The Southwestern USA has been identified as one of the most persistent dust-producing regions of North America, where exposure to inhalable particulate matter (PM₁₀) originating from desertic landscape during dust events/dust exposures (DEs) can reach hazardous levels. El Paso, Texas’s ambient air has reached hazardous levels of PM₁₀ from dust with near zero visibility due to these natural events originating in the surrounding Chihuahuan Desert. The aim of this study was to investigate whether dust exposures in El Paso (generally acute, short-term exposures from nearby source areas) are associated with significant increases in hospitalizations on the day of the exposure and up to seven days afterwards. Using a Poisson regression, it was found that the relative risks of hospitalizations due to a variety of conditions were associated with dust exposures (through increases of 100 μg/m³ maximum hourly PM₁₀ and/or increases of 4.5 m/s maximum hourly wind speed) in El Paso County, Texas between 2010 and 2014. Valley fever, coronary atherosclerosis, genitourinary diseases, neurodegenerative diseases, injury and poisoning, circulatory system conditions, respiratory system diseases, births, septicemia, Associated Diseases (the aggregation of hospital admissions for all causes, each associated with at least 5% of hospitalizations), and all ICD-9 admissions were significantly positively associated with dust exposures, indicated from higher to lower significant risk, at different lag periods after exposure. These findings, showing that an association does exist between dust exposures and hospitalizations, have important implications for residents of the world’s dryland cities.

Prolonged drought conditions in New Mexico have led growers to use brackish groundwater for crop irrigation. Desalination of the groundwater with reverse osmosis (RO) is possible, but the concentrated waste requires environmentally safe disposal, such as by irrigating native halophytic plants, Atriplex, which could be cultivated to feed livestock. We hypothesized that ions from the brackish irrigation would increasingly accumulate in the soil away from the roots as the wetting front expanded further from the emitter, while not affecting the aboveground growth of the plants. Atriplex species were irrigated with brackish water at two irrigation levels for three years. Soil samples were collected at the beginning, middle, and end of the study at two depths and three distances from the emitter. Electrical conductivity (EC), soil ion accumulation, and plant growth were recorded. The average EC of the soil increased with brackish water irrigation. As the ions accumulated along the wetting front of the percolating water rather than near roots, a favorable environment for root growth was provided. While sodic levels of ion accumulation were not reached in this study, aboveground growth still declined. This leads to the recommendation that RO-concentrated waste could be used to irrigate Atriplex species for livestock fodder, with further plans to irrigate with fresh water to remove accumulated ions as a potential sustainable waste management process. Additional studies are necessary to develop guidelines for Atriplex tolerance and harvesting.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, vaccination against the virus has been implemented and has progressed among various groups across all ethnicities, genders, and almost all ages in the United States. This study examines the impacts of socioeconomic status and political preference on COVID-19 vaccination in over 443 counties in the southwestern United States. Regression analysis was used to examine the association between a county’s vaccination rate and one’s personal income, employment status, education, race and ethnicity, age, occupation, residential area, and political preference. The results were as follows: First, counties with higher average personal income tend to have a higher vaccination rate (p < 0.001). Second, county-level vaccination is significantly associated with the percentage of Democrat votes (β = 0.242, p < 0.001). Third, race and ethnicity are vaccine-influencing factors. Counties with more Black residents have lower vaccine acceptance (β = −0.419, p < 0.001), while those where more Hispanics or Native Americans reside are more likely to accept vaccines for health protection (β = 0.202, p < 0.001; β = 0.057, p = 0.008, respectively). Lastly, pertaining to the age difference, seniors aged 65 and older show substantial support for vaccination, followed by the median age group (all p < 0.001).

Traffic-related air pollution has been associated with adverse cardiovascular health effects in near-road residents. Transportation parameters are important surrogate variables to determine spatial variation of air pollution and consequential health outcomes. We used land-use regression models to explore associations between cardiovascular (metabolic syndrome [MetS]) health outcomes collected from a sample of low-income participants (N = 4,959) and transportation parameters within a defined impact zone of a participant’s residence. We hypothesize cardiovascular risk factors are associated with spatially distributed transportation parameters and land-use data. MetS risk factors (waist circumference, blood pressure, triglycerides, HDL-cholesterol, and glucose) were obtained from 4,945 participants between 2014 and 2020 across the city of El Paso, Texas. Traffic-related and land-use variables were acquired from the El Paso MPO and the U.S. Census Bureau within two impact zones of 500 m and 1,000 m radius, centered at each participant resident’s home latitude and longitude coordinates using GIS. The increase in street length within 500 m radius was found to associate with increases in BMI, waist circumference, triglycerides, and glucose (p < 0.05). Glucose showed positive relationships with inverse distance to the nearest international ports of entry (p = 0.02). Also, as the total length of the street increases, the likelihood of a high waist (p < 0.01), high triglycerides (p = 0.03), and low HDL-cholesterol (p < 0.01) also increased. Based on a multivariable regression model, a probability surface map was prepared to show the spatial distribution of likelihood for acquiring MetS in El Paso, TX.

Exposure to traffic-related air pollution is not merely linked to respiratory health issues but also poses significant risks to cardiovascular well-being. Individuals from lower-income communities residing in high-pollution zones are particularly vulnerable to adverse cardiorespiratory health impacts. Pollutants such as fine particulate matter (PM_2.5 and PM₁₀), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), and ozone (O₃) are recognized as a leading, yet preventable, contributor to cardiorespiratory diseases. Although research has extensively explored the short-term impact of these pollutants on respiratory health, the immediate effects on cardiovascular outcomes require further study. We explored associations of traffic-related air pollutants with airway inflammation, lung function, and cardiovascular health outcomes (metabolic syndrome [MetS]) collected from a sample of low-income participants (N = 662) from a US–Mexico border county. Airway inflammation was measured using exhaled nitric oxide tests (eNO), while lung function parameters were measured by spirometry. MetS risk factors (waist circumference, blood pressure, triglycerides, HDL, and fasting blood glucose) were also measured. While spirometry measures were negatively associated with air pollutants (p < 0.05), no associations were noted for eNO. We also found positive associations in linear and logistic models between air pollutants and obesity (BMI: p < 0.04; waist: p < 0.03), fasting blood glucose (p < 0.03), and metabolic syndrome (p < 0.04). These findings reaffirm the immediate adverse effects of air pollution on respiratory function and shed light on its broader metabolic consequences. Environmental and neighborhood conditions could potentially influence the associations with obesity. At the same time, the links between fasting glucose and metabolic syndrome might indicate underlying oxidative stress and systemic inflammation.