AAAR 33rd Annual Conference
October 20 - October 24, 2014
Rosen Shingle Creek
Orlando, Florida, USA
Abstract View
Comparison of Indoor and Outdoor Air Quality in Latino Communities in Peru, Chile, and USA
Wyatt Champion, Francisco Barraza, Hector Jorquera, LUPITA MONTOYA, University of Colorado Boulder
Abstract Number: 415 Working Group: Indoor Aerosols
Abstract The contribution of human activities to indoor air pollution is a major concern in developing areas. The use of solid fuels for heating and cooking results in high levels of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) indoors, while practices unique to a culture (like raising animals indoors) may further exacerbate poor indoor air quality. Products of combustion and the biological components of particulate matter (PM) have also been shown to have compounding negative health effects in humans. To better understand exposures of Latino populations to indoor air pollution, air quality monitoring studies were conducted in three different Latino communities: a rural Andean community in Cusco, Peru, a suburban Latino community in North Boulder, Colorado, and an urban area in Santiago, Chile. Indoor and ambient samples were collected for either 24 or 48 hours onto Teflo and Tissuquartz filters and analyzed for biological components of PM, while the Tissuquartz filters were analyzed for elemental and organic carbon content (EC/OC). Differences in PM mass and associated components were observed among these three communities. The rural Peruvian homes exhibited the highest concentrations of pollutants indoors due to solid fuel use. Compared to Boulder households, Santiago homes were found to have lower concentrations of OC indoors and outdoors, but higher EC concentrations (both indoors and outdoors), likely due to its urbanized environment and motor vehicle emissions.