Effectiveness of complex plans for air protection activities at heat and power enterprises as per risk mitigation and health harm indicators

Abstract

The whole complex of air protection activities has been planned in the RF with its aim to reduce levels of ambient air pollution. It is being implemented actively now and as a result the quality of the environment should improve for more than 7 million people. In this study, an algorithm has been suggested for assessing effectiveness of air protection activities. It includes six subsequent stages. The algorithm was tested at heat and power enterprises located in a region participating in the Clean Air Federal project. As a result, it was established that these enterprises were sources of potential public health risks; 70 % of them belonged to high risk categories. Until air protection activities are implemented, heat and power enterprises pollute ambient air in some areas in the city (up to 29.9 single maximum MPC; up to 6.9 average daily MPC; up to 19.0 average annual MPC), create unacceptable health risks (up to 25.8 HI for acute exposure, 22.7 HI for chronic exposure, CRT is up to 3.28∙10-4), and cause more than 87 thousand additional disease cases. Implementation of air protection activities at heat and power enterprises will reduce local levels of ambient air pollution but we still expect hygienic standards to be violated for 10 chemicals up to 3–22 MPC and high health risks are likely to persist (up to 6.5–25.5 HI for acute exposure, 11.9–22.4 HI for chronic exposure, CRT will be up to 3.28∙10-4). Effectiveness of the air protection activities planned at heat and power enterprises corresponds to the target levels of the gross pollutant emissions (reduction by 20.56 % by 2024) set within the Clean Air Federal project but it is estimated as ‘unacceptable’ as per the health harm indicator, which is additional disease cases associated with activities of these enterprises (< 20 %). It is necessary to implement additional air protection activities with respect to 12 pollutants (nitrogen dioxide, particulate matter, carbon (soot), carbon oxide, sulfur dioxide, dihydrosulfide, inorganic dust containing silicon dioxide in %: 70–20, dimethyl benzene, ethyl benzene, benzene, formaldehyde, and kerosene); to use the best available technologies with respect to the most hazardous chemicals; to monitor public health in areas with elevated health risks; to implement complex medical and preventive activities.