Mortality benefits of reduction fine particulate matter in Vietnam, 2019

Abstract

Introduction and objectivesStudies assessing the health benefits of air pollution reduction in Vietnam are scarce. This study quantified the annual mortality burden due to PM2.5 pollution in Vietnam above the World Health Organization recommendation for community health (AQG: 5 μg/m3) and the proposed National Technical Regulation on Ambient Air Quality (proposed QCVN: 15 μg/m3).MethodologyThis study applied a health impact assessment methodology with the hazard risk function for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and lower respiratory infections (LRIs) in the Global Exposure Mortality Model (GEMM) to calculate attributable deaths, Years of Life lost, and Loss of Life expectancy at birth due to air pollution in the Vietnamese population above 25 years of age in 11 provinces. We obtained annual average PM2.5 concentrations for Vietnam in 2019 at a 3x3 km grid modeled using Mixed Linear regression and multi-data sources. Population and baseline mortality data were obtained from administrative data system in Vietnam. We reported the findings at both the provincial and smaller district levels.ResultsAnnual PM2.5 concentrations in all studied provinces exceeded both the AQG and the proposed QCVN. The maximum annual number of attributable deaths in the studied provinces if they had complied with WHO air quality guidelines was in Ha Noi City, with 5,090 (95%CI: 4,253–5,888) attributable deaths. At the district level, the highest annual rate of attributable deaths if the WHO recommendation for community health had been met was 104.6 (95%CI: 87.0–121.5) attributable deaths per 100,000 population in Ly Nhan (Ha Nam province).ConclusionA much larger number of premature deaths in Vietnam could potentially be avoided by lowering the recommended air quality standard. These results highlight the need for effective clean air action plans by local authorities to reduce air pollution and improve community health.

Health and Economic Benefits of Air Pollution Reductions in Vietnam During 2020–2021

“…Our study is among the few studies to perform a nation-wide health impact assessment of air pollution in Vietnam. There have been several prior studies assessing the burden of mortality attributed to air pollution, typically PM 2.5 [19][20][21][22]. However, these studies only estimated the burden of PM 2.5 attributable deaths in smaller regions of the country, for example, in the megacities such as Hanoi [20] and Ho Chi Minh city [19,22].…”

“…However, these studies only estimated the burden of PM 2.5 attributable deaths in smaller regions of the country, for example, in the megacities such as Hanoi [20] and Ho Chi Minh city [19,22]. A recent study conducted such an assessment for multiple sites, including ten provinces in Northern Vietnam, and Ho Chi Minh City (which is in the south) [21]. However, such studies used the WHO Air Quality Guidelines (5 and 10 μg/m 3 for annual PM 2.5 and NO 2 , respectively) and the Vietnam National Ambient Air Quality Standards (QCVN 05:2013) (25 and 40 μg/m 3 for annual PM 2.5 and NO 2 , respectively) as the counterfactual level to estimate the attributable burden of air pollution [19][20][21][22].…”

“…A recent study conducted such an assessment for multiple sites, including ten provinces in Northern Vietnam, and Ho Chi Minh City (which is in the south) [21]. However, such studies used the WHO Air Quality Guidelines (5 and 10 μg/m 3 for annual PM 2.5 and NO 2 , respectively) and the Vietnam National Ambient Air Quality Standards (QCVN 05:2013) (25 and 40 μg/m 3 for annual PM 2.5 and NO 2 , respectively) as the counterfactual level to estimate the attributable burden of air pollution [19][20][21][22]. These levels, however, were challenging to attain not only for recent periods but also in the near future since the air pollution level in 2019 of many provinces, especially in the Red River Delta, far exceeded the QCVN 05:2013 standards.…”

“…In Vietnam, several studies have estimated the number of avoidable deaths if the air quality was controlled at certain levels [19][20][21][22]. The standard levels included the WHO air quality guidelines and the Vietnam National Ambient Air Quality Standards (denoted by QCVN 05:2013) [19][20][21][22].…”

“…In Vietnam, several studies have estimated the number of avoidable deaths if the air quality was controlled at certain levels [19][20][21][22]. The standard levels included the WHO air quality guidelines and the Vietnam National Ambient Air Quality Standards (denoted by QCVN 05:2013) [19][20][21][22]. On the other hand, the air pollutant reduction during COVID-19 provided an opportunity for a "natural experiment" to assess the health and economic benefits of pollution reduction.…”