Factors influencing volatile hydrocarbon pollution in urban areas

Abstract

Volatile hydrocarbons in urban environments pose significant risks to human and ecosystem health, resulting from wash-off into receiving waters during storm events. Effective mitigation strategies require understanding of the significance of contributing factors to pollutant generation and their processes. This study employed Bayesian Network modelling to investigate how anthropogenic and environmental factors influence volatile hydrocarbons build-up. The volatile hydrocarbons investigated were, benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene and styrene. Most volatile hydrocarbons showed statistically significant relationships with environmental factors rather than with anthropogenic factors. Additionally, the research study found that anthropogenic factors could largely contribute to releasing volatile hydrocarbon into the urban environment, while environmental factors are likely to determine their prevalence. The research outcomes will contribute to improving stormwater quality modelling approaches and strengthen the assessment of risk associated with stormwater pollutants in order to enhance stormwater reuse.