Indoor Air Pollution in Coastal Houses of Southern Philippines

Abstract

This study had two primary objectives: to determine the extent to which indoor air pollution (IAP) from cooking represented a serious problem that needed household energy intervention and to pilot survey and monitoring instruments for use in the design and evaluation of household energy interventions. This is in the coastal areas of the southern Philippines and/or in other country contexts. The study involved 120 households across three areas who responded to a comprehensive questionnaire on socioeconomic parameters, house and kitchen characteristics and ventilation practices. In 30 houses we measured 24-h average levels of carbonmonoxide (CO) and particulate matter (PM). This IAP monitoring revealed very low 24-h average area concentrations of PM₄ and CO: 72 μg /m ³ and 1 ppm, respectively. Personal exposure monitoring of CO, as a proxy for PM from biomass smoke, was also very low (1 ppm averaged over 24-h); however, peaks of acute exposure were evident during cooking times, typically ranging between 20 and 40 ppm, with peaks up to nearly 200 ppm. This study highlights the fact that low 24-h averages of PM can mask acute exposure while cooking. The study, one of the first in a coastal area, also indicated that kitchen and ventilation characteristics can be significant determinants of exposure to certain indoor air pollutants and less so for others. The study also found weak correlations among the three variables: the area CO, personal CO and the area PM₄.