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Air quality and health
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The World Health Organization reduced acceptable limits for PM10 and PM2.5 when it updated their air quality guidelines in 2021. This reflects global research showing that particulate matter is more harmful at lower concentrations than previously thought. The Health and Air Pollution New Zealand (HAPINZ) update in 2022 provides detailed aspects of the health and social costs of air pollution in New Zealand.
In Otago, the ORC worked with the Southern District Health Board (SDHB) in 2007 to show that in areas with more high pollution days for PM10. The SDHB recently refined this work in 2022 to show that higher PM10 concentrations increased the risk of acute respiratory infections, highlighting the risk of even short-term exposure to particulate matter. Areas with more wood burners have a higher risk.
You can read more about particulate matter on the Ministry for the Environment website and see the modelled impact on health in New Zealand by district.
Further information
2021 Southern District Health Board study on link between woodsmoke and acute respiratory infections
In New Zealand’s South Island, where the coldest winters are experienced, 47% of the population uses woodburners for home heating. Wood has some advantages over electricity, including higher heat output, the ability to scavenge or barter for material, and independence from the power grid. However, in some towns, domestic woodsmoke is the primary driver of winter outdoor air pollution, with daily average concentrations of particulate matter less than 10 µm (PM{{10}}) frequently exceeding the 50 µm/m National Environmental Standard for Air Quality.
World Health Organization factsheet on air pollution
Air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year. WHO data shows that 9 out of 10 people breathe air containing high levels of pollutants. WHO is working with countries to monitor air pollution and improve air quality.
Health effects of air pollution
Key findings about the health impacts of air pollution in New Zealand in 2016. These results come from the Health and Air Pollution in New Zealand (HAPINZ) 3.0 study, which was published in July 2022.
2007 Southern District Health Board study on hospital admission rates
May 2017
PNG | 679 KB
Summary of the results from a joint research project by Public Health South and the Otago Regional Council to determine the effect of PM10 levels on hospital admission rates across the region.
