The State of Ambient Air Quality in Two Ugandan Cities: A Pilot Cross-Sectional Spatial Assessment

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Bruce J. Kirenga⁷  Qingyu Meng⁴  Frederik van Gemert⁶  Hellen Aanyu-Tukamuhebwa⁵  Niels Chavannes⁸  Achilles Katamba¹  Gerald Obai³  Thys van der Molen⁶  Stephan Schwander⁴  Vahid Mohsenin² 

[1] Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatics Unit, Department of Medicine, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda; E-Mail:;Department of Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; E-Mail:;Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Gulu University, Gulu, Uganda; E-Mail:;Department of Environmental and Occupational Health and Center for Global Public Health, School of Public Health, Rutgers University, NJ 07107, USA; E-Mails:;Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda; E-Mail:;Department of General Practice, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen 9700 RB, The Netherlands; E-Mails:;Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Medicine, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda; E-Mail:;Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden 2333 ZA, The Netherlands; E-Mail:

关键词: ambient air pollution;    particulate matter;    nitrogen dioxide;    sulfur dioxide;    ozone;    Uganda;    Kampala;    Jinja;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijerph120708075

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Air pollution is one of the leading global public health risks but its magnitude in many developing countries’ cities is not known. We aimed to measure the concentration of particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter <2.5 µm (PM_2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), sulfur dioxide (SO₂), and ozone (O₃) pollutants in two Ugandan cities (Kampala and Jinja). PM_2.5, O₃, temperature and humidity were measured with real-time monitors, while NO₂ and SO₂ were measured with diffusion tubes. We found that the mean concentrations of the air pollutants PM_2.5, NO₂, SO₂ and O₃ were 132.1 μg/m³, 24.9 µg/m³, 3.7 µg/m³ and 11.4 μg/m³, respectively. The mean PM_2.5 concentration is 5.3 times the World Health Organization (WHO) cut-off limits while the NO₂, SO₂ and O₃ concentrations are below WHO cut-off limits. PM_2.5 levels were higher in Kampala than in Jinja (138.6 μg/m³ vs. 99.3 μg/m³) and at industrial than residential sites (152.6 μg/m³ vs. 120.5 μg/m³) but residential sites with unpaved roads also had high PM_2.5 concentrations (152.6 μg/m³). In conclusion, air pollutant concentrations in Kampala and Jinja in Uganda are dangerously high. Long-term studies are needed to characterize air pollution levels during all seasons, to assess related public health impacts, and explore mitigation approaches.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2015 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.