The article discusses the tools used for air quality management in the health resorts in Poland including legal instruments, documents and activities at the regional and local level with an example of formal and legal activities, such as the so-called anti-smog resolution to limit the emission of air pollutants from the municipal and housing sectors and thus minimize the risk related to air pollution. The issue of pollution emission resulting from the spatial conditions, including spatial planning, was also indicated. The analysis of the results pertaining to the PM 10 measurements from 2017-2018 available for the resorts in Lower Silesia with reference to selected resorts in other regions of Poland and the health risk assessment according to the concentration-response functions for the PM-based on long-and short-term relative risk estimates derived from epidemiological studies were conducted. The exposure assessment was based on the available mathematical modelling results for the PM 10 and PM 2.5 concentration distributions, which was performed using the CALPUFF model for 2017. In the case of average risk indicators, the obtained values indicated that the values (for all the stays and areas of all zones (total A, B and C) peaked for the Cieplice Śląskie-Zdrój health resort (over 1.1% per annum) and were lowest for Czerniawa and Świeradów-Zdrój (about 0.7%). The highest relative risk indicators in 2017 were observed for cardiovascular diseases for the first two stays in January / February (for the Cieplice Śląskie-Zdrój health resort-over 5%) and for both December stays (over 2.5%). In other health resorts, the risk indicators were significantly lower. The lowest health risk indicators were observed in July, regardless of the location of the health resort and the analysed health effect (rarely exceeding 0.3%). The scale of risk in this case was much higher compared to the short-term risk.
This article discusses the importance of air quality for the organization and functioning of health resorts. Ten different types of resorts located in various regions of Poland were compared in terms PM10 concentration. Additionally, comparative analysis of the high-PM10 episodes was performed in three urban agglomerations located near the analyzed health resorts. The article also discusses formal, legal, and economic instruments that are the basis for legislative actions as tools for managing the air quality in the selected resorts. The analysis of the average annual concentrations in 2015–2019 did not show any exceedances of the PM10 limit value for any of the health resorts studied. High PM10 concentration values in 2018 were recorded for the number of days in exceedance of the limit value, especially in the health resorts of Uniejów, Ciechocinek, and Szczawno-Zdrój. Health resorts located in the south of Poland were identified as the most at risk in terms of the occurrence of limit value exceedances, information, and alert thresholds. It was concluded that the implementation of the so called “anti-smog” resolutions, including the development of financial support for changing the heating system to eliminate coal boilers and furnaces, is absolutely necessary for air quality improvement.
This paper discusses the importance of indoor air quality and indicates its relation with outdoor air quality in the area of spa treatment. Significant factors and sources causing indoor air pollution by particulate matter and radon are considered. Particular attention is drawn to specific functions of health resorts in spa treatment in the context of the importance of indoor and outdoor air for patients staying in the resorts. It is underlined the specificity of health resorts providing treatment for patients classified as the group most sensitive to air pollution, i.e. people with chronic respiratory diseases. The study comprised measurements of 24-h concentrations of PM 10 , PM 2.5 and 10-minute instantaneous concentrations of radon-222 ( 222 Rn) from February 5 to February 25, 2021 in a treatment room of one of the Polish spas located in Lower Silesia. The analysis of interactions between the concentrations of two fractions of particulates PM 10 and PM 2.5 was presented. The interaction and dependence of factors affecting the elevated values of concentrations of the studied pollutants were discussed. The presented analyses showed that the concentrations of the studied pollutants were influenced by air exchange and air infiltration from outside to inside. In the case of short-term measurements of 222 Rn activity concentration in the air, it was found that the observed changes in hourly concentrations of 222 Rn are analogous to those observed in residential buildings. For the specific time intervals, the variation of PM concentrations and 222 Rn activity concentration was found to be similar.
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