2023-08-29 12:51:51
August 29, 2023
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is the number one risk to human health, according to a study released Tuesday by the University of Chicago’s Energy Policy Institute (EPIC). Respecting the thresholds set by the WHO would save an average of 2.3 years of life per inhabitant.
17.8 billion years of life might be saved if the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO) concerning fine particle emissions (PM2.5) were respected – 5 micrograms per cubic meter (5 µg/m3 ). 17.8 billion years of life or 2.3 years on average per inhabitant. These figures are advanced in a report by the Energy Policy Institute of the University of Chicago (Epic), published on August 29.
Thus, fine particle pollution remains the greatest risk to human health. The impact on health would be, according to Epic, comparable to that of tobacco but more than three times greater than that of the consumption of alcohol or unsanitary water.
Faced with this pollution, the inequalities are great. “Three quarters of the impact of air pollution on life expectancy worldwide occurs in just six countries, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, China, Nigeria and Indonesia, where people lose one to more than six years of their life because of the air they breathe”, underlines Michael Greenstone, Emeritus Professor of Economics at Milton Friedman and co-founder of EPIC.
Thus, South Asia is home to the four most polluted countries in the world. If nothing is done, in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Nepal, people will continue to lose an average of 5 years of life.
China, major polluter despite progress
With figures six times higher than WHO recommendations, China is responsible for considerable air pollution. However, the report notes that it has managed to reduce it by 42.3% in 10 years, ie a gain of 2.2 years of life per inhabitant.
In Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Burundi and the Republic of Congo are among the ten most polluted countries in the world. Locally, there are stratospheric pollution figures, sometimes 12 times higher than WHO recommendations, causing the inhabitants to lose more than 5 years of life on average, as does HIV or malaria, which are very present in this region of the world.
In Europe, 98.4% of the territory still does not comply with WHO guidelines. In 2022, the EU pledged to lower its standard from 25 µg/m³ to 10 µg/m³ by 2030, which, if met, might save 80.3 million years of life in the world. total.
For better information of governments and populations
The authors of the report regret that the most polluted countries in the world are those which do not have air quality standards. Only 6.8% and 3.67% of governments in Asia and Africa provide their population with air quality data. As for the infrastructures, they are not in these regions either. For example, Africa receives 300,000 dollars a year in donations to fight once morest pollution, while Europe, the United States and Canada receive 34 million dollars, the report points out. Epic advocates for better air quality information to governments and citizens.
To note : In 2019, the WHO estimated that 4.2 million premature deaths worldwide were caused by outdoor air pollution. These deaths are due to “Ischemic heart disease and stroke, 18% chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 23% acute lower respiratory tract infection, and 11% respiratory cancer,” specifies the organization.
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Source : WHO, Air quality life index by EPIC (August 29, 2023)
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Written by : Dorothée Duchemin – Edited by Vincent Roche
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