentrations during the political unrest in the 1st quarter of 2015 were not consistently lower across the measurement sites. These results indicate that vehicular emission contributions to PM2.5 concentrations are smaller than in the past, which agrees with recent source apportionment studies showing that brick kilns have become the dominant source of PM.