Environmental research
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Environmental research · Dec 2020
An index to quantify environmental risk of exposure to future epidemics of the COVID-19 and similar viral agents: Theory and practice.
In the presence of the novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) and other new viral agents, one of the fundamental problems in science is the evaluation of environmental and social weaknesses of cities/regions to the exposure of infectious diseases for preventing and/or containing new COVID-19 outbreaks and the diffusion of other viral agents that generate a negative impact on public health and economy of countries. The current monitoring of transmission dynamics of infectious diseases is mainly based on reproduction number (R0) and fatality rates. However, this approach is a real-time monitoring of transmission dynamics for mitigating the numbers of COVID-19 related infected individuals and deaths. ⋯ Index c has a range from 1 (environmental and social weakness of urban areas leading to high levels of exposure to infectious diseases) to 0 (environment that reduces the risk of exposure to infectious diseases in society). The statistical evidence here, applied on case study of Italy, seems in general to support the predictive capacity of the Index c as a particularly simple but superior indicator in detecting the global correlation between potential risk of exposure of cities/regions to infectious diseases and actual risk given by infected individuals and deaths of the COVID-19. The Index c can support a proactive environmental strategy to help policymakers to prevent future pandemics similar to the COVID-19.
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Environmental research · Dec 2020
Household air pollution exposure and associations with household characteristics among biomass cookstove users in Puno, Peru.
Household air pollution (HAP) from combustion of biomass fuel, such as wood and animal dung, is among the leading environmental risk factors for preventable disease. Close to half of the world's population relies on biomass cookstoves for their daily cooking needs. Understanding factors that affect HAP can inform measures to maximize the effectiveness of cookstove interventions in a cost-effective manner. However, the impact of kitchen and household characteristics, as well as the presence of secondary stoves, on HAP concentrations is poorly understood in Puno, Peru. ⋯ Characterizing HAP within different settings can help identify effective and culturally-relevant solutions to reduce HAP exposures. We found that housing roof type is strongly related to kitchen area concentrations and personal exposures to HAP, perhaps because of greater ventilation in kitchens with metal roofs compared to those with thatch roofs. Although HAP concentrations remained above guidelines for all households, promoting use of metal roof materials and LPG stoves may be actionable interventions that can help reduce exposures to HAP in high-altitude rural Peru and similar settings.