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Abstract
Using GIS to Investigate Children's Exposure to Air PollutionTrack: Health and Human Services
Author(s): Tami H. Funk, Frederick W. Lurmann
This paper presents the use of GIS to integrate and display human air pollution exposure data in the Southern California Children's Health Study (CHS). The CHS is a 10-year prospective epidemiological study designed to improve the understanding of the potential chronic health effects of ambient air pollutants such as ozone, particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, and acids. Throughout the study, more than 5,000 students are followed longitudinally from ages 10 to 18 to assess respiratory symptoms and pulmonary function by a research team from the University of Southern California's Keck School of Medicine. The students are residents of 12 communities in Central and Southern California that have unique ambient air pollution profiles. Extensive analyses are conducted of associations between the students' health outcomes and measured ambient air pollution levels, modeled human air pollution exposure, and other surrogates for exposure such as traffic density. Evaluation of children's exposure to pollutants emitted by mobile sources is a particularly important component of the study and one for which GIS is essential. This paper presents the development of a geodatabase that integrates the locations of children's residences and schools with modeled and measured pollutant exposure data.
Tami H. Funk
Sonoma Technology, Inc.
1360 Redwood Way
Suite C
Petaluma, CA 94954
USA
Phone: 707-665-9900
Fax: 707-665-9800
E-mail: tami@sonomatech.com