Clearing the Air: Hospital-Reported Airborne Illnesses and Dumpsite Dangers
Disciplines
Allergy and Immunology | Environmental Health | Health Policy | Integrative Biology
Abstract (300 words maximum)
Dump sites, a breeding ground for endotoxins and bio-aerosols, have become increasingly concentrated over the last decade due to the rise in human population, the mass production of goods, and waste resulting from that. Long term exposure of just small bio-aerosols and air pollution from these dump sites have shown an increased risk of diagnoses of asthma, skin irritation, and long term cough. Past studies that focused on connecting dump sites in proximity to residential communities found a direct correlation between air quality and reported illnesses. Therefore, this study aimed to examine if these correlations are relevant in local communities within a ten mile radius from dump sites in Gwinnett and Cobb County. The methodology of this experiment included examining and correlating reported airborne illnesses in those communities and the level of air pollutants in the air. To contrast, cities outside of the 10 mile radius were explored to see if there were decreased illnesses reported with the increased proximity from the dump site respectively. As a result, a positive correlation was found between reported airborne illnesses, air quality, and residential proximity to dump sites. Further analyses would be needed to accumulate more data to continue this agenda.
Academic department under which the project should be listed
CSM - Molecular and Cellular Biology
Primary Investigator (PI) Name
Evelina Sterling
Clearing the Air: Hospital-Reported Airborne Illnesses and Dumpsite Dangers
Dump sites, a breeding ground for endotoxins and bio-aerosols, have become increasingly concentrated over the last decade due to the rise in human population, the mass production of goods, and waste resulting from that. Long term exposure of just small bio-aerosols and air pollution from these dump sites have shown an increased risk of diagnoses of asthma, skin irritation, and long term cough. Past studies that focused on connecting dump sites in proximity to residential communities found a direct correlation between air quality and reported illnesses. Therefore, this study aimed to examine if these correlations are relevant in local communities within a ten mile radius from dump sites in Gwinnett and Cobb County. The methodology of this experiment included examining and correlating reported airborne illnesses in those communities and the level of air pollutants in the air. To contrast, cities outside of the 10 mile radius were explored to see if there were decreased illnesses reported with the increased proximity from the dump site respectively. As a result, a positive correlation was found between reported airborne illnesses, air quality, and residential proximity to dump sites. Further analyses would be needed to accumulate more data to continue this agenda.