Index-based evaluation of the relationship between bioclimatic comfort levels and air quality levels of particles and sulfur dioxide in Şanlıurfa Province (Turkey)
Citation
Tuba Rastgeldi Dogan1 · Can Bülent Karakuş2 · İbrahim Etem Aksoy1 Received: 7 June 2022 / Accepted: 28 September 2022 © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V. 2022Abstract
The aim of this study is (i) to reveal the bioclimatic comfort zones depending on the Discomfort Index (DI) in Şanlıurfa
province with the help of geographic information system (GIS), and (ii) to determine the relationship between bioclimatic
comfort levels and Air Quality Index (AQI) levels in the Şanlıurfa city. For all analyzes made in the study, annual and monthly
average values of meteorological (temperature, relative humidity, wind speed) and air pollutant parameters (for PM10 and
SO2) between the years 2006–2021 were used. In this context, meteorological parameters, air pollutant parameters, temporal
changes of DI and AQI (for PM10 and SO2) parameters were determined by Mann-Kendal (MK) trend analysis and the relationships between all these parameters were determined by Pearson correlation analysis. The most suitable (21≤DI<24)
months in terms of bioclimatic comfort in Şanlıurfa province were June and September. In the Şanlıurfa city, annual and
monthly average AQIPM10 values were generally in the “good” and “moderate” class, while AQISO2 values were in the “good”
class in all years and all months. While the annual average temperature values showed a statistically signifcant increase, the
annual average wind speed and PM10 and AQIPM10 values showed a statistically signifcant decrease. There was a negative
“weak” correlation (r= −0.028) between DI and AQIPM10, and a positive “moderate” correlation between DI and AQISO2
(r=0.449; p<0.05). In addition, correlations between DI, PM10, and SO2 were signifcant at the p<0.05 level.