Calculating the number of people in geo-graphical areas from a database of buildings

This working paper describes the use of a national register of buildings and dwellings and a geographical information system (GIS) to calculate the number of dwelling units within a defined geographical area. The methodology makes it possible to generalize survey data to the general population of an area, and to calculate the number of people affected by a given pollution situation. Such calculations also makes it possible to stratify the population with respect to environmental load, and improve sampling strategies.