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Industrial air pollution and self-reported respiratory and irritant health effects on adjacent residents: a case study of Islamabad Industrial Estate (IEI)

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Abstract

Human health deterioration due to industrial air emissions is gaining global attention. These health impacts are coupled mainly with chronic and acute health issues that are persistent in residents in close proximity to the industrial estates. Similarly, the inhabitants of Islamabad Industrial Estate (IEI) are exposed to intense industrial pollutants that have caused respiratory and irritant health issues. This cross-sectional study has compared two groups on deploying 378 close-ended questionnaires at the household level, after adjusting the potential confounders. The groups were framed as per their distance from IEI as ‘Band I’ - residence ≤ 650 m and ‘Band II’ - residence ≥ 650–1300 m. The distances were calculated from the respondent’s residence to the outer digitized boundary (perimeter of IEI), whereas the perimeter was digitized using Google Earth and imported into a Geographical Information System. The results of multiple logistic regression for odds ratios confirmed significant increase in chronic respiratory problems (chronic bronchitis OR 1.93 (1.05–3.55), phlegm OR 2.5 (1.4–4.5), dyspnoea OR 2.18 (0.3–1.81)) and acute irritation issues (eye irritation OR 2.59 (1.63–3.90), throat irritation OR 1.782 (0.876–2.725)) in case of Band I. The same diseases were found in Band II but in less severity; however, their existence remained life-threatening for the locality. The study calls for preventive measures by the local residents, health safety measures by the federal government and relocation of populace to safe areas/sectors.

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Data availability

All the data generated and analysed during this study are included in this research article/paper.

Notes

  1. The capital city of Islamabad has dedicated area/sectors for industries called ‘Industrial Sector’ (denoted as ‘I’, with numbering from 1 to 10). For detailed information on different sectors in Islamabad, see “Study area”.

  2. Verbal confirmation was taken, rather than written/tick on questionnaire, as the later could have reduced the sample size once the cases with family history (if) taken out from the sample size. It could have limited the generalisation of the results over the study population and beyond. So, verbal confirmation at the start avoided both the issues and it also ensured 100% response rate with no dismissal of any of the questionnaire.

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Acknowledgements

The authors of this study are thankful to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, Islamabad for the provision of data related to the study area. Thanks also to Dr. Tamkeen Ashraf (Department of Behavioural Sciences, S3H, NUST Islamabad) for the valuable insight and intellectual guidance to improve the quality of this study. Special thanks go to Professor Frank Kelly (Journal Editor-in-Chief: Air Quality, Atmosphere & Health) for actively handling this manuscript. Lastly, much appreciation for anonymous reviewers for their time and detailed reviews, and the English language (volunteer) proof reader for his time and review to upgrade the manuscript for publication.

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  1. Department of Development Studies, School of Social Sciences and Humanities (S3H), National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan

    Rida Bano & Umer Khayyam

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  1. Rida Bano
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Correspondence to Umer Khayyam.

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Bano, R., Khayyam, U. Industrial air pollution and self-reported respiratory and irritant health effects on adjacent residents: a case study of Islamabad Industrial Estate (IEI). Air Qual Atmos Health 14, 1709–1722 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11869-021-01051-5

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