Journal article
Urban and socioeconomic disparities in PM 2.5 exposure across 340 Latin American cities
Environmental research letters, v 20(12), Forthcoming
18 Nov 2025
PMID: 41347121
Featured in Collection : UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
Abstract
Background: Fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) is a leading global health risk. Latin American cities exhibit some of the world's highest urban PM 2.5 levels, yet studies on neighborhood-level PM 2.5 exposure and associated disparities in the region are limited. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional ecological analysis of 53,041 neighborhoods across 340 cities in eight Latin American countries, leveraging the SALURBAL dataset. Annual PM 2.5 concentrations were derived from satellite data and linked to socioeconomic and urban characteristics. A multilevel model analyzed associations between neighborhood PM 2.5 levels and neighborhood-and city-level characteristics. Results: The median annual neighborhood PM 2.5 concentration was 18.49 µg/m³. Among 256 million residents, all live in neighborhoods with ambient PM 2.5 concentrations that exceed the 2021 WHO guidelines (5 µg/m³). Variability was greatest between cities (54.3% of total variance), but substantial within-city variation (26% of variance) was observed. Higher neighborhood PM 2.5 levels were associated with higher neighborhood educational attainment (Mean difference [MD] comparing top to bottom tertile =0.17), higher neighborhood intersection density (MD comparing top to bottom tertile =0.17), and older cities (MD comparing top to bottom tertile =1.45). Lower neighborhood PM 2.5 levels were related to higher neighborhood population density (MD comparing top to bottom tertile =-0.55), more greenness (MD comparing top to bottom tertile =-0.76), and larger distance from city centers (MD comparing top to bottom tertile =-0.86). Conclusions: Neighborhoods with higher PM 2.5 concentrations tended to have greater educational attainment, more intersections, and be located in older cities, while lower concentrations were associated with denser populations, more green space, and greater distance from city centers. Our findings reveal important within-city heterogeneity in PM 2.5 and the factors associated with it, suggesting strategies to mitigate air pollution within cities.
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Details
- Title
- Urban and socioeconomic disparities in PM 2.5 exposure across 340 Latin American cities
- Creators
- Edson J AscencioAntony BarjaJose M Montes-AlvisJosiah L KephartNelson GouveiaDaniel A. RodríguezTarik BenmarhniaAna V. Diez RouxUsama BilalJ. Jaime MirandaGabriel Carrasco-Escobar
- Publication Details
- Environmental research letters, v 20(12), Forthcoming
- Publisher
- IOP Publishing Ltd
- Number of pages
- 13
- Grant note
- Director of the National Institutes of Health: DP5OD026429 Fogarty International Center: NIH FIC D43TW010540 Wellcome Trust: 205177/Z/16/Z
This study was financially supported by the Wellcome Trust (227810/Z/23/Z). We acknowledge the contribution of all SALURBAL-Climate team members. For more information on SALURBAL-Climate and to see a full list of investigators, see https://www.salurbal.org/projects/salurbal-climate/teams-and-partners/. SALURBAL-Climate acknowledges the contributions of many different agencies in generating, processing, facilitating access to data or assisting with other aspects of the project. Please visit https://www.salurbal.org/data for a complete list of data sources. UB was also supported by the Office of the Director of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number DP5OD026429. EJA was supported by the Global Health Emerging Scholars Program, NIH FIC D43TW010540. The funding sources had no role in the analysis, writing, or decision to submit the manuscript.
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Drexel FIRST (Center for Firefighter Injury Research and Safety Trends); Urban Health Collaborative; Epidemiology and Biostatistics; Environmental and Occupational Health
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:001629189400001
- Other Identifier
- 991022133534004721
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- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- International collaboration
- Web of Science research areas
- Environmental Sciences
- Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences