- Library Home /
- Search Collections /
- Open Collections /
- Browse Collections /
- UBC Theses and Dissertations /
- Investigating disparities in air pollution exposure...
Open Collections
UBC Theses and Dissertations
UBC Theses and Dissertations
Investigating disparities in air pollution exposure in Canada : from the local to the national scale Gardner-Frolick, Rivkah
Abstract
Research to quantify and mitigate inequities in exposure to environmental risk is increasing around the world. However, in Canada, gaps remain in understanding around how to reduce air pollution exposure inequities effectively and efficiently. This thesis aims to help address these gaps through two national-scale and one local-scale study, that provide insight into exposure patterns, potential drivers, and how different sources of data, modelling, and measurement tools can be used to inform action. Chapter 3 investigates disproportionality in industrial emissions of PM₂.₅ and PM₂.₅ precursors in Canada due to the sector’s significant contribution to air pollution and its regulatory potential. The National Pollutant Release Inventory is used to determine whether industrial facilities in general, as well as the highest emitting facilities, are disproportionately sited near sociodemographic groups that are potentially vulnerable to pollution exposure. The chapter identifies several subsectors with high disproportionality in emissions, with disproportionate siting patterns generally varying across the urban/rural divide, as well as between individual facilities and facility clusters. Chapter 4 extends this work to focus on disparities in industrial PM₂.₅ exposure using a reduced complexity model. Findings show that urban Indigenous populations are exposed more than the total population, while in rural areas settlement patterns and model uncertainty make distinguishing disparities more complicated. Results from modeling scenarios suggest that urban and rural Indigenous populations are disproportionately exposed to PM₂.₅ from the highest emitting facilities. These chapters support the inclusion of equity in future policy planning and the need for more stringent permitting, more continuous emissions monitoring, and stricter permit enforcement in Canada. Chapter 5 uses community knowledge to add value to a community-scale air quality study in the Strathcona neighborhood in Vancouver, BC. Strathcona is home to both significant emissions sources and higher populations of Indigenous, low-income, and unhoused people than other Vancouver neighborhoods. A network of 11 low-cost sensors was deployed to measure PM₂.₅, NO, NO₂, and O₃ and a variety of community engagement and knowledge solicitations were conducted. This pilot study demonstrates methods to incorporate this often-qualitative data into a local Land Use Regression and peak analysis.
Item Metadata
Title |
Investigating disparities in air pollution exposure in Canada : from the local to the national scale
|
Creator | |
Supervisor | |
Publisher |
University of British Columbia
|
Date Issued |
2024
|
Description |
Research to quantify and mitigate inequities in exposure to environmental risk is increasing around the world. However, in Canada, gaps remain in understanding around how to reduce air pollution exposure inequities effectively and efficiently. This thesis aims to help address these gaps through two national-scale and one local-scale study, that provide insight into exposure patterns, potential drivers, and how different sources of data, modelling, and measurement tools can be used to inform action.
Chapter 3 investigates disproportionality in industrial emissions of PM₂.₅ and PM₂.₅ precursors in Canada due to the sector’s significant contribution to air pollution and its regulatory potential. The National Pollutant Release Inventory is used to determine whether industrial facilities in general, as well as the highest emitting facilities, are disproportionately sited near sociodemographic groups that are potentially vulnerable to pollution exposure. The chapter identifies several subsectors with high disproportionality in emissions, with disproportionate siting patterns generally varying across the urban/rural divide, as well as between individual facilities and facility clusters. Chapter 4 extends this work to focus on disparities in industrial PM₂.₅ exposure using a reduced complexity model. Findings show that urban Indigenous populations are exposed more than the total population, while in rural areas settlement patterns and model uncertainty make distinguishing disparities more complicated. Results from modeling scenarios suggest that urban and rural Indigenous populations are disproportionately exposed to PM₂.₅ from the highest emitting facilities. These chapters support the inclusion of equity in future policy planning and the need for more stringent permitting, more continuous emissions monitoring, and stricter permit enforcement in Canada. Chapter 5 uses community knowledge to add value to a community-scale air quality study in the Strathcona neighborhood in Vancouver, BC. Strathcona is home to both significant emissions sources and higher populations of Indigenous, low-income, and unhoused people than other Vancouver neighborhoods. A network of 11 low-cost sensors was deployed to measure PM₂.₅, NO, NO₂, and O₃ and a variety of community engagement and knowledge solicitations were conducted. This pilot study demonstrates methods to incorporate this often-qualitative data into a local Land Use Regression and peak analysis.
|
Genre | |
Type | |
Language |
eng
|
Date Available |
2024-08-22
|
Provider |
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
|
Rights |
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
|
DOI |
10.14288/1.0445132
|
URI | |
Degree | |
Program | |
Affiliation | |
Degree Grantor |
University of British Columbia
|
Graduation Date |
2024-11
|
Campus | |
Scholarly Level |
Graduate
|
Rights URI | |
Aggregated Source Repository |
DSpace
|
Item Media
Item Citations and Data
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International