A Comparison Study of Urban and Rural Residents' Indoor Environmental Consciousness during Decoration in Northern China

Abstract

China still remains a predominantly rural society with 58% of the population currently living in rural areas. Indoor air pollution problems produced during indoor decoration (ID) have been chosen as examples to illustrate new types of pollution problems due to house building and construction in the cadre of New Rural Construction in China. Indoor environmental consciousness is chosen to evaluate the indoor health risk to northern rural Chinese. The awareness of the impact of indoor pollution has been assessed by a comparison between urban and rural residents regarding aspects like attitude, knowledge, and abatement behavior of indoor environmental pollution due to ID. The consumers of decoration materials in Beijing city and Qing County are investigated by questionnaires handed out at random and special interviews in some typical cases. Based on the analysis, the main health risks during ID have been explored, some factors influencing rural people's awareness of indoor pollution are discussed, and some policy suggestions are brought forward.

Keywords

Comparison study Indoor environmental consciousness Decoration Rural China Health risk

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