Ambient Exposure to Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) and its Composition: A Groundbreaking Web-Based Tool Sheds Light on Disparities
Could improve the health of millions of people and advance environmental justice for all
A team of researchers led by the Institute for Climate Change, Environmental Health, and Exposomics at Mount Sinai has developed an innovative web-based tool that provides accessible insights into disparities in exposure to fine particulate airborne matter, known as PM2.5.
PM2.5 has long been recognized as a significant health concern, with strong links to increased mortality and morbidity. It often disproportionately affects minority and low-income communities.
While existing research has illuminated these disparities, it has largely focused on describing and explaining them. What has been missing is a comprehensive assessment of exposure disparities to the main components of PM2.5 and a means of communicating these disparities in a way that is easily digestible for the general public. Further, PM2.5 composition is location-specific and reduction plans need to account for which emitting sectors are of highest priority in each area.
The research team’s "Air Pollution Components Mapper" is the first air quality mapper that shows exposure disparities for ambient fine particulate matter composition; it combines high-resolution predictions of PM2.5 components with demographic data from the U.S. decennial census, delivering a powerful visualization of the relationships between exposure and demographic variables.
“This research has far-reaching applications, making air quality data more accessible to the public and informing policy outcomes,” said Heresh Amini, PhD, MSc, senior author and Associate Professor of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. “By raising awareness and providing accessible tools for understanding air pollution disparities, this innovation has the potential to drive positive change for affected communities and contribute to a healthier, more equitable future.”
You can explore the Air Pollution Components Mapper at https://disparitiesmapper.github.io/. Its key features include:
- High-Resolution Data: The tool uses a 50m x 50m grid to offer fine-grained predictions of PM2.5 components, including elemental carbon, ammonium, nitrate, organic carbon, and sulfate.
- User-Friendly Interface: Leveraging the ArcGIS Javascript API, the mapper is designed for easy interaction, with controls allowing users to modify selected measures and preferred styles of visualization.
- Broad Accessibility: Accessible from any web-enabled device, the mapper is available to a wide audience, making critical information about air pollution disparities more widely available.
To underscore the health concern around PM2.5, the World Health Organization (WHO) updated its guidelines for this harmful pollutant in 2021 to no more than 5 micrograms per cubic meter as an annual average, down from 10 micrograms per cubic meter. Because PM2.5 composition varies depending on the location, the updated WHO guidelines can be difficult to achieve. For example, in New York City, traffic is a major source of PM2.5. In other parts of the country, agricultural activities or organic carbon may contribute more to PM2.5 levels.
The Air Pollution Components Mapper can help communities identify the most relevant sources and components of PM2.5 in their area and facilitate targeted reduction programs to meet the WHO target.
This work was published in Environmental Modelling & Software on November 20, 2023. Read the full paper at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsoft.2023.105881.
About the Mount Sinai Health System
Mount Sinai Health System is one of the largest academic medical systems in the New York metro area, with more than 43,000 employees working across eight hospitals, more than 400 outpatient practices, more than 300 labs, a school of nursing, and a leading school of medicine and graduate education. Mount Sinai advances health for all people, everywhere, by taking on the most complex health care challenges of our time—discovering and applying new scientific learning and knowledge; developing safer, more effective treatments; educating the next generation of medical leaders and innovators; and supporting local communities by delivering high-quality care to all who need it. Through the integration of its hospitals, labs, and schools, Mount Sinai offers comprehensive health care solutions from birth through geriatrics, leveraging innovative approaches such as artificial intelligence and informatics while keeping patients’ medical and emotional needs at the center of all treatment. The Health System includes approximately 7,400 primary and specialty care physicians; 13 joint-venture outpatient surgery centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida; and more than 30 affiliated community health centers. Hospitals within the System are consistently ranked by Newsweek’s® “The World’s Best Smart Hospitals, Best in State Hospitals, World Best Hospitals and Best Specialty Hospitals” and by U.S. News & World Report's® “Best Hospitals” and “Best Children’s Hospitals.” The Mount Sinai Hospital is on the U.S. News & World Report® “Best Hospitals” Honor Roll for 2023-2024.
About the Mount Sinai Health System
Mount Sinai Health System is one of the largest academic medical systems in the New York metro area, with 48,000 employees working across eight hospitals, more than 400 outpatient practices, more than 600 research and clinical labs, a school of nursing, and a leading school of medicine and graduate education. Mount Sinai advances health for all people, everywhere, by taking on the most complex health care challenges of our time—discovering and applying new scientific learning and knowledge; developing safer, more effective treatments; educating the next generation of medical leaders and innovators; and supporting local communities by delivering high-quality care to all who need it.
Through the integration of its hospitals, labs, and schools, Mount Sinai offers comprehensive health care solutions from birth through geriatrics, leveraging innovative approaches such as artificial intelligence and informatics while keeping patients’ medical and emotional needs at the center of all treatment. The Health System includes approximately 9,000 primary and specialty care physicians and 11 free-standing joint-venture centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida. Hospitals within the System are consistently ranked by Newsweek’s® “The World’s Best Smart Hospitals, Best in State Hospitals, World Best Hospitals and Best Specialty Hospitals” and by U.S. News & World Report's® “Best Hospitals” and “Best Children’s Hospitals.” The Mount Sinai Hospital is on the U.S. News & World Report® “Best Hospitals” Honor Roll for 2024-2025.
For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
