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Environmental, Health and Socio-Economic Impacts of Air Pollution in Mexico

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Air, Climate Change and Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 November 2023) | Viewed by 12310

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Instituto de Ciencias de la Atmosfera y Cambio Climatico, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Mexico City 04510, Mexico
Interests: air pollution; receptor modelling; particulate matter; chemical composition

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Guest Editor
Genomica Funcional del Cancer, Instituto Nacional de Medicina Genómica (INMEGEN) & Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM), Mexico City, Mexico
Interests: acute leukemias in children; molecular mechanisms of leukemias in children; biomarkers in leukemias in children; genes involved in the development of leukemias in children; precision medicine of leukemias in children; ancestry and acute leukemias in children; acute leukemias in Latinos; origin of increased susceptibility to acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Latino children
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Laboratorio Nacional De Ciencias De La Sostenibilidad,Instituto De Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autonoma De Mexico, Mexico City 04510, Mexico
Interests: socio-environmental modelling; sustainability

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Guest Editor
Department of Geology, University of Sonora, Hermosillo, Sonora 83000, Mexico
Interests: geochemical tracers for the identification of natural and anthropic sources of atmospheric pollutants in arid zones (urban, agriculture, and mining zones); identification of emerging contaminants (crystalline nano- to microparticles) in airborne dust; evaluation valuation of lung-bioaccessibility of metals and metalloids for risk assessment

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Environmental air pollution and, in general terms, environmental exposures, year after year, are associated with high mortality and morbidity, especially in the susceptible and vulnerable population. There are sources of exposure so common that they lead to the misleading idea that they should not be causing problems in the environment or in people's health. Revealing the effect that common exposures have on the environment and on the health of populations, as well as designing educational strategies to transmit the message of the damage they cause to the environment and to general health, is one of the most relevant tasks of our time for all researchers working on the effects of environmental pollution on people's lives.

It is impossible to understand our life today without the use of electricity or the use of the internet or cell phones, but every day there is more evidence of the damage they cause to the environment and the health of populations.

It has been heard that the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic had a significant effect in different parts of the world on the levels of contamination and, therefore, in relation to the diseases related to them. It is important to invite the scientific community to provide evidence of the effect that the reduction of mobility and the reduction of environmental pollutants brought about on the health and consumption of our populations. This pandemic undoubtedly showed that it is possible to lower mobility and that it is possible to lower the consumption of many goods, so it becomes very important to evaluate the effect that this produced in the environment of the nations.

Air pollution is recognized as a serious sustainability concern and it is directly linked to many of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Exposure to ambient air pollution is reckoned as a main environmental health risk. In developing countries like Mexico, exposure to air pollution is associated with higher mortality and morbidity rates, especially in the most vulnerable sectors of society. The health impacts attributable to air pollution have been estimated to cost 1% of the global GDP (around USD 2.6 trillion annually) and are expected to increase as a result of the interactions between air pollution and climate change.

In the past, researchers were mostly concern with quantifying the effects of the implemented measures to improve air quality. However, the complexity of air pollution, particularly in urban environments, requires conducting research focused not only on examining health impacts of air pollution, but also on addressing disparities in the access to clean energy services, waste management and other aspects of socio-economic development.

The overall focus of this Special Issue is to provide environmental, health and socio-economic evidence on the consequences of outdoor air pollution in Mexico to better inform strategies to improve air quality in the context of sustainable development goals. The purpose of this research collection is to add information on (but not only on):

  • Synergies between climate change and air pollution;
  • Effects of air pollution on health;
  • Air pollution and environmental justice;
  • Forest fires and air pollution;
  • Agriculture and air pollution effects on health;
  • Agriculture and climate change effects on socio-economic development;
  • Epidemics, climate change and sustainability.

Dr. Elizabeth Vega
Prof. Dr. Juan Manuel Mejia-Arangure
Dr. Yosune Miquelajauregui
Dr. Diana Meza-Figueroa
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • air pollution
  • environmental health
  • climate change
  • SARS-CoV-2 pandemic
  • policy
  • public health
  • cancer
  • children
  • early
  • gas emission

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

21 pages, 4022 KiB  
Article
Analysis of COVID-19 Lockdown Effects on Urban Air Quality: A Case Study of Monterrey, Mexico
by Benedetto Schiavo, Ofelia Morton-Bermea, Thania Elizabeth Arredondo-Palacios, Diana Meza-Figueroa, Agustin Robles-Morua, Rocío García-Martínez, Daisy Valera-Fernández, Claudio Inguaggiato and Belem Gonzalez-Grijalva
Sustainability 2023, 15(1), 642; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15010642 - 30 Dec 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3150
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused several millions of deaths and forced the world population to a new normality. This study aims to analyze the air quality variation of several gaseous pollutants (CO, NO2, SO2, O3, PM10 [...] Read more.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused several millions of deaths and forced the world population to a new normality. This study aims to analyze the air quality variation of several gaseous pollutants (CO, NO2, SO2, O3, PM10, and PM2.5) during the pre-lockdown, lockdown, and unlock period in the city of Monterrey using ground-based measurements. In this research, we proposed to use a control period of previous years to identify parameter variation due to local climate. The results showed a drastic decrease in measured contaminants during the lockdown period as follows: SO2 (−41.9%) > PM10 (−30.5%) > PM2.5 (−25.6%) > NO2 (−14.9%) > CO (−9.8%) compared to the control period (2017–2019). The O3 was the only air pollutant that showed an opposite trend, increasing during lockdown (+15%) and unlock (+2.2%), whereas CO (−16.6%) and NO2 (−30.6%) were further decreased. Moreover, using OMI/AURA satellite data, we detected a NO2 tropospheric column reduction by −1.9% during lockdown concerning the same period in the control interval. Moreover, we found a significant improvement in the Air Quality Index (AQI) due to the lockdown. Our findings indicate an association between air pollutants and economic activity and can be used in future strategies to improve urban air quality. Full article
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22 pages, 6806 KiB  
Article
Exploring the Spatial Distribution of Air Pollution and Its Association with Socioeconomic Status Indicators in Mexico City
by Jimena García-Burgos, Yosune Miquelajauregui, Elizabeth Vega, Anil Namdeo, Alejandro Ruíz-Olivares, Juan Manuel Mejía-Arangure, Cinthia Gabriela Resendiz-Martinez, Louise Hayes, Lindsay Bramwell, Monica Jaimes-Palomera, Jane Entwistle, Juan Carlos Núñez-Enríquez, Antonio Portas and Richard McNally
Sustainability 2022, 14(22), 15320; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142215320 - 18 Nov 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 4925
Abstract
Air pollution is one of the most challenging global sustainability problems in the world. Roughly 90% of global citizens live in areas that exceed the acceptable air pollution levels according to the World Health Organization air quality guidelines. However, socially disadvantaged groups are [...] Read more.
Air pollution is one of the most challenging global sustainability problems in the world. Roughly 90% of global citizens live in areas that exceed the acceptable air pollution levels according to the World Health Organization air quality guidelines. However, socially disadvantaged groups are disproportionately located in areas exposed to higher levels of air pollution. Understanding the association between risk exposure to air pollutants and the underlying socio-economic factors determining risk is central for sustainable urban planning. The purpose of this study was to explore environmental inequalities in Mexico City, specifically the spatial association between air pollutants and socioeconomic status (SES) indicators. We propose that SES indicators will be expected to spatially cluster vulnerable individuals and groups into heavily polluted areas. To test this hypothesis, we used 2017–2019 data from governmental records to perform spatial interpolations to explore the spatial distribution of criteria pollutants. We carried out spatial autocorrelations of air pollutants and SES indicators using the bivariate Moran’s I index. Our findings provide strong evidence of spatial heterogeneity in air pollution exposure in Mexico City. We found that socially deprived areas located in the southern periphery of Mexico City were exposed to higher ozone concentrations. On the contrary, wealthiest areas concentrated in the city center were exposed to greater concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide. Our findings highlight the need for policy-driven approaches that take into consideration not only the geographic variability and meteorological dynamics associated with air pollution exposure, but also the management of socioeconomic risk factors aimed at reducing disparate exposure to air pollution and potential health impacts. Full article
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25 pages, 3870 KiB  
Article
Using a Sensitivity Analysis and Spatial Clustering to Determine Vulnerability to Potentially Toxic Elements in a Semiarid City in Northwest Mexico
by Efrain Vizuete-Jaramillo, Diana Meza-Figueroa, Pablo A. Reyes-Castro and Agustin Robles-Morua
Sustainability 2022, 14(17), 10461; https://doi.org/10.3390/su141710461 - 23 Aug 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2420
Abstract
The Getis-Ord Gi* statistic clustering technique was used to create a hot spot exposure map using 14 potentially toxic elements (PTEs) found in urban dust samples in a semiarid city in northwest Mexico. The dust distribution and deposition in this city [...] Read more.
The Getis-Ord Gi* statistic clustering technique was used to create a hot spot exposure map using 14 potentially toxic elements (PTEs) found in urban dust samples in a semiarid city in northwest Mexico. The dust distribution and deposition in this city are influenced by the seasonal wind and rain from the North American Monsoon. The spatial clustering patterns of hot spots were used in combination with a sensitivity analysis to determine which variables most influenced the PTE hot spot exposure base map. The hot spots areas (%) were used as indicators of environmental vulnerability, and a final integrated map was selected to represent the highest vulnerability of PTEs with a 99% level of confidence. The results of the sensitivity analysis indicated that the flood zones and pervious and impervious zones were the most sensitive variables due to their weight in the spatial distribution. The hot spot areas were reduced by 60.4% by not considering these variables. The hot spot analysis resulted in an effective tool that allowed the combination of different spatial layers with specific characteristics to determine areas that present greater vulnerability to the distribution of PTEs, with impacts on public and environmental health. Full article
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