Associations between the built environment and concentrations of outdoor particulate matter in children's everyday places

Severcan Y. C., Yildirim G., Aydin N., Gaga E. O., Uzmez O. O., Coban A. B., ...More

HABITAT INTERNATIONAL, vol.165, 2025 (SSCI, Scopus) identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 165
  • Publication Date: 2025
  • Doi Number: 10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103563
  • Journal Name: HABITAT INTERNATIONAL
  • Journal Indexes: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, International Bibliography of Social Sciences, Business Source Elite, Business Source Premier, CAB Abstracts, Environment Index, Index Islamicus, PAIS International, Political Science Complete, Public Affairs Index, Social services abstracts, Sociological abstracts, Worldwide Political Science Abstracts
  • Keywords: Built environment, Children's places, Outdoor air pollution, Particulate matter, Urban design
  • Middle East Technical University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

Despite the growing research on the relationship between the built environment (BE), outdoor air quality, and children's respiratory health, our understanding of how to plan and design children's everyday places with better air quality is limited. This study investigates the associations between BE attributes and concentrations of outdoor particulate matter (PM) in children's everyday places. The results are based on PM2.5 and PM10 measurements in 154 highly frequented outdoor places of 1687 nine-to fourteen-year-old children living in Ankara, T & uuml;rkiye, in heating season. To analyze the relationship between variables, Pearson correlation and stepwise regression analysis were used. Findings show that, among the examined BE characteristics of children's places, only neighborhood greenness and proximity to polluting industrial facilities are significantly associated with PM2.5 concentrations. Two additional factors are significantly associated with PM10 concentrations: building density and land use mix. These results suggest that urban planners and designers should place greater emphasis on creating highly dense, mixed-use and green neighborhoods away from polluting industrial areas to promote children's health.