Air Pollution In The Nordic Countries

Air Pollution in the Nordic Countries

Risk of Air Pollution in Relation to Cancer in the Nordic Countries

Seventeen pollutants (particles, heavy metals, inorganic gasses and organic compounds) are for the first time analyzed in a screening of the carcinogenic risk at very high resolution and large scale in ambient air in the Nordic countries. Modelled 2010 annual mean air concentrations show no exceedances of the EU air quality values. The only exceedance of US-EPA 1:100,000 cancer risk concentrations occurs for the PAH BaP in Denmark. However, the EU target value threshold for BaP is not exceeded. No emission data for BaP are available for the other countries and important uncertainties are still related to the Danish emissions. Long-range transport is significant except for BaP that originates mostly from residential wood combustion. It is recommended to monitor the influence from residential wood combustion more extensively, and to analyze longer time trends for long-term human exposure.

Road dust and PM10 in the Nordic countries

Nordic countries suffer from periodic worsening of the air quality during spring with high peak PM10 concentrations (airborne particulate matter with diameter less than 10 µm or 0.01 mm). Characteristic for the high springtime PM10 concentrations are high shares of coarse particles (with diameters between 2.5 and 10µm), a signature of non-exhaust traffic dust formed via abrasion and wear of pavement, traction control materials, vehicle brakes and tyres. This Policy Brief summarizes the current understanding of the road dust system and presents the mitigation measures and policies currently in place in the Nordic countries. It has been compiled as part of the NORTRIP project funded by the Climate and air pollution working group of the Nordic Council of Ministers by researchers from 11 Nordic institutes studying different aspects of traffic non-exhaust emissions and road dust.