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Particulate Air Pollution, Disease, and Death in the Cities and Towns of Southwestern Pennsylvania Cover

Particulate Air Pollution, Disease, and Death in the Cities and Towns of Southwestern Pennsylvania

Annals of Global Health
Volume 92 (2026): Issue 1
By: Ella M. Whitman,  Luke Bryan,  Sancia Sehdev and  Philip J. Landrigan  
Open Access
|Jan 2026
Figures & tables

Figures & Tables

Table 1

Population, birth and death data, and annual mean PM2.5 concentrations by County, Pittsburgh MSA, 2019.

COUNTYPOPULATIONLIVE BIRTHSDEATHSMEAN PM2.5 CONCENTRATION
Allegheny1,221,74412,83413,4679.77
Armstrong65,8672,0928598.15
Beaver165,8331,9062,1538.37
Butler186,8991,6832,0858.38
Fayette131,3023,2021,7308.95
Lawrence86,7279031,1288.26
Washington207,2121,3392,5777.92
Westmoreland352,5906454,5118.53
Pittsburgh MSA2,418,17424,60428,510*8.54

[i] Note: 27,224 deaths in the Pittsburgh MSA occurred in adults 25–99 years of age. Pollution‑attributable fractions of deaths were calculated in this age range.

Figure 1

Estimated annual mean PM2.5 exposure by census tract, Pittsburgh MSA, 2016.

Figure 2

Estimated annual mean PM2.5 exposure by census tract, Allegheny County, PA, 2016.

Table 2

PM2.5‑Attributable mortality, by underlying cause, Pittsburgh MSA, 2019.

ALL‑CAUSE MORTALITY (A00 – Z99)LUNG CANCER (C34)ISCHEMIC HEART DISEASE (IHD) (I20 – I25)MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION (SUBSET OF IHD) (I21)
LEPEULE [46]LADEN [9]GHARIBVAND [47]KREWSKI [48]ALEXEEFF [11]
COUNTYCOUNTSPERCENT ATTRIBUTABLECOUNTSPERCENT ATTRIBUTABLECOUNTSPERCENT ATTRIBUTABLECOUNTSPERCENT ATTRIBUTABLECOUNTSPERCENT ATTRIBUTABLE
Allegheny1,55311.86%1,74413.32%18929.20%38218.72%327.17%
Armstrong8510.54%9511.85%1226.36%1616.76%26.44%
Beaver21910.41%24611.71%2725.94%4416.52%56.26%
Butler21010.41%23611.71%2825.84%4116.56%46.25%
Fayette1669.89%18711.12%2424.65%4015.75%35.96%
Lawrence11310.26%12711.54%1525.53%2316.22%26.14%
Washington25210.09%28311.35%4125.01%5216.35%66.07%
Westmoreland48811.00%54812.36%6027.10%10417.38%116.54%
Pittsburgh MSA3,08511.13%3,46712.51%39627.37%70217.72%656.69%
Figure 3

Association between ischemic heart disease mortality rate and annual mean PM2.5 concentration by census tract, Pittsburgh MSA, 2019.

* Rates were calculated using ischemic heart disease deaths and population counts within the at‑risk population of each census tract, using the correlation coefficient from the Krewski et al. study [48].

Figure 4

PM2.5‑attributable all‑ cause mortality by census tract, Pittsburgh MSA, 2019.

Note: Estimates generated using Laden et al. [9].

Figure 5

PM2.5‑attributable all‑ cause mortality by census tract, Allegheny County, PA, 2019.

Note: Estimates generated using Lepeule et al. [46].

Table 3

PM2.5‑attributable adverse birth outcomes, Pittsburgh MSA, 2019.

PRETERM BIRTH GHOSH [13]LOW BIRTH WEIGHT GHOSH [13]STILL BIRTHS ZHANG [14]
COUNTYCOUNTSPERCENT ATTRIBUTABLECOUNTSPERCENT ATTRIBUTABLECOUNTSPERCENT ATTRIBUTABLE
Allegheny12910.4%1029.6%68.3%
Armstrong178.6%128.0%16.9%
Beaver149.0%108.3%17.3%
Butler139.1%108.4%17.3%
Fayette269.6%208.9%17.6%
Lawrence98.9%68.2%17.2%
Washington148.5%107.9%17.3%
Westmoreland79.1%78.4%07.2%
Pittsburgh MSA2299.7%1779.0%127.8%

[i] Note: Preterm birth defined as <37 weeks’ gestation and low birth weight as <2,500 g, as per WHO guidelines.

Figure 6

Association between low‑birth‑weight rate and annual mean PM2.5 concentration by census tract, Pittsburgh MSA, 2019.

Figure 7

PM2.5‑attributable adverse birth outcomes by census tract, Pittsburgh MSA, 2019.

Table 4

PM2.5‑attributable IQ loss among children, Pittsburgh MSA, 2019 birth cohort.

COUNTYFSIQVIQPIQ
Allegheny33,84830,08748,891
Armstrong4,6064,0946,653
Beaver4,3083,8296,223
Butler3,8083,3855,500
Fayette7,7356,87611,173
Lawrence2,0131,7892,907
Washington2,8652,5474,138
Westmoreland1,4851,3202,145
Pittsburgh MSA60,66853,92787,631

[i] Note: Estimates of IQ points lost per 1 μg/m³ increase in PM2.5 were derived from Alter et al. [33] with a counterfactual concentration set to 0 μg/m.

Table 5

Lifetime economic impact of PM2.5‑attributable full‑scale IQ loss among children, Pittsburgh MSA, 2019 birth cohort.

COUNTYAVERAGE ECONOMIC LOSSES (US$)LOWER LIMIT ECONOMIC LOSSES (US$)UPPER LIMIT ECONOMIC LOSSES (US$)
Allegheny1,485,541,6611,328,838,9541,642,244,368
Armstrong202,155,256180,830,862223,479,650
Beaver189,073,370169,1289,22209017819
Butler167,118,473149,489,942184,747,004
Fayette339,478,376303,668,421375,288,331
Lawrence88,341,37679,022,66597,660,087
Washington125,738,659112,475,087139,002,231
Westmoreland65,185,71858,309,58772,061,848
Pittsburgh MSA2,662,632,8882,381,764,4402,943,501,336

[i] Note: The monetary valuation of one IQ point was obtained from Grosse and Zhou [49], who estimated the present value of lifetime earnings in the United States at US$ 10,600–13,100 per IQ point. In our analysis, US$ 10,600 and US$ 13,100 were used to calculate the lower and upper limits, respectively, and the Average Economic Loss was calculated as their mean. All economic estimates are based on PM2.5‑attributable FSIQ points lost.

Table 6

Recommendations to improve air quality, prevent pollution‑related disease, and save lives.

Community‑Level Recommendations:

  • Convert all municipal vehicle fleets—cars, trucks, buses—to hybrid and fully electric vehicles.

  • Place solar panels on the roofs of municipal buildings.

  • Preferentially purchase electricity produced by renewable energy.

  • Block construction of gas pipelines, compressor stations, and other components of the natural gas network.

  • Prohibit gas hook‑ups in new construction.

  • Revise building codes to increase energy efficiency.

County‑Level Recommendations:

  • Strictly enforce National Ambient Air Quality Standards for all criteria air pollutants and all hazardous air pollutants.

  • Strictly enforce emission standards from all stationary and mobile sources.

  • Add more air monitoring stations and increase the density of the ambient air monitoring network. There is particular need to prioritize placement of air monitoring stations in economically disadvantaged and socially vulnerable communities.

  • Publish an annually updated, open‑source, web‑based air pollution emissions inventory in an easily accessible, interactive dashboard‑style format.

  • Create an open‑access, web‑based dashboard that annually tracks and publicizes information on pollution‑related disease and death in each county, city, and town.

Federal‑level recommendations

  • Tighten federal air quality standards for PM2.5 pollution to better protect health. The occurrence of disease, premature death, and cognitive impairment at PM2.5 pollution levels below current federal standards is clear evidence that these standards are not adequately protective of health. Current federal air pollution standards fail especially to protect children’s health. A critical next step will be to lower the National Ambient Air Quality Standard for PM2.5 pollution to at least 5 μg/M3, the level recommended by the World Health Organization.

  • Reduce pollutant emissions by accelerating progress away from fossil fuels toward net zero carbon through a rapid, wide‑scale, government‑supported transition from away all fossil fuels—coal, gas, and oil—to clean, renewable energy. Two powerful tools for accelerating this transition are phase‑outs of all governmental subsidies and tax breaks for the fossil fuel industry and increased incentives for wind and solar power.

  • Expend and strengthen the national electric power grid to meet rising national energy needs and to accommodate the increasing adoption of wind and solar energy.

  • Resist the temptation to increase reliance on nuclear power.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5334/aogh.5145 | Journal eISSN: 2214-9996
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Language: English
Submitted on: Dec 22, 2025
Accepted on: Jan 24, 2026
Published on: Jan 28, 2026
Published by: Ubiquity Press
In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services
Publication frequency: 1 issue per year
Keywords:
PM2.5 air pollution,
Pittsburgh,
low birth weight,
cardiovascular disease,
pulmonary disease,
stroke,
IQ loss,
social disadvantage

© 2026 Ella M. Whitman, Luke Bryan, Sancia Sehdev, Philip J. Landrigan, published by Ubiquity Press
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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