Comparison of high pm10 concentration between Łódź and smaller municipalities of Central Poland in 2012–2023 in the light of meteorological conditions

Abstrakt

Long-term human exposure to particulate matter with a size equal to or less than 10 micrometers may lead to serious health problems such as respiratory and cardiovascular diseases or cancer. Whereas in most of Europe the number of premature deaths decreased significantly over more than a decade, in Poland, it remained at the same level. In Central Poland, as in the rest of the country, the main reason for high PM10 concentrations is low-level emission from single-family houses, which are often poorly insulated and heated by old furnaces with low-quality fuels or substitutes (i.e., wastes). The high concentration of PM10 in winter is exaggerated by meteorological conditions that usually do not favour the dispersion of pollutants. High and very high PM10 concentrations occurred during anticyclonic weather, when high pressure, limited turbulence, subsidence of the air, low wind speed and lack of precipitation hindered air pollution removal. The highest probability of high PM10 concentration episodes is for the air mass inflow from the eastern (NE–E) and southern (SW–S) sectors when the anticyclone center is located in the north-east or south-east of Poland. Additionally, decreasing temperatures in winter increase the demand for heating and coal combustion. In Central Poland, from 2012 to 2023, the air quality significantly improved. Since 2019, the annual PM10 standards have been met at all stations, and the 24-hour limits are exceeded in only some of them. The most polluted urban areas in Central Poland are Opoczno, Radomsko, Zduńska Wola, Piotrków Trybunalski and Łódź, and the level of pollution is not related to the number of citizens. In many cases, considerably less-populated cities such as Opoczno, Zduńska Wola or Radomsko are more polluted than Łódź.