Characteristics and health impacts of particulate matter pollution in China (2001–2011)

Abstract

In this study, a systematic overview of inhalable particulate matter (PM10) pollution in China was conducted based on the dataset from national monitoring network from 2001 to 2011. The long-term trend, spatial and temporal distributions, and health impacts of PM10 pollution were evaluated. It was found that the annual PM10 concentration decreased from 116.0 μg m−3 in 2001 to 85.3 μg m−3 in 2011. The days with PM10 concentration above the new Chinese ambient air quality standard dropped from 66 (18%) in 2001 to 28 (7.8%) in 2011, while the days exceeding the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline decreased from 294 (80.5%) in 2001 to 250 (68.5%) in 2011. PM10 pollution in northern China is much worse than that in southern China. Six of nine most polluted cities (>110 μg m−3) are in the north, while six cleanest cities (<50 μg m−3) are all in the south. The seasonal average PM10 concentrations in 2001–2011 for all cities are 104.4 μg m−3 (spring), 75.3 μg m−3 (summer), 94.7 μg m−3 (autumn), and 118.4 μg m−3 (winter), respectively, indicating that winter and spring are the most polluted seasons. Different health endpoints due to PM10 pollution show similar trends. Taking premature mortality between 2001 and 2011 as an example, the ratio of deaths due to PM10 pollution to all causes of deaths dropped from 13.5% to 11.6% and 511,000 deaths are avoided due to the concentration reduction, though the absolute damage number due to PM10 pollution increased from 418,000 to 514,000 because of increasing urban population. These results indicate that PM10 pollution in China has been eased significantly over the last decade, mainly due to the application of emission control measures. However, the PM10 concentration remains at a high level comparing with the WHO guideline and its health impacts are still significant.