title: The State of Ambient Air Quality in Two Ugandan Cities: A Pilot Cross-Sectional Spatial Assessment.
abstract: 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 (PM2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and ozone (O3) pollutants in two Ugandan cities (Kampala and Jinja). PM2.5, 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 PM2.5, 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 PM2.5 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. PM2.5 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 PM2.5 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.
authors.affiliation: Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Medicine, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda. brucekirenga@yahoo.co.uk.
authors.forename: Bruce J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Kirenga
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental and Occupational Health and Center for Global Public Health, School of Public Health, Rutgers University, NJ 07107, USA. mengqi@sph.rutgers.edu.
authors.forename: Qingyu
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Meng
authors.affiliation: Department of General Practice, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen 9700 RB, The Netherlands. frgemert@xs4all.nl.
authors.forename: Frederik
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: van Gemert
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda. hellen.aanyut@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Hellen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Aanyu-Tukamuhebwa
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden 2333 ZA, The Netherlands. n.h.chavannes@lumc.nl.
authors.forename: Niels
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Chavannes
authors.affiliation: Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatics Unit, Department of Medicine, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda. akatamba@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Achilles
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Katamba
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Gulu University, Gulu, Uganda. lekobai@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Gerald
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Obai
authors.affiliation: Department of General Practice, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen 9700 RB, The Netherlands. t.van.der.molen@umcg.nl.
authors.forename: Thys
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: van der Molen
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental and Occupational Health and Center for Global Public Health, School of Public Health, Rutgers University, NJ 07107, USA. schwansk@sph.rutgers.edu.
authors.forename: Stephan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schwander
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA. vahid.mohsenin@yale.edu.
authors.forename: Vahid
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Mohsenin
mesh_terms: D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D002947:Cities; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D015386:Hazardous Substances; D006801:Humans; D006813:Humidity; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D009585:Nitrogen Dioxide / Q000032:analysis; D010126:Ozone / Q000032:analysis; D052638:Particulate Matter / Q000032:analysis*; D011634:Public Health; D012621:Seasons; D013458:Sulfur Dioxide / Q000032:analysis / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013696:Temperature; D013997:Time Factors; D014454:Uganda
chemical_list: D000393:Air Pollutants; D015386:Hazardous Substances; D052638:Particulate Matter; D013458:Sulfur Dioxide; D010126:Ozone; D009585:Nitrogen Dioxide
keywords: Jinja; Kampala; Uganda; ambient air pollution; nitrogen dioxide; ozone; particulate matter; sulfur dioxide