Józef S. Pastuszka

Bacterial and fungal aerosol in indoor environment in Upper Silesia, Poland

Abstract The purpose of this study was to find the typical concentration levels of bacterial and fungal bioaerosol in healthy and moldy homes as well as in office rooms in Upper Silesia Industrial Zone. Airborne bacteria and fungi were collected using the 6-stage Andersen impactor inside and outside of buildings. It was found that the typical level of bacterial aerosol indoors is about 103 CFU m−3 in homes and 102 CFU m−3 in offices. Only Micrococcus spp was present in all homes studied, constituting 36% of the bacterial genera. The second most common was Staphylococcus epidermidis, present in 76% of homes and constituting 14% of the total. The concentration of fungal aerosol in winter ranged from 10 to 102 CFU m−3 in healthy homes and from 10 to 103 CFU m−3 in homes with mold problems. In summer these values were elevated reaching 103 CFU m−3 in healthy homes and 103–104 CFU m−3 in moldy buildings. In healthy homes the relative concentration of observed species, including Penicillium, ranged from 3 to about 50% while in moldy homes the highest concentration of Penicillium accounted for 90% of the total fungi. However, the differences between viable fungal species as well as concentrations observed in moldy and healthy homes seem to be too small to be a reason of significantly higher risk for allergic asthma symptoms in any group of buildings. Comparison of the respirable fraction of airborne bacteria and fungi with literature data suggests that the percentage of respirable fungi and bacteria is generally not dependent on the type of home, building material, geographical factors and particulate air pollution.

Optical and chemical characteristics of the atmospheric aerosol in four towns in southern Poland.

The absorption coefficient a(p) [m(-1)] as well as the mass absorption coefficient sigma(p) [m(2)/g] has been estimated for PM10 and PM2.5 in four towns located in southern Poland, based on the assumption that the reflectance of aerosol-laden filters is a good proxy for the absorptivity of aerosols. The optical properties of the airborne particles were also compared with their surface composition obtained by photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). It was found that coarse particles, which constituted 20-30% of PM10, exhibited insignificant contribution to the absorption. The most absorptive aerosols were found in the towns located in Upper Silesia, a highly industrialized area. This reflects both the relative content of carbon in PM2.5 and the mass concentration of the fine mode. It was found that oxides and sulfates play an important role in promoting the reflectance of light from aerosols in the winter. These results support the suggestion that the revision of existing air quality standards for particulate pollution is needed.

Microbial Air Quality in Offices at Municipal Landfills

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the influence of two municipal landfills on the microbiological air quality in offices on landfill sites. The evaluation was based on the concentration levels of airborne bacteria and fungi and the identification of isolated strains. Air samples were collected with a six-stage Andersen impactor. The concentrations of bacterial aerosol ranged from 1.0 × 103 to 7.2 × 104 colony forming units (CFU)/m3 indoors, and from 7.0 × 10 to 4.0 × 104 CFU/m3 outdoors. The corresponding fungal aerosol ranges were from 2.3 × 102 to 7.3 × 103 CFU/m3 indoors and from 2.0 × 102 to 1.2 × 104 CFU/m3 outdoors. The concentration levels were affected by the season of the year. The study showed that both indoor and outdoor air were heavily contaminated with bacteria and fungi. The proximity of the unpaved transport route and the weighing of refuse loads contributed to the increase of bacterial and fungal aerosol concentrations significantly. The air in the offices was characterized not only by elevated concentrations of bacteria and fungi but also by high frequencies of gram-negative bacteria, along with fungal species characteristic of landfills. The quantitative and qualitative changes in the composition of the bacterial and fungal aerosol posed a possible health risk to office workers at municipal waste landfill sites.

Particulate pollution levels in Katowice, a highly industrialized polish city

Abstract Particulate measurements made in Katowice, Poland, in 1989 (prior to political changes in Eastern Europe and the resulting decrease in industrial production) indicate total suspended particulate levels that are 3–10 times higher than in other European cities. The concentrations of cadmium, nickel and manganese were also significantly higher than in other places in Europe. However, lead concentrations were comparable to European cities with high automobile traffice. The modes and concentration levels of the Katowice aerosol were highly direction dependent, which indicates that most of the sampled particles were locally or regionally emitted into the atmosphere.

Features of atmospheric aerosol particles in Katowice, Poland

Abstract The mass-size distributions of ambient acrosols were measured in 1989 and 1993 in Katowice, the capital town of Upper Silesia, a highly industrialized Polish region. Each measurement indicated that the multi-modes were present in size distribution depending on wind direction and speed. Also significant differences in the hygroscopic properties of atmospheric aerosol particles, depending on the wind direction, were observed in microscopic investigations of collected particles. This research suggests that the aerosol particles are not well mixed and are influenced by the distribution of antrophogenic sources in Katowice and its surrounding areas. Time change in mass concentration of aerosols between 1989 and 1993 was also reported.

Emission of airborne fibers from mechanically impacted asbestos-cement sheets and concentration of fibrous aerosol in the home environment in Upper Silesia, Poland

The emission rate ((S)) of fibers released from asbestos-cement plates due to mechanical impact was determined experimentally. The emission rate has been defined as a number of fibers (F) emitted from a unit area (m(2)) due to the unit impact energy (J). For fiber longer than 5 microm the obtained surface emission factor for asbestos-cement slabs slightly increased with deteriorating surface, changing from 2.7 x 10(3) F/(m(2)J) for samples with a very good surface to 6.9 x 10(3) F/(m(2)J) for the sample with worn surface (in the SI system the emission rate unit should be (m(-2)J(-1))). The emission rate for short fibers (L < or = 5 microm) was little higher compared with emission of long fibers for all studied asbestos materials. The averaged emission rate for all studied samples was about 5000 and 6000 of long and short fibers, respectively, emitted per square meter (because of the impact energy equal to 1J). The dominating population of emitted fibers ranged from 2 to around 8 microm in length. The second part of this work constitutes the report on the concentration of airborne respirable fibers, and their length distribution in two different groups of homes in Upper Silesia, Poland. Mean concentration level of the respirable fibers, longer than 5 microm, was found to be 850 F/m(3) (according to the SI system the fiber concentration unit is (m(-3))) in the buildings covered with asbestos-cement sheets and 280 F/m(3) in the homes without asbestos-containing facades, located away from other asbestos sources. Although the laboratory and field measurements have been made by using the MIE Laser Fiber Monitor FM-7400 only, the obtained results indicate that the outdoor asbestos-cement building facades are significant sources of airborne fibers inside the dwellings in Upper Silesian towns.

Traffic emission effects on ambient air pollution by PM2.5-related PAH in Upper Silesia, Poland

The ambient concentration of particle-bound polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was investigated in two industrial towns in Upper Silesia, Poland. The 24 h samples of PM2.5 (particles with aerodynamic diameter ≤ 2.5 µm) were collected simultaneously at busy roads (or crossroads) and at an urban background site. Additionally, the samples were collected during the heaviest traffic density (rush hours, from 8 am to 6 pm) at the five crossroads with the most traffic in Zabrze. The impact of traffic emission resulted in the specific distribution of particular PAH concentrations, PAH groups and diagnostic ratio values for all sampling points. The emission of diesel engine cars was significant and influenced dust and PAH concentrations. At four crossroads (including one at which the measurements were carried out for 24 h), the PAH profiles corresponded to that observed for gasoline engine exhausts. At the crossroad in Zabrze, the road in Ruda Śląska and urban area backgrounds without for traffic emission, the concentration of PM2.5 and PM-related PAHs can be affected by hard coal, wood and crude oil combustion.

Investigation of Winter Atmospheric Aerosol Particles in Downtown Katowice using XPS and SEM

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to determine the surface chemical composition of atmospheric particles (PM-10 and PM-2.5), collected in downtown Katowice, Upper Silesia, Poland, in the winter season (November and December 2000). Carbon- and oxygen-containing species dominated the particulate surface with traces of N, S, Si, Cl, Na, Zn, Al, Cu, Fe, Ca, K, Mg, Pb, and P present. Additionally, the size, morphology, and chemical composition of about 300 of the individual atmospheric particles were analyzed by high-resolution scanning electron microscopy and electron probe microanalysis. A number of aluminosilicates and metallic elements such as Fe, K, Mg, Zn, as well as rare earth elements, were detected by SEM. The results obtained show that the analyzed aerosol is of natural and anthropogenic origin. Particles containing sulfur compounds as well as oxygen and sodium in downtown Katowice come mainly from the east and southeast sectors.

A study of fibrous aerosols in the home environment in Sosnowiec, Poland

This work constitutes the first report on the concentration of airborne respirable fibers, and their length distribution in different groups of homes in Sosnowiec, Poland. The measurements have been made by using the MIE Laser Fiber Monitor FM-7400. Mean concentration level of the respirable fibers, longer than 5 microns, ranged from 350 m-3 through 910 m-3 up to 1020 m-3 in the homes located in suburban areas, near the busy streets, and in the buildings covered with asbestos-cement sheets, respectively. These results indicate the outdoor asbestos-containing materials as the main sources of airborne fibers inside the Sosnowiec dwellings.

Consideration on the health risk reduction related to attainment of the new particulate matter standards in Poland: A top-down policy risk assessment approach.

Policies can influence health of a population in various ways. Numerous epidemiological studies supported by toxicological investigations demonstrate a positive association between ambient concentrations of airborne particulate matter and increased adverse cardio-respiratory events, including morbidity and mortality. The aim of this paper was to present the concept of the top-down health policy risk assessment approach model developed to estimate the expected health risk reduction associated with policy aiming at attaining the new particulate matter ≤ 10 μm in diameter (PM10) standards in Poland. The top-down approach guides the analysis of causal chains from the policy to health outcomes. In this case study we tried to estimate the predicted health effects of the policy change over the past 20 years. Since Polish annual standard for PM10 changed from 50 μg/m³ in 1990 to 40 μg/m³ in 2010, we calculated the relative risk associated with decreasing PM10 in diameter to 10 μg/m3 in the annual level of PM10 for 6 adverse health effects. The relative risk slightly decreased for almost all adverse health effects, which means that the relative decrease in the incidence of health effects from the baseline incidence should range from about 0.5-0.6% for heart disease admissions to > 1% for respiratory admissions. The obtained results indicate that implementation of the new ambient air standards could influence improvement of the health status of Polish population. A top-down policy health risk assessment model can be one of the main tools in this process, providing harmonized guidance how to seek evidence-based information, which could serve policy-makers.