Influence of urban air pollution on the population in the Klang Valley, Malaysia: a spatial approach

Abstract

Background Urban air pollution resulting from economic growth as well as urbanization impacts the health of inhabitants. This study aims to examine the spatial distribution of particulate matter (PM10) and the risk of exposure for the population in the Klang Valley, an urban conglomeration centred in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Methods The inverse distance weighted (IDW) interpolation technique in the ArcGIS platform was used to map the air quality from five air monitoring stations. Spatial statistics of the Global Moran’s I Spatial Autocorrelation and Optimized Hot Spot Analysis were used to estimate the spatial clustering of PM10. The population-weighted exposure level (PWEL) technique was used to calculate the population density susceptible to PM10 and the AirQ+ model was applied to estimate the proportion of the adult population at risk of chronic bronchitis due to long-term exposure to PM10 concentrations in the Klang Valley. Results The highest annual mean PM10 concentrations at the Klang station ranged between 80 and 100 μg/m3 from 2000 to 2009 and exceeded the New Malaysia Ambient Air Quality Standard (NMAAQS) and the World Health Organization Air Quality Guidelines (WHOAQG) levels of 40 and 20 μg/m3, respectively. The Moran's I results indicated that the statistically significant clusters of high PM10 in Klang present a health risk to the local community. The PWEL results showed that levels of PM10 in Petaling Jaya exceeded the WHOAQG limits, potentially posing a health risk to the high-density population. The AirQ+ model found Klang to be a significantly high-risk area for chronic bronchitis among the adult population with 804,240 people (with a relative risk of 1.85) in 2009. Conclusion These high-risk values are due to rapid urbanization and high motor vehicle usage in the Klang Valley and therefore the impact of PM10 on the population needs to be reduced. This situation should be taken seriously by the Department of Environment and Kuala Lumpur City Hall in addressing air pollution issues through stricter rules on emissions and implementing low-carbon policies to improve the well-being of residents.

Model predicting social acceptance behavior to implement ELV policy: Exploring the role of knowledge toward ELV policy on social acceptance in Malaysia

“…However, the increasing mobility of automobiles utilized by Malaysians has led to urban air pollution, posing a severe threat to this warning (2)(3)(4). Even in 2019, the World Air Quality Index (WAQI) recorded a regional air pollution index of 299, making Malaysia the nation with the most significant amount of air pollution, followed by South Africa (217), Indonesia (207), India (194) and China (178) (5). This is a severe threat to Malaysian society, as the high levels of air pollution created by automobiles can lead to various health issues.…”

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“…Urbanization also leads to significant changes in urban environment (e.g., thermal and atmospheric conditions) (Mohd Shafie et al 2022 ; Chen et al 2016 ). An improved understanding of urban environment within and across cities is highly needed for its implications in human activities and welfare.…”

Framework: Local Nighttime Ozone Management and Prevention (LNOMP)

“…The highest population density was stated in Shah Alam as the area was 191.40 km 2 with population 587, 281 (census 2010), while the Klang area has the lowest population density with bigger area of 627.00 km 2 . Population growth and increased economic activity in city centres encourage rapid urbanization [19]. The increase of O3 in Malaysia is largely caused by rapid development due to high usage of motor vehicles which leads to toxic gas releases such as carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulphur dioxide (SO2), and ozone (O3), as particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) [15].…”