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Exposure assessment for respirable particulates associated with household fuel use in rural districts of Andhra Pradesh, India

Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology volume 14, pages S14–S25 (2004)Cite this article

Abstract

Indoor air pollution associated with combustion of solid fuels seems to be a major contributor to the national burden of disease in India, but relatively few quantitative exposure assessment studies are available. This study quantified the daily average concentrations of respirable particulates (50% cut-off at 4 μm) in 412 rural homes selected through stratified random sampling from three districts of Andhra Pradesh, India and recorded time activity data from 1400 individuals to reconstruct 24-h average exposures. The mean 24-h average concentrations ranged from 73 to 732 μg/m3 in gas- versus solid fuel-using households, respectively. Concentrations were significantly correlated with fuel type, kitchen type, and fuel quantity. The mean 24-h average exposures ranged from 80 to 573 μg/m3. Among solid fuel users, the mean 24-h average exposures were the highest for women cooks and were significantly different from men and children. Among women, exposures were the highest in the age group of 15–40 years (most likely to be involved in cooking or helping in cooking), while among men, exposures were highest in the age group of 65–80 years (most likely to be indoors). The data are being used to develop a model to predict quantitative categories of population exposure based on survey information on housing and fuel characteristics. This would facilitate the development of a regional exposure database and enable better estimation of health risks.

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Notes

  1. The energy ladder (Reddy and Reddy, 1994) is made up of several rungs with traditional fuels such as wood, dung, and crop residues occupying the lowest rung. Charcoal, coal, kerosene, gas, and electricity represent the next higher steps sequentially. As one moves up the energy ladder, energy efficiency and costs increase, while typically the pollutant emissions decline. While several factors influence the choice of household energy, household income has been shown to be the one of the most important determinants. The use of traditional fuels and poverty thus remain closely interlinked.

  2. In India, the next administrative unit smaller than districts is the mandal, which in turn is subdivided into villages and further subdivided into habitations.

  3. Separate enclosed indoor kitchens (Type 1) typically were well separated from the living areas and also usually better ventilated. Enclosed indoor kitchens without partitions (Type 2) typically had very little separation between the cooking area and the adjacent living area. Most importantly, since these households had only one indoor area that was used for cooking and all other indoor activities including sleeping, the potential for exposures is maximal in this configuration. Separate enclosed kitchens outside the house (Type 3) were somewhat difficult to define. While few households had definite walled kitchens outside the main living areas, on many occasions, they were semienclosed and some were connected through corridors to the rest of the house and therefore not truly outside the house. Outdoor kitchens (Type 4) typically had stoves kept in the open without any enclosures or occasionally had a thatched roof on top to protect from rain, but were open on all other sides.

  4. The exposure questionnaire was written in English, but administered in the local language by the study team. It was validated by independent repeat administration on consecutive days in approximately 10% of the households. Also in 10% of households, duplicate measurements were taken on consecutive days and the levels were not significantly different (paired t-test). The field supervisors crosschecked all field forms after each day of monitoring activity to ensure that the forms were completely filled out by the field assistants. Two independent data entry operators verified computer data entry in the laboratory prior to analyses using the SPSS package (Version 10.0).

  5. Most measurements actually lasted somewhat less than 24 h, although never less than 22 h. For consistency and convenience, however, we report them here as “24-h” measurements.

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Acknowledgements

The investigators are grateful to all collaborating institutions for their support. Our thanks are due to Drs. Patrick Breysse, Peter Lees and Timothy Buckley of the Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health for many valuable suggestions and for loaning several pumps for the monitoring activity; to the Institute for Health Systems Hyderabad, for their role in administering the household level questionnaire and to the World Bank (ESMAP) unit, who funded the study. Our special thanks are also due to Kseniya Lvovsky, Sameer Akbar and Priti Kumar of the World Bank for their technical inputs while executing the project. Finally, we are extremely grateful to the members of the households for their graciousness in allowing the use of their premises for the monitoring activities.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Health Engineering, Sri Ramachandra Medical College & Research Institute (Deemed University), Chennai, India

    Kalpana Balakrishnan, Sankar Sambandam & Padmavathi Ramaswamy

  2. Environmental Health Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, California, USA

    Sumi Mehta & Kirk R Smith

  3. World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland

    Sumi Mehta

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  1. Kalpana Balakrishnan
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Correspondence to Kalpana Balakrishnan.

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Balakrishnan, K., Sambandam, S., Ramaswamy, P. et al. Exposure assessment for respirable particulates associated with household fuel use in rural districts of Andhra Pradesh, India. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 14 (Suppl 1), S14–S25 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.jea.7500354

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