Project 461017

Air pollution is a leading risk factor for death and cardiorespiratory disease. Most Caribbean countries do not currently have established air pollution monitoring networks in place, and there have been few attempts to characterize spatial variations in pollution. Residents of these nations are exposed to air pollution from a variety of sources including: emissions from vehicles and ships, local industry, bush and waste burning. Moreover, the long range transport of Saharan dust particles has been shown to increase daily concentrations of fine particulate matter pollution. Biomass combustion for cooking is a source of indoor air pollution. In 2020, in partnership with researchers at St. George's University, we established a network of low cost sensors to characterize daily variations in ambient fine particulate matter pollution in Grenada. We collected Saharan dust samples to look at the concentrations of endotoxin. This current application is designed to extend these research activities by establishing a network of researchers across the Caribbean. Funding from this application would support a planning and dissemination meeting in Grenada. The purpose of this meeting is threefold. First, we would engage researchers from other Caribbean nations to expand the monitoring of air pollution in this region. Second, we would identify priorities for future air quality research in the region. These priorities would consider strategies to improve monitoring of air pollution, epidemiological studies to characterize human health risks, and intervention studies to mitigate harms. Third, we would provide training applications of geospatial mapping, and measuring air pollution in indoor and outdoor environments. The primary knowledge dissemination product would be a report that summarizes the meeting's proceedings, and outlines future research directions. The meeting will also serve as an impetus for developing a grant application with the aim to secure additional funding.