Modeling Indoor PM2.5 Air Pollution, Estimating Exposure, and Problems Associated with Rural Indonesian Households Using Wood Fuel

Abstract

A large segment of rural Indonesian households still use wood as their main fuel for cooking. In this study, we modeled the indoor air pollution implications and estimated exposures using PM2.5 concentrations in kitchens and living rooms with time activity information by season at villages in West Java Province (Lembang, highland) and in Central Java Province (Juwana, coastal area). The PM2.5 concentrations were measured 24 h using UCB particle monitors. Modeling indoor air pollution was conducted using a single box model. The average Daily exposures in Lembang and Juwana were 0.24 (mg/m3) and 0.1 (mg/m3), respectively. The relative risks (RRs) (95% CI) of cardiopulmonary diseases due to wood fuel use were, respectively, 1.52 and 1.44 for Lembang and Juwana. The adjusted RRs for cardiovascular diseases were, respectively, 1.47 and 1.39 for Lembang and Juwana. The ratio of simulated concentrations to actual concentrations was Bette for the Lembang site, 0.9 and 1.7, compared to the Juwana site, 1.13 and 1.8, for The wet and dry seasons, respectively. Overall, this model is quite useful do preliminarily assess the indoor air pollution that might occur if housing parameters are Wells characterized. It seems that this model has greater accuracy for predicting moderat indoor kitchen concentrations, i.e., those around 1 mg/m3. Adoption of dual fuel energy (LPG-wood fuel) in rural areas is mainly driven by economical motive. To solve the problem comprehensively, it needs long-term, medium term, and short-term program. The immediate action (Short term-program) is to mitigate indoor air pollution within rural households as much as possible by ventilator arrangement and good cooking practice implementation.