Toronto Urban Spatial Variability Study

The Toronto Urban Spatial Variability Study is part of the Study of the Health Effects of the Urban Mix of Air Pollutants (SHEMP), which is funded by Environment Canada and Health Canada through the Toxic Substances Research Initiative (TSRI). Launched in 1999, the three-year SHEMP program collects daily measurements of key smog pollutants and the chemical composition of fine particulate matter, including organic pollutants, at fixed long-term study sites at the University of Toronto, Ontario and in Vancouver, British Columbia. The information from the Toronto Urban Spatial Variability Study will be used to determine how representative fixed monitoring sites like these are in characterizing the population's exposure to air pollutants.

Two mobile monitoring laboratories will be set up at four (4) elementary schools in the most densely populated regions of Toronto. The schools involved in the study are Dundas Street Public School, Winchester Street Public School, Ryerson Public School and Palmerton Public School. The large number of people who live and work in the area means that a considerable portion of the population is at risk of health effects from exposure to air pollution.

Information on how exposure to these pollutants varies from one location to the next will also be collected by 15 adults wearing personal air-sampling monitors as they go about their daily routines. The monitors, which are carried in backpacks and weigh approximately 3.5 kilograms, will measure smog pollutants and carbon monoxide levels, and will be supplemented by detailed logs of the wearer's location and activities. These devices are currently being worn by cardiac patients equipped with heart monitors, to help determine the links between exposure to air pollutants and human health.

Air pollution contributes to the premature deaths of over 5,000 Canadians every year. For others, it increases the risks of hospitalization and breathing difficulties. Better knowledge of smog pollutants and air pollution dissemination is crucial to better understanding of the relationship between health and smog.