Spatially and Temporally Differentiated NO x and VOCs Emission Abatement Could Effectively Gain O 3 -Related Health Benefits.

The increasing level of O 3 pollution in China significantly exacerbates the long-term O 3 health damage, and an optimized health-oriented strategy for NO x and VOCs emission abatement is needed. Here, we developed an integrated evaluation and optimization system for the O 3 control strategy by merging a response surface model for the O 3 -related mortality and an optimization module. Applying this system to the Yangtze River Delta (YRD), we evaluated driving factors for mortality changes from 2013 to 2017, quantified spatial and temporal O 3 -related mortality responses to precursor emission abatement, and optimized a health-oriented control strategy. Results indicate that insufficient NO x emission abatement combined with deficient VOCs control from 2013 to 2017 aggravated O 3 -related mortality, particularly during spring and autumn. Northern YRD should promote VOCs control due to higher VOC-limited characteristics, whereas fastening NO x emission abatement is more favorable in southern YRD. Moreover, promotion of NO x mitigation in late spring and summer and facilitating VOCs control in spring and autumn could further reduce O 3 -related mortality by nearly 10% compared to the control strategy without seasonal differences. These findings highlight that a spatially and temporally differentiated NO x and VOCs emission control strategy could gain more O 3 -related health benefits, offering valuable insights to regions with severe ozone pollution all over the world.