Effects of Population Weighting on PM10 Concentration Estimation
Table 1
Five exposure levels established with reference to the WHO AGQ and IT guideline for annual mean PM10 concentrations.
Exposure level
PM10 ranges (µg/m³)
WHO interim target
Basis for the selected level
1
PWEL ≤20
Air quality standard
These are the lowest levels at which total, cardiopulmonary, and lung cancer mortality have been shown to increase with more than 95% confidence level in response to long-term exposure to PM2.5
2
20 <PWEL ≤30
Interim Target-3 (IT-3)
In addition to other health benefits, these levels reduce the mortality risk by approximately 6% [2–11%] relative to the IT-2 level
3
30 <PWEL ≤50
Interim Target-2 (IT-2)
In addition to other health benefits, these levels lower the risk of premature mortality by approximately 6% [2–11%] relative to the IT-1 level
4
50 <PWEL ≤70
Interim Target-1 (IT-1)
These levels are associated with about a 15% higher long-term mortality risk relative to the AQG level
