SOME PROBLEMS OF AIR POLLUTION IN ARMENIA WITHIN

POST-SOVIET PERIOD 

LUIZA GHARIBYAN, Ph.D YEREVAN STATE MEDICAL

UNIVERSITY (ARMENIA)

• Associate professor (dotsent) Yerevan State Medical University, Department of «Hygiene and Ecology», Armenia

The transition to the new social-economic condition

creates deep changes in living standards in Armenia.

Due to decreased industrial production industrial pollution

decreased, but the radical worsening in economic and social spheres and the resulting growth

poverty.

The changes in living conditions influence public

health.

In this investigation I tried to illuminate the role of air pollution

on some indicators of health.

As a source of the information we have used the reports of Ministry of Health for 1988-1999, Department

of Statistics, Dispensary.

The investigations of the health effects of air pollution was based

on the data of the Monitoring Center.

Materials were analyzed by dispersion, regression and

correlation methods.

INFANT MORTALITY IN ARMENIA PER 1000 (1988-1999 YEARS)

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Armenia

Urban

Rural

Yerevan

Still-births in Armenia (1987-1999)

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

1987 1991 1995 1999

stillborn

The sickness rate and the death-rate of breathing pathologies have also diminished between of 1987 –1993

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

1988 1992 1996

bronchitis

Air pollution in Armenia (1987-1999)

0

50

100

150

200

250

1987 1991 1995 1999

Air pollution

The decrease of summary pollutions index “P” (by M. Pinigin) from 10.7 to 4.8 is correlated with the stillbirth-rate decrease as (r=0.85); correspondingly the breathing pathologies death-rate

decrease can be described as the average correlation (r=0.44).

Starting in 1993 mainly because of the wide use of bad quality petrol

unallowable concentration of formaldehyde and benzene were

found in the air of Yerevan.

Because of changes in the type of heating system in Armenia the level

of indoor air pollution has increased.

Bronchial asthma in Yerevan per 100.000 (primary morbidity of adults)

02468

101214161820

1988 1992 1996

asthma

At the same time breathing pathologies, contributing to a rise in death rate, lung’s cancer, still

births, infant mortality and bronchial asthma have increased.

Our studies have shown a correlation (r=0.45) between the level of indoor and outdoor air

pollution and health of pregnant women and infants because of their more susceptibility to the effect of

PM and combustion gases.

The incidence of stillborn per 1000 in Charentsavan (Armenia)

0

5

10

15

20

25

1990 1994 1998

stillborn

The number of newborn with low weight per %

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

1990 1994 1998

newborns

0

0,5

1

1,5

2

2,5

3

1990 1994 1998

newborns

The number of newborn with inborn defects per % in Charentsavan (Armenia)

From these results we can conclude that the establishment of quantity dependence between the level of environment pollution and sick rate may be very useful in risk assessment of unfavorable factors.

That is why it is important for us to acquire contemporary knowledge in

assessing of risk of unfavorable factors to establish the role of each

dangerous factor of environment in forming indicator pathologies.