Yangtze River Delta study analyzes impacts of shipping on air quality and health

HEI has published Special Report 22, Impacts of Shipping on Air Pollutant Emissions, Air Quality, and Health in the Yangtze River Delta and Shanghai, China, a collaboration among a team of investigators from Fudan and Tsinghua Universities, and other Chinese research institutions, and HEI scientists Allison Patton and Katherine Walker, as part of HEI’s Global Health Program. The report provides a comprehensive and detailed analysis of emissions from shipping and related activities and their impacts on air quality and the health of the populations of the Yangtze River Delta and the city of Shanghai, both in a baseline year (2015, before implementation of China’s domestic emissions control areas) and under three future emissions control scenarios for the year 2030.

Shanghai and the Yangtze River Delta are home to one of the world’s busiest port regions. Ship traffic, as well as the handling of the goods in ports and their inland distribution, can contribute to higher air pollution, affecting communities that live and work in the area. This report estimated air quality and health impacts of these activities at a finer spatial scale than has been conducted to date.