A study conducted in one of the world’s cleanest countries could help governments consider future ways to control air pollution.
A wealth of data from London’s infamous 1952 smog onwards shows that breathing high levels of air pollution is harmful to your health. This influences his 20th-century thinking of air quality goals. But a new study looks at the health hazards of air pollution from a different angle.
Census records of over 7 million Canadians from 1981 to 2016 were combined with air pollution data to determine whether small amounts of particulate pollution are still harmful.
Despite relatively clean air, a study found that nearly 8,000 Canadians die prematurely each year from outdoor air pollution. In particular, even those living in the cleanest areas were experiencing health effects.
Air pollution hazards were found to be about half of the latest World Health Organization guidelines and just a quarter of the UK’s proposed 2040 target.
The Canadian study is one of three studies funded by the US Institute of Health Effects. The other two, in the United States he surveyed over 60 million and in Europe over 27 million. They came to similar conclusions. There is no lower limit that can be used to define safe air quality. This means governments should not limit their ambition to set targets for the worst air people should breathe.
Professor Michael Brauer of the University of British Columbia, who led the Canadian study, said:
“Given that we have not specified a ‘safe’ level of air pollution, rather than just setting fixed concentration standards that are reviewed every 5 to 10 years, we should rethink our approach and focus on continuous year-on-year reductions.” need to focus. The impact on health is too great,” he said.
Last month, a UK review warned that air pollution contributes to dementia, and a US review highlighted how asthma can start from exposure to air pollution from traffic.UK & EUROPE Countries are working to reduce average particulate pollution and total pollution they produce, but growing evidence highlights the need for action to improve air pollution everywhere, especially among young people and vulnerable populations. I am emphasizing