Spatial distribution of particulate matter on winter nights in Temuco, Chile: Studying the impact of residential wood-burning using mobile monitoring

Development of Spatio-Temporal Land Use Regression Models for Fine Particulate Matter and Wood-Burning Tracers in Temuco, Chile

“…The highest concentrations are predicted along the most populated areas outside of the town center. This is consistent with our results observed in the previous mobile monitoring study 71 and the kriging analyses 52 that suggested a possible spatial clustering. When comparing the ratio maps, the levoglucosan/PM 2.5 ratio showed higher values in the borders and zones with slightly lower SES, which can be related to preference for wood for heating their houses 110 and the use of lower-quality stoves making the combustion more inefficient.…”

“…72 These studies show clear evidence of the seasonal trends of common air pollutants; however, only a few studies have investigated the spatial variability of PM 2.5 due to woodburning in Chile. 52,71,73,74 Studies that have analyzed the health effects of woodburning air pollution are scarce and have mostly focused on studying short-term exposures 58,59,65,75,76 and with no studies so far evaluating long-term exposures. Health studies require longer-term exposure models, which are built using longerterm measurements, including source tracers, and considering spatio-temporal trends.…”

“…Temuco is one of the largest southern cities, and has also been seriously affected by residential wood-burning. As such, many studies have been carried out, ,,, showing, for example, that 87% of PM 10 and 96% of the PM 2.5 concentrations were due to residential wood-burning . These studies show clear evidence of the seasonal trends of common air pollutants; however, only a few studies have investigated the spatial variability of PM 2.5 due to wood-burning in Chile. ,,, …”