That morning commute can be a real killer -- in more ways than one.
Atmospheric science researchers armed with scientific equipment sampled the air on the streets and on the mass rapid transit (MRT) system in Taipei and discovered that commuters were breathing in four to five times more dangerous particles than normal levels.
Levels of particle matter below 2.5 micrometers in diameter -- or PM2.5 -- and carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were highest in the morning and scooter riders stuck in traffic were the most exposed.
"A major source of PM2.5 is engine exhaust," said Lung Shih-chun (龍世俊), associate research fellow at Academia Sinica's Center for Environmental Changes.
"The closer you get to traffic, the higher the concentration of fine particular matter and harmful hydrocarbon compounds," Lung said.
The samplings were taken in 2004 and 2005 between two MRT stations in Taipei.
Lung cited the "Six Cities" study conducted in 1993, which showed a strong correlation between exposure to PM2.5 and cardiovascular and lung-related deaths.
"Fine particulate matters are not filtered out by our body but are breathed deep into the lungs," she said.
The study showed that on average scooter drivers were exposed to PM2.5 concentrations of 161 micrograms per cubic meter during their daily commute, substantially more than the 90 micrograms per cubic meter for car drivers and 105 micrograms per cubic meter for people riding on the MRT.
"We could see the concentrations spike at traffic lights, with scooter riders sitting behind the idling engines of the vehicles in front of them," she said.
Scooter riders were also most vulnerable to PAHs, another component of engine exhaust and a highly potent carcinogen.
The study found that scooter riders are exposed to PAH concentrations of 29 nanograms per cubic meter, compared to 8 nanograms per cubic meter for car drivers.
The PAH concentration on the MRT, meanwhile, was below detectable levels, Lung said.
Although the study did not follow bus commuters, Lung said exposure levels were likely to be between that of car drivers and scooter riders because of the frequent opening of bus doors and long waits at bus stops.
Cyclists were likely the worst off as exercising increases the volume of oxygen breathed in, she said.
The levels of fine particulate matter, including PAHs, were consistently more serious in the mornings as there is less air movement, Lung said, adding that sunlight later on helps clear up some pollutants, which tend to be trapped close to the ground.
For people who continue to ride their scooters and bicycles, Lung said face masks were advisable.
"My previous research showed that even the cheap cotton masks block more than a third of fine particulate matter," she said.
A year-long renovation of Taipei’s Bangka Park (艋舺公園) began yesterday, as city workers fenced off the site and cleared out belongings left by homeless residents who had been living there. Despite protests from displaced residents, a city official defended the government’s relocation efforts, saying transitional housing has been offered. The renovation of the park in Taipei’s Wanhua District (萬華), near Longshan Temple (龍山寺), began at 9am yesterday, as about 20 homeless people packed their belongings and left after being asked to move by city personnel. Among them was a 90-year-old woman surnamed Wang (王), who last week said that she had no plans
TO BE APPEALED: The environment ministry said coal reduction goals had to be reached within two months, which was against the principle of legitimate expectation The Taipei High Administrative Court on Thursday ruled in favor of the Taichung Environmental Protection Bureau in its administrative litigation against the Ministry of Environment for the rescission of a NT$18 million fine (US$609,570) imposed by the bureau on the Taichung Power Plant in 2019 for alleged excess coal power generation. The bureau in November 2019 revised what it said was a “slip of the pen” in the text of the operating permit granted to the plant — which is run by Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) — in October 2017. The permit originally read: “reduce coal use by 40 percent from Jan.
China might accelerate its strategic actions toward Taiwan, the South China Sea and across the first island chain, after the US officially entered a military conflict with Iran, as Beijing would perceive Washington as incapable of fighting a two-front war, a military expert said yesterday. The US’ ongoing conflict with Iran is not merely an act of retaliation or a “delaying tactic,” but a strategic military campaign aimed at dismantling Tehran’s nuclear capabilities and reshaping the regional order in the Middle East, said National Defense University distinguished adjunct lecturer Holmes Liao (廖宏祥), former McDonnell Douglas Aerospace representative in Taiwan. If
‘SPEY’ REACTION: Beijing said its Eastern Theater Command ‘organized troops to monitor and guard the entire process’ of a Taiwan Strait transit China sent 74 warplanes toward Taiwan between late Thursday and early yesterday, 61 of which crossed the median line in the Taiwan Strait. It was not clear why so many planes were scrambled, said the Ministry of National Defense, which tabulated the flights. The aircraft were sent in two separate tranches, the ministry said. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday “confirmed and welcomed” a transit by the British Royal Navy’s HMS Spey, a River-class offshore patrol vessel, through the Taiwan Strait a day earlier. The ship’s transit “once again [reaffirmed the Strait’s] status as international waters,” the foreign ministry said. “Such transits by
RSS