Impact of Domestic Heating on Air Pollution—Extreme Pollution Events in Serbia
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
- To study PM concentration, the daily verified station data from the Environmental Protection Agency’s monitoring network were used, from 2011 to 2022 for PM10 and from 2016 to 2022 for PM2.5 [22]. Due to a limited number of available observations and frequent interruptions in time series, particularly concerning PM2.5, we utilized a time series comprising 75% of the available yearly data for a minimum of three years during the study periods. The analysis included a total of 25 stations for PM10 and 16 for PM2.5. The geographical distribution of the stations is shown in Figure 1, while the list of stations with specifications of types, coverage areas, and data availability is presented in Table 1. The statistical properties of the data series (data distribution, means, and extreme values) were calculated for heating and non-heating seasons. In Serbia, public heating plant systems define the heating season from 15 October to 15 April, but depending on weather conditions, i.e., a mean daily temperature under 12 °C, it can start earlier or be extended. For the purpose of this study, data series were compared for the heating (from 1 October to 30 April) and non-heating seasons (from 1 May to 30 September).
- Exposure studies often use the average condition to estimate population exposure to air pollution. However, it is widely recognized that episodes of extreme pollution can have catastrophic consequences for the population’s health. Therefore, pollution events and their frequency and intensity were studied. An event (E) was defined as an episode when the PM concentration was above the WHO-recommended guideline quality levels (WHO GQL) for at least three consecutive days. For PM10, the upper limit of daily concentration was 45 μg/m3, and for PM2.5, it was 15 μg/m3 [23]. For every E, several statistical features were calculated: event duration (Eduartion, in days), average concentration during the event (Emean, in μg/m3), and the cumulative sum of concentration above the upper limit during the event (Ecumsum, in μg/m3). This allows for a comparison of pollution severity between stations in Serbia and the identification of the most extreme events (max Eduration, max Emean, and max Ecumsum).
- The PM levels in Serbia are directly related to emissions from the heating sector. To better understand this impact, the census data from 2022 were used for the assessment of heating installations in occupied dwellings [24] and fuels used [25]. The term ‘occupied dwelling’ means that it is used for permanent residence. The data were available at the municipal level. The following parameters were calculated and analyzed:
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- The share of occupied dwellings with heating installations in the total number of occupied dwellings (Dhi, %).
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- The share of those with central heating installations among the occupied dwellings (Dhicentral, %). Central heating is a system in which heat is delivered from a centralized heat source, such as a public or local heat power plant.
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- Among the occupied dwellings with heating installations, the share of those with district heating (Dhidistric, %). District heating refers to a type of heating system where heat is provided from a central boiler room in the building or from a boiler room within the dwelling.
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- Among the occupied dwellings with heating installations, the share of those with gas heating (Dgasi, %). Gas heating means that the dwelling is connected to the gas network for heating.
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- The share of occupied dwellings without a central heating system according to fuels used: coal (Dwccoal, %), wood (Dwcwood, %), fuel oil (Dwcoil, %), gas fuel (Dwcgas, %), and electric energy (Dwcelectricity, %).
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- The share of occupied dwellings without heating installations according to fuel used: coal (Dwccoal, %), wood (Dwcwood, %), fuel oil (Dwcoil, %), gas fuel (Dwcgas, %), and electric energy (Dwcelectricity, %).
3. Results
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Station | Full Name | Type | Area | PM | No. of Years |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
BE_CE | Beočin Centar | Background | Urban | PM10 | 6 |
PM2.5 | 3 | ||||
BG_MO | Beograd Mostar | Traffic | Urban | PM10 | 9 |
PM2.5 | 4 | ||||
BG_NG | Beograd Novi Beograd | Background | Urban | PM10 | 9 |
PM2.5 | 4 | ||||
BG_ST | Beograd Stari grad | Background | Urban | PM10 | 9 |
PM2.5 | 5 | ||||
BG_VR | Beograd Vračar | Background | Urban | PM10 | 9 |
PM2.5 | 3 | ||||
BG_ZB | Beograd Zeleno Brdo | Background | Suburban | PM10 | 5 |
BO_GP | Bor Gradski park | Industrial | Urban | PM10 | 4 |
PM2.5 | 4 | ||||
KG | Kragujevac | Background | Urban | PM10 | 7 |
KM_VIS | Kamenički Vis | Background | Rural | PM10 | 9 |
KOSJ | Kosjerić | Background | Suburban | PM10 | 9 |
PM2.5 | 5 | ||||
KOST | Kostolac | Background | Suburban | PM10 | 4 |
NI_IZJZ | Niš Institut za javno zdravlje Niš | Traffic | Urban | PM10 | 9 |
PM2.5 | 5 | ||||
NI_OS | Niš O.Š. “Sveti Sava” | Background | Urban | PM10 | 4 |
PM2.5 | 4 | ||||
NP | Novi Pazar | Background | Urban | PM10 | 3 |
PM2.5 | 3 | ||||
NS_LIM | Novi Sad Liman | Background | Urban | PM10 | 5 |
NS_RU | Novi Sad Rumenačka | Traffic | Urban | PM10 | 3 |
PM2.5 | 3 | ||||
NS_SP | Novi Sad Spens | Traffic | Urban | PM10 | 6 |
OB_CE | Obrenovac Centar | Traffic | Suburban | PM10 | 7 |
PM2.5 | 3 | ||||
PP | Popovac | Industrial | Suburban | PM10 | 6 |
PM2.5 | 4 | ||||
SD_CA | Smederevo Carina | Background | Suburban | PM10 | 4 |
SD_CE | Smederevo Centar | Traffic | Urban | PM10 | 6 |
PM2.5 | 5 | ||||
SD_RA | Smederevo Radinac | Industrial | Suburban | PM10 | 4 |
UE | Užice | Traffic | Urban | PM10 | 9 |
PM2.5 | 3 | ||||
VA | Valjevo | Background | Urban | PM10 | 10 |
PM2.5 | 4 | ||||
ZA | Zaječar | Background | Urban | PM10 | 4 |
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Stanojević, G.; Malinović-Milićević, S.; Brđanin, E.; Milanović, M.; Radovanović, M.M.; Popović, T. Impact of Domestic Heating on Air Pollution—Extreme Pollution Events in Serbia. Sustainability 2024, 16, 7920. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16187920
Stanojević G, Malinović-Milićević S, Brđanin E, Milanović M, Radovanović MM, Popović T. Impact of Domestic Heating on Air Pollution—Extreme Pollution Events in Serbia. Sustainability. 2024; 16(18):7920. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16187920
Chicago/Turabian StyleStanojević, Gorica, Slavica Malinović-Milićević, Eldin Brđanin, Miško Milanović, Milan M. Radovanović, and Teodora Popović. 2024. "Impact of Domestic Heating on Air Pollution—Extreme Pollution Events in Serbia" Sustainability 16, no. 18: 7920. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16187920