Have quarantine measures affected the air quality parameters? Condition assessment in 35 countries
Articles > Article · 2021
Authors: SEHER PALANBEK YAVAŞ, CANER BAYSAN, AYŞE EMEL ÖNAL
Online Turkish Journal of Health Sciences, Refereed Journals of Other Institutions, International, Scopus, 2021, vol 6, pp 568-574
Summary
Objective: This study was conducted to assess the effects of the temporary human mobility restrictions established worldwide by governments due to the COVID-19 pandemic on criteria air pollutants.Materials and Methods: Our study is designed in an ecological type measurements of four air pollutants (CO, NO2, O3, SO2) for 35 countries collected between January-May in 2019 and 2020 and available in the Air “Quality Open Data Platform” website were included.Results: Median NO2 levels for all countries decreased between 1-3.6 µg/m³ compared to 2019, and this decrease was statistically significant in each month (January, p=0.024; February, p=0.001; March, April and May, p<0.001). Furthermore, a statistically significant increase was observed in median O3 levels for all 35 countries between April 2020 and April 2019 (median difference: 1.80 µg/m³; p=0,017).Conclusion: Based on the findings reported here, it can be concluded that human activities have a significant influence on air quality. In future studies, air pollutants levels of countries may be evaluated in more detail considering their meteorological conditions.