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Millán-Martínez M, Sánchez-Rodas D, Sánchez de la Campa AM, de la Rosa J. Impact of the SARS-CoV-2 lockdown measures in Southern Spain on PM10 trace element and gaseous pollutant concentrations. Chemosphere 2022; 303:134853. [PMID: 35537626 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.134853] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2022] [Revised: 04/23/2022] [Accepted: 05/03/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Trace element concentrations within PM10, gaseous pollutants (NO2 and SO2), and PM10 levels were studied during the Covid-19 lockdown at a regional level in Southern Spain (Andalusia). Pollutant concentrations were compared considering different mobility periods (pre-lockdown, lockdown, and relaxation) in 2020 and previous years (2013-2016). An acute decrease in NO2 levels (<50%) was observed as a consequence of traffic diminution during the confinement period. Moreover, a lower reduction in PM10 levels and a non-clear pattern for SO2 levels were observed. During the lockdown period, PM10 elements released from traffic emissions (Sn and Sb) showed the highest concentration diminution in the study area. Regarding the primary industrial sites, there were no significant differences in V, Ni, La, and Cr concentration reduction during 2020 associated with industrial activity (stainless steel and oil refinery) in Algeciras Bay. Similarly, concentrations of Zn showed the same behaviour at Cordoba, indicating that the Zn-smelter activity was not affected by the lockdown. Nevertheless, stronger reductions of Cu, Zn, and As in Huelva during the confinement period indicated a decrease in the nearby Cu-smelter emissions. Brick factories in Bailen were also influenced by the confinement measures, as corroborated by the marked decrease in concentrations of Ni, V, Cu, and Zn during the lockdown compared to that from previous years. This work has shown the baseline concentrations of trace elements of PM10, which is of great value to air quality managers in order to minimise pollution levels by applying the confinement of the population, affecting both traffic and industrial anthropogenic activities.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Millán-Martínez
- Associate Unit CSIC-University of Huelva "Atmospheric Pollution", Center for Research in Sustainable Chemistry - CIQSO, University of Huelva, E21071, Huelva, Spain; Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Experimental Sciences, University of Huelva, Campus El Carmen s/n, 21071, Huelva, Spain.
| | - Daniel Sánchez-Rodas
- Associate Unit CSIC-University of Huelva "Atmospheric Pollution", Center for Research in Sustainable Chemistry - CIQSO, University of Huelva, E21071, Huelva, Spain; Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Experimental Sciences, University of Huelva, Campus El Carmen s/n, 21071, Huelva, Spain
| | - Ana M Sánchez de la Campa
- Associate Unit CSIC-University of Huelva "Atmospheric Pollution", Center for Research in Sustainable Chemistry - CIQSO, University of Huelva, E21071, Huelva, Spain; Department of Earth Science, Faculty of Experimental Sciences, University of Huelva, Campus El Carmen s/n, 21071, Huelva, Spain
| | - Jesús de la Rosa
- Associate Unit CSIC-University of Huelva "Atmospheric Pollution", Center for Research in Sustainable Chemistry - CIQSO, University of Huelva, E21071, Huelva, Spain; Department of Earth Science, Faculty of Experimental Sciences, University of Huelva, Campus El Carmen s/n, 21071, Huelva, Spain
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Lovrić M, Antunović M, Šunić I, Vuković M, Kecorius S, Kröll M, Bešlić I, Godec R, Pehnec G, Geiger BC, Grange SK, Šimić I. Machine Learning and Meteorological Normalization for Assessment of Particulate Matter Changes during the COVID-19 Lockdown in Zagreb, Croatia. IJERPH 2022; 19:ijerph19116937. [PMID: 35682517 PMCID: PMC9180289 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19116937] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2022] [Revised: 05/30/2022] [Accepted: 06/02/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
In this paper, the authors investigated changes in mass concentrations of particulate matter (PM) during the Coronavirus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown. Daily samples of PM1, PM2.5 and PM10 fractions were measured at an urban background sampling site in Zagreb, Croatia from 2009 to late 2020. For the purpose of meteorological normalization, the mass concentrations were fed alongside meteorological and temporal data to Random Forest (RF) and LightGBM (LGB) models tuned by Bayesian optimization. The models’ predictions were subsequently de-weathered by meteorological normalization using repeated random resampling of all predictive variables except the trend variable. Three pollution periods in 2020 were examined in detail: January and February, as pre-lockdown, the month of April as the lockdown period, as well as June and July as the “new normal”. An evaluation using normalized mass concentrations of particulate matter and Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted. The results showed that no significant differences were observed for PM1, PM2.5 and PM10 in April 2020—compared to the same period in 2018 and 2019. No significant changes were observed for the “new normal” as well. The results thus indicate that a reduction in mobility during COVID-19 lockdown in Zagreb, Croatia, did not significantly affect particulate matter concentration in the long-term..
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario Lovrić
- Know-Center, Inffeldgasse 13, 8010 Graz, Austria; (M.K.); (B.C.G.)
- Institute for Anthropological Research, Gajeva 32, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia;
- Correspondence: (M.L.); (I.S.)
| | | | - Iva Šunić
- Institute for Anthropological Research, Gajeva 32, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia;
| | - Matej Vuković
- Pro2Future GmbH, Inffeldgasse 25F, 8010 Graz, Austria;
| | - Simonas Kecorius
- Institute of Epidemiology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstr. 1, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany;
| | - Mark Kröll
- Know-Center, Inffeldgasse 13, 8010 Graz, Austria; (M.K.); (B.C.G.)
| | - Ivan Bešlić
- Environmental Hygiene Unit, Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Ksaverska cesta 2, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia; (I.B.); (R.G.); (G.P.)
| | - Ranka Godec
- Environmental Hygiene Unit, Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Ksaverska cesta 2, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia; (I.B.); (R.G.); (G.P.)
| | - Gordana Pehnec
- Environmental Hygiene Unit, Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Ksaverska cesta 2, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia; (I.B.); (R.G.); (G.P.)
| | | | - Stuart K. Grange
- Empa, Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, 8600 Dübendorf, Switzerland;
- Wolfson Atmospheric Chemistry Laboratories, Department of Chemistry, University of York, York YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Iva Šimić
- Environmental Hygiene Unit, Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Ksaverska cesta 2, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia; (I.B.); (R.G.); (G.P.)
- Correspondence: (M.L.); (I.S.)
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González-Pardo J, Ceballos-Santos S, Manzanas R, Santibáñez M, Fernández-Olmo I. Estimating changes in air pollutant levels due to COVID-19 lockdown measures based on a business-as-usual prediction scenario using data mining models: A case-study for urban traffic sites in Spain. Sci Total Environ 2022; 823:153786. [PMID: 35151743 PMCID: PMC8828445 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.153786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2021] [Revised: 01/31/2022] [Accepted: 02/06/2022] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, governments declared severe restrictions throughout 2020, presenting an unprecedented scenario of reduced anthropogenic emissions of air pollutants derived mainly from traffic sources. To analyze the effect of these restrictions derived from COVID-19 pandemic on air quality levels, relative changes in NO, NO2, O3, PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations were calculated at urban traffic sites in the most populated Spanish cities over different periods with distinct restrictions in 2020. In addition to the changes calculated with respect to the observed air pollutant levels of previous years (2013-2019), relative changes were also calculated using predicted pollutant levels for the different periods over 2020 on a business-as-usual scenario using Multiple Linear Regression (MLR) models with meteorological and seasonal predictors. MLR models were selected among different data mining techniques (MLR, Random Forest (RF), K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN)), based on their higher performance and accuracy obtained from a leave-one-year-out cross-validation scheme using 2013-2019 data. A q-q mapping post-correction was also applied in all cases in order to improve the reliability of the predictions to reproduce the observed distributions and extreme events. This approach allows us to estimate the relative changes in the studied air pollutants only due to COVID-19 restrictions. The results obtained from this approach show a decreasing pattern for NOx, with the largest reduction in the lockdown period above -50%, whereas the increase observed for O3 contrasts with the NOx patterns with a maximum increase of 23.9%. The slight reduction in PM10 (-4.1%) and PM2.5 levels (-2.3%) during lockdown indicates a lower relationship with traffic sources. The developed methodology represents a simple but robust framework for exploratory analysis and intervention detection in air quality studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaime González-Pardo
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Universidad de Cantabria, Av. de Los Castros s/n, 39005 Santander, Cantabria, Spain.
| | - Sandra Ceballos-Santos
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Universidad de Cantabria, Av. de Los Castros s/n, 39005 Santander, Cantabria, Spain.
| | - Rodrigo Manzanas
- Santander Meteorology Group, Dpto. De Matemática Aplicada y Ciencias de la Computación, Universidad de Cantabria, Santander 39005, Spain.
| | - Miguel Santibáñez
- Department of Nursing, Global Health Research Group, Universidad de Cantabria, Avda. Valdecilla s/n, 39008 Santander, Cantabria, Spain; Research Nursing Group, IDIVAL, Calle Cardenal Herrera Oria s/n, 39011 Santander, Cantabria, Spain.
| | - Ignacio Fernández-Olmo
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Universidad de Cantabria, Av. de Los Castros s/n, 39005 Santander, Cantabria, Spain.
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González-Pardo J, Ceballos-Santos S, Manzanas R, Santibáñez M, Fernández-Olmo I. Estimating changes in air pollutant levels due to COVID-19 lockdown measures based on a business-as-usual prediction scenario using data mining models: A case-study for urban traffic sites in Spain. Sci Total Environ 2022. [PMID: 35151743 DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.5655326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, governments declared severe restrictions throughout 2020, presenting an unprecedented scenario of reduced anthropogenic emissions of air pollutants derived mainly from traffic sources. To analyze the effect of these restrictions derived from COVID-19 pandemic on air quality levels, relative changes in NO, NO2, O3, PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations were calculated at urban traffic sites in the most populated Spanish cities over different periods with distinct restrictions in 2020. In addition to the changes calculated with respect to the observed air pollutant levels of previous years (2013-2019), relative changes were also calculated using predicted pollutant levels for the different periods over 2020 on a business-as-usual scenario using Multiple Linear Regression (MLR) models with meteorological and seasonal predictors. MLR models were selected among different data mining techniques (MLR, Random Forest (RF), K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN)), based on their higher performance and accuracy obtained from a leave-one-year-out cross-validation scheme using 2013-2019 data. A q-q mapping post-correction was also applied in all cases in order to improve the reliability of the predictions to reproduce the observed distributions and extreme events. This approach allows us to estimate the relative changes in the studied air pollutants only due to COVID-19 restrictions. The results obtained from this approach show a decreasing pattern for NOx, with the largest reduction in the lockdown period above -50%, whereas the increase observed for O3 contrasts with the NOx patterns with a maximum increase of 23.9%. The slight reduction in PM10 (-4.1%) and PM2.5 levels (-2.3%) during lockdown indicates a lower relationship with traffic sources. The developed methodology represents a simple but robust framework for exploratory analysis and intervention detection in air quality studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaime González-Pardo
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Universidad de Cantabria, Av. de Los Castros s/n, 39005 Santander, Cantabria, Spain.
| | - Sandra Ceballos-Santos
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Universidad de Cantabria, Av. de Los Castros s/n, 39005 Santander, Cantabria, Spain.
| | - Rodrigo Manzanas
- Santander Meteorology Group, Dpto. De Matemática Aplicada y Ciencias de la Computación, Universidad de Cantabria, Santander 39005, Spain.
| | - Miguel Santibáñez
- Department of Nursing, Global Health Research Group, Universidad de Cantabria, Avda. Valdecilla s/n, 39008 Santander, Cantabria, Spain; Research Nursing Group, IDIVAL, Calle Cardenal Herrera Oria s/n, 39011 Santander, Cantabria, Spain.
| | - Ignacio Fernández-Olmo
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Universidad de Cantabria, Av. de Los Castros s/n, 39005 Santander, Cantabria, Spain.
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