BPB Reports

Paper Details

BPB Reports
Vol. 6 No. 6 p.204-208 2023
Report
Characteristics of Atmospheric Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) Pollution in a Suburban Residential Area of Saitama (Japan)
  • Tsuyoshi Murahashi (Nihon Pharmaceutical University / tmu@nichiyaku.ac.jp)
Tsuyoshi Murahashi 1) , Hanako Ueno 1) , Akiko Koyama 1) , Shoko Sasaki 1) , Yui Hosokawa 1) , Natsuka Nagai 1) , Naoto Uramaru 1) , Toshiyuki Higuchi 1) , Minoru Tsuzuki 1) , Ching-Tang Kuo 2)
1) Nihon Pharmaceutical University , 2) College of Public Health, China Medical University
Received: October 31, 2023;   Accepted: December 11, 2023;   Released: December 15, 2023
Keywords: fine particulate matter, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, suburban residential area, Saitama prefecture, open burning of biomass
Abstracts

We measured the atmospheric concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) on every Tuesday from 2016 to 2019 to reveal the characteristics of PM2.5 pollution in a suburban residential area of Saitama Prefecture, a commuter town of Tokyo, and obtained the following results. First, mean PM2.5 concentration over four years was 15.3 µg/m3, which was slightly higher than the long-term environmental standard of 15 µg/m3. Second, extremely high PM2.5 concentrations may have been caused by the arrival of the Yellow Sand; a high PAH concentration was also observed during this event. Third, in the area surrounding the fields, PM2.5 as well as PAH concentrations were increased from autumn to winter owing to open burning of biomass. Finally, the PM2.5 concentration in the suburban areas surrounding the fields was 70% of that in central Tokyo, and the PAH concentration in late winter was the same as that in central Tokyo. These findings suggest that PM2.5 and PAH concentrations in the suburban area surrounding the fields were high despite the area’s low population density because of PM2.5 accumulation in the metropolitan area and PM2.5 emission from biomass burning. To improve the living environment of suburban residential areas surrounding fields, it is necessary to restrict biomass burning.