Home energy efficiency and radon related risk of lung cancer: modelling study
Home energy efficiency and radon related risk of lung cancer: modelling study
复制标题
DOI：
10.1136/bmj.f7493
复制
发表时间：
2014-01-10
影响因子：
105.7
通讯作者：
Wilkinson, Paul
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Milner, James;Shrubsole, Clive;Wilkinson, Paul
目的调查减少家庭通风作为家庭能源效率措施的一部分对氡相关肺癌死亡的影响。设计模拟研究。设置英格兰。干预家庭能源效率干预措施，部分是由减少温室气体的目标激励，这需要减少不受控制的通风，以符合良好做法的指导。主要成果措施模拟室内氡水平的当前和未来分布结果增加住宅的气密性（没有补偿性目的提供的通风）使平均室内氡浓度增加了56.6%，从21.2贝可勒尔/立方米（Bq/m3）增加到33.2 Bq/m3。在肺癌发病滞后之后，这将导致每年额外损失4700生命年的负担，（高峰时）278人死亡。数百万家庭的氡水平增加将造成大部分额外负担，但低于氡补救措施具有成本效益的阈值。安装抽气风扇和滴流式空调器以恢复通风将有助于抵消额外的负担，但前提是通风相关的能源效率收益丧失。具有热回收的机械通风系统可以降低氡水平和癌症风险，同时保持最密闭住宅的能源效率优势，但如果这种系统失败，可能会对健康产生重大不利影响。减少住宅的通风将提高能源效率，但代价是对整个人口的室内氡暴露产生不利影响。和患肺癌的风险。需要仔细评估通风变化的这一影响和其他后果，以确保家庭能源效率的理想健康和环境效益不会受到可避免的室内空气质量负面影响的影响。
Objective To investigate the effect of reducing home ventilation as part of household energy efficiency measures on deaths from radon related lung cancer.Design Modelling study.Setting England.Intervention Home energy efficiency interventions, motivated in part by targets for reducing greenhouse gases, which entail reduction in uncontrolled ventilation in keeping with good practice guidance.Main outcome measures Modelled current and future distributions of indoor radon levels for the English housing stock and associated changes in life years due to lung cancer mortality, estimated using life tables.Results Increasing the air tightness of dwellings (without compensatory purpose-provided ventilation) increased mean indoor radon concentrations by an estimated 56.6%, from 21.2 becquerels per cubic metre (Bq/m(3)) to 33.2 Bq/m(3). After the lag in lung cancer onset, this would result in an additional annual burden of 4700 life years lost and (at peak) 278 deaths. The increases in radon levels for the millions of homes that would contribute most of the additional burden are below the threshold at which radon remediation measures are cost effective. Fitting extraction fans and trickle ventilators to restore ventilation will help offset the additional burden but only if the ventilation related energy efficiency gains are lost. Mechanical ventilation systems with heat recovery may lower radon levels and the risk of cancer while maintaining the advantage of energy efficiency for the most airtight dwellings but there is potential for a major adverse impact on health if such systems fail.Conclusion Unless specific remediation is used, reducing the ventilation of dwellings will improve energy efficiency only at the expense of population wide adverse impact on indoor exposure to radon and risk of lung cancer. The implications of this and other consequences of changes to ventilation need to be carefully evaluated to ensure that the desirable health and environmental benefits of home energy efficiency are not compromised by avoidable negative impacts on indoor air quality.