Development of Methods, Models, and Datasets for Science-Based Air Pollution Decision-Making

在世界范围内，估计每年有340万人死于室外空气污染。这一健康负担的严重程度突显了空气污染的严重性，空气污染是全球和加拿大人患病和过早死亡的风险因素。由于空气污染的复杂性质，有必要根据现有的最佳科学知识更好地了解和更有效地管理空气质量。 我们的研究计划将提供对减少加拿大各地空气污染物排放的健康和农业好处(或价格标签)的估计。这些数据将在一个开放获取的数据库中向公众提供，以加强科学研究和交流的基础。随着污染法规变得更加严格，我们将调查减少排放对健康的好处在未来会发生什么变化。最近的科学研究表明，今天减少排放的努力不仅给加拿大人带来直接的健康好处，而且也是对子孙后代健康的复合投资。我们将以前瞻性的眼光，在气候变暖、充满活力的世界的背景下，审视公众健康的益处。气候变化是社会面临的另一个紧迫问题，减少温室气体排放(如二氧化碳)的努力往往对环境和人类健康带来除气候影响以外的附带好处。我们的研究将解决气候和空气质量之间的相互作用，重点是旨在减少化石燃料来源的二氧化碳排放的政策，这些政策反过来又减少空气污染物的排放。 虽然上述组成部分侧重于长期暴露在空气污染中，但空气质量的短期变化对加拿大人的健康也很重要。加拿大的空气质量是每天预报的，并通过空气质量健康指数向公众传达。我们建议发展一套系统，以预测和传达某一天排放活动(例如驾驶或发电)的改变如何影响空气污染的空气污染敏感性。这一框架将教育和参与公众在主动减少空气污染方面的作用，旨在提高加拿大公众的社会责任感。我们的建议认识到在估计排放者的健康和环境影响方面存在不确定性。我们的研究计划将量化这些不确定性，以便向环境管理人员和普通公众传达对科学数据的信心衡量标准。

Worldwide, an estimated 3.4 million deaths per year occur because of exposure to outdoor air pollution. The magnitude of this health burden highlights the severity of air pollution as a risk factor for illness and premature death globally and to Canadians. Due to the complex nature of air pollution, there is a need to better understand and more effectively manage air quality based on the best available science. Our research program will provide estimates of the health and agricultural benefits (or price tags) of reducing air pollutant emissions across Canada. Such data will be made publically available in an open-access database to strengthen the basis for scientific research and communications. We will investigate how the health benefits of reducing emissions change going into the future, as pollution regulations become stricter. Recent scientific research indicates that efforts to reduce emissions today, not only bring immediate health benefits to Canadians, but are also a compounding investment in the health of future generations. We will examine public health benefits with a forward-looking lens and in the context of a dynamic world with a warming climate. Climate change is another pressing issue facing society, and efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (such as CO2) often carry ancillary benefits to the environment and human health beyond their climate impacts. Our research will address the interplay between climate and air quality, with a focus on policies aimed at reducing CO2 emissions from fossil fuel sources that in turn reduce emissions of air pollutants. While the above components focus on long-term exposure to air pollution, short-term changes in air quality are also of importance to the health of Canadians. Air quality in Canada is forecasted daily and communicated to the public by means of the Air Quality Health Index. We propose to develop a system to forecast and communicate air pollution sensitivities how changes in emitting activities (such as driving or electricity generation) impact air pollution on a particular day. This framework will educate and engage the public on their role in proactively reducing air pollution and aims to increase the sense of social responsibility in the Canadian public. Our proposal recognizes the uncertainties in estimating health and environmental impacts of emitters. Our research program will quantify these uncertainties in order to communicate measures of confidence in scientific data, and to environmental managers and the general public.