Not only the environment suffers from the emissions from vehicles and factories, but our health is also seriously affected. This is according to a study by the University of Chicago, which was published on Tuesday. On average, it costs each person a reduced life expectancy of 2.3 years, which translates to 17.8 billion years of life lost globally.
If countries adopted the World Health Organization (WHO) threshold for exposure to fine particles, life expectancy worldwide would increase by 2.3 years. Pollution from traffic, industry and fires in particular remains the greatest external health hazard. This has a similar impact on longevity as smoking and is even three times worse than alcohol or unsafe water, according to the study.
The consequences are particularly striking in South Asia, where air pollution is heaviest. In Bangladesh, residents would gain 6.8 years in life expectancy if exposure to particulate matter is reduced.
China, on the other hand, has made “remarkable progress in its fight against air pollution” since 2014, according to researcher Christa Hasenkopf. Average air pollution in the country fell by 42.3 percent between 2013 and 2021, but remains six times above the threshold. If this progress continues, the Chinese population would gain an average of 2.2 years in life expectancy.
Unfairly distributed
But in general, the regions with the worst values are also the places that receive the least help to combat air pollution. “There is a deep discrepancy between the places where the air is most polluted and the places where collectively and globally the most resources are devoted to solving this problem,” says Hasenkopf.
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