We will breathe much more particles in the atmosphere of Athens this year if we switch massively to burning wood for heating, warn Observatory scientists
The world’s significant turn to wood burning for domestic heating is an ominous but highly probable prospect for this winter, which will significantly further burden the atmosphere of Athens, but also the health of citizens, according to estimates by researchers of the National Observatory of Athens (EAA).
As stated by Dr. Evangelos Gerasopoulos, research director of the Environment and Sustainable Development Research Institute (IEPVA) of the EAA and the collaborating researcher Dr. Eleni Athanasopoulou, in an article in the EAA’s Cosmos magazine, the war in Ukraine has already caused financial burdens on motor and heating fuels in Greece and elsewhere. Wood burning is still used in Attica as a supplementary or main means of heating homes since the beginning of the financial crisis in 2008-10 and beyond.
They emphasize that “the systematic measurements of the National Observatory of Athens at the atmospheric pollution measurement superstation in Thisio confirm the stable, long-term charge of the basin from wood burning during at least the last decade”.
The Atmospheric Physics and Chemistry Group of the IEPBA of the EAA has been monitoring the smog phenomenon for the last decade. In this context, he examined a scenario that assumes a doubling of suspended particulate matter emissions from wood burning in Attica. If emissions from fireplaces and stoves were to double compared to previous years, average increases in monthly average levels of PM2.5 (less than 2.5 millionths of a meter in diameter) of 20 to 40% in residential areas would be expected of the outskirts of Ymittos and Parnitha, and somewhat smaller in the central area of Athens (5-15%).
The researchers point out that “according to the latest guidelines of the World Health Organization (Sept. ’21), population exposure to average daily PM2.5 concentrations greater than 15 μg m-3, and on an annual basis of 5 μg m-3, they are not safe for public health.
From the analysis we notice that anyway in many areas of Athens during the winter months we far exceed these limits, with average concentrations moving in the range of 20-60 μg m-3. We point out that these are average values (monthly average value), which means that on a daily basis, and when the smog phenomenon intensifies in the evening hours, the concentration values are much higher. This winter, under the considered scenario and in correspondingly cold conditions as in January 2019, an additional increase in concentrations of 10-20 μg m-3 during the evening hours is predicted.”
They also remind that “suspended particles from burning wood not only burden the outside space, but also the air inside the house (depending on the type of fireplaces) and therefore their use should be limited as much as possible, as the main source heating”.
Read the News today and get the latest news.
Follow Skai.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news.
I have worked as a journalist for over 10 years, and my work has been featured on many different news websites. I am also an author, and my work has been published in several books. I specialize in opinion writing, and I often write about current events and controversial topics. I am a very well-rounded writer, and I have a lot of experience in different areas of journalism. I am a very hard worker, and I am always willing to put in the extra effort to get the job done.
_113606.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1)
