Air pollution and health risks: What YSU researchers' studies reveal about Kapan

We spoke with Liana Margaryan about the key issues addressed in the article she co-authored, titled "Evaluation of Air Pollution Risks to Human Health from Mining Areas in Kapan Town of Armenia." The article was published in 2025 in the Scopus-indexed journal "Environmental Protection and Ecology."

– Ms. Margaryan, to what extent does mining affect air quality in Kapan, and what years did the data used in the study cover?

– As part of the study, we examined monthly variations in the concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide in Kapan's ambient air. Our analyses were based on monitoring data for 2022-2023 collected by the Hydrometeorology and Monitoring Center of the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Armenia, as well as health statistics for Armenia. We analyzed and compared these data.

In this study, we considered not only the impact of mining on the city's air quality, but also other potential human-induced sources of pollution, such as motor vehicle traffic.

– In which parts of Kapan was air pollution highest?

– Air quality monitoring showed that concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide in Kapan's ambient air did not exceed the respective maximum permissible daily concentrations. However, in some months, nitrogen dioxide levels were up to 1.3 times higher than background levels, while sulfur dioxide levels were relatively high in the southeastern part of the city, in areas adjacent to the Artsvanik tailings storage facility.

Notably, the background concentration is the level of a given pollutant that is characteristic of a region under natural conditions, excluding the effects of direct pollution sources. It is generally lower than the established permissible concentration.

– What are the main health risks associated with air pollution for Kapan residents?

– Kapan is exposed to a fairly complex combination of human-induced impacts. The city is surrounded by abandoned and operating mines, tailings and waste dumps, as well as Artsvanik, the region's largest tailings storage facility. Naturally, these factors affect both the environment and human health.

More generally, the effects of environmental pollution on human health are a highly interesting and relatively new and developing area of scientific research. It is extremely difficult to determine precisely which human-induced factors cause a particular disease, but health statistics can be used to identify correlations. For example, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), high concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide in ambient air can irritate the respiratory system, causing symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath and throat irritation. In addition, long-term exposure to heavy metals can pose serious health risks, including contributing to the development of certain cancers. In people with cardiovascular disease or other chronic health conditions, exposure to air polluted with sulfur dioxide may worsen symptoms or increase susceptibility to various complications. The effects of ambient air quality on human health and the environment depend not only on high concentrations of particular pollutants, but also on the duration of exposure. The longer air pollution persists, the greater its potential impact on health. 

In the case of Kapan, it is also important to study the heavy-metal content of airborne dust, which we plan to examine in our future research.

– Are there data on the prevalence of respiratory, cardiovascular or other diseases in Kapan that may be associated with air pollution?

– As part of our study, we examined Armenian health statistics for Syunik Province. According to these data, Syunik recorded the highest mortality rate from respiratory diseases after Yerevan. In 2021, 344 people died from respiratory diseases, compared with 396 in 2020 and 200 in 2019, excluding deaths caused by COVID-19.

Notably, 97 cases of malignant neoplasms of the trachea, bronchi or lungs were recorded in 2020, rising to 114 in 2021. The statistical data indicate an upward trend in cancer cases in the region over the years.