Study of indoor air pollution from household fuels in Gaborone, Botswana

This study monitored indoor air concentrations of CO and particulate matter of size range 0.3–5.0 μm in 30 households representing different income groups from July to September 2007. Selected members of the households were interviewed to assess health effects resulting from the fuel used. Fuels that produced more particles, especially those having the smallest diameters (0.3–0.5 μm), were found in the low income group household. People from these households reported more health effects when compared with those in the medium and high groups. The fuels that emitted most particles produced more than 10 times more particulate matter than the least emitting fuels. The particle number distributions for the different fuels studied were investigated and the corresponding surface area and volume distributions derived. Both the surface area and volume distributions were found to be bimodal with peaks around 0.5 μm and 2.0 μm.

Research highlights
► Enhancement of particle concentrations by cooking activities.
► Low income households and concentrations of particles and carbon monoxide.
► Indicators of possible health effects for people cooking in low income households.