Longitudinal Trends of the Annual Exposure to PM(2.5) Particles in European Countries

BACKGROUND: PM(2.5) emission is known as a major challenge to environmental health and is the cause of approximately 7 million deaths annually. This study aimed at investigating the main patterns of PM(2.5) trend changes among European countries. METHODS: The annual exposure to PM(2.5) pollutants was retrieved from the World Bank for 41 countries during 2010 to 2017, and a latent growth model was applied to identify the main patterns using Mplus 7.4 software. RESULTS: Monitoring the overall mean annual exposure to PM(2.5) in the Europe showed a downward pattern with an annual decrease of 2.48% during the study period. Turkey had the highest PM(2.5) exposure with 43.82 μg/m(3) in 2010, reaching 44.31 μg/m(3) in 2017. Likewise, with 7.19 μg/m(3) in 2010, Finland had the lowest exposure level which decreased to 5.86 μg/m(3) in 2017. Two main patterns for the mean annual PM(2.5) exposure were identified via the latent growth model. Countries in the first pattern, including Turkey and Ukraine, had experienced a slow annual increase in the mean exposure of PM(2.5) pollutant. Likewise, the other 39 countries belonged to the second pattern with a moderate falling trend in the mean exposure to PM(2.5). CONCLUSION: Although the trend changes of mean annual exposure to PM(2.5) in Europe were falling, Turkey and Ukraine had experienced a slow annual increase. It is advisable to take appropriate measures to curb the current raising exposure to PM(2.5) in Turkey and Ukraine.