Tracing the Origins of Air Contaminants Near Environmental Protection Areas

Abstract

This case study aimed to assess the impact of particulate matter (PM) emitted by highway works in an ecosystem belonging to one of the most important Atlantic Rainforest remnants in southeastern Brazil. The study was conducted during federal highway works, comprising a toll station construction and lane widening. To the best of our knowledge, this is the most comprehensive study on air pollution and its impacts on Environmental Protection Areas (EPAs) in Brazil. Total suspended particle (TSP) samples were obtained from 2014 to 2016, totaling 1823 samples. Some TSP samples were chosen for ionic and elemental quantification. Daily concentrations ranged from 8 to 345 µg m⁻³. The TSP concentrations exceeded Brazilian guidelines (240 µg m⁻³), mainly during the federal highway works. The main determined elements Fe (50–2100 ng m⁻³) and Mn (3–30 ng m⁻³) were associated with soil origin. Trace elements (Cu, Co, Ni, V, and Pb), detected from 2 × 10⁻⁷ to 54 ng m⁻³, and high NO₃⁻ (2.4 − 8.3 µg m⁻³) and SO₄²⁻ (2.6 − 6.8 µg m⁻³) concentrations were correlated with vehicular emissions. The findings of this study indicate that Cd and Cu represent environmental risks, as they may compromise biochemical plant processes.

Keywords:

• Air pollution
• ecological risk index
• particle composition
• ecosystem conservation

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge data provided by the Rio de Janeiro State Environmental Institute (INEA) and to Brazilian Biodiversity Institute Chico Mendes (ICMBio).

Disclosure Statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Data Availability Statement

The datasets used and/or analyzed during this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by CAPES (in Portuguese, Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior), CNPq (in Portuguese, Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico), FAPERJ (in Portuguese, Fundação de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro), and Bio-Rio.