Project aims
This project is part of the “Emerging Environmental Issues Prepareness” theme of the NIHR HPRU in Environmental Exposures & Health.
The UK is shifting electricity generation towards “renewable” energy sources including biomass. DEFRA (2017)
advise that burning biomass “could have adverse air quality impacts”, particularly through PM and NO2 associated
health outcomes, including acute exacerbations of asthma and COPD. Based on modelled ground-based
exposures to air pollutants, we will investigate potential health impacts near biomass electricity generating installations in England and Wales using spatio-temporal epidemiological methods applied to SAHSU data.
The aims of this project are: i) to assess the health impacts of living near biomass electricity generating installations; ii) to undertake a literature review and, if appropriate, a meta-analyse on the health impact of biomass-burning and health, in particular respiratory disease; iii) to identify existing data on air pollution modelling of emissions from power stations fuelled by biomass burning for use in epidemiological models; iv) to quantify health risks around selected biomass-burning facilities; and v) to feed results into policy for the management and control of installations carrying out biomass burning for power generation.
Geography
England and Wales
Data
NHS Digital HES England; Inpatient and A&E
Contact