Air quality statistics expose global inequalityDeveloping countries bear the heaviest burden of adverse health impacts of air pollution, as growing populations move to cities with weak or non-existent air quality regulations. But air quality statistics show that adverse health impacts are felt in relatively clean European and North American cities too. No global air pollution statistics exist as many areas have no monitoring systems in place. Available data, however, indicates that many large Asian, Latin American and African cities suffer from disproportionately high levels of pollution. The highest concentrations of particulate matter - associated with lung cancer, pulmonary diseases and respiratory infections - can be found in Cairo (Egypt), Delhi (India), Tianjin (China) and Jakarta (Indonesia), World Bank data for 2004 shows. Fine particle emissions, mostly from fuel combustion in vehicles or power plants, have a disproportionate impact in middle and low-income countries. During the early stages of industrialisation, poor access to clean technologies and low awareness of the health impacts of pollutants usually produce soaring emissions. Motor vehicles are generally concentrated in a few large cities in developing countries and are often in poor mechanical condition. Developing countries must also deal with pollutants from indoor smoke, as over half of the world’s population still cooks with wood, dung, coal or agricultural waste and is thus at risk of lung damage, according to the World Health Organization .
Air quality still challenging developed worldTechnological development and regulation fostering cleaner cars, industries and power generation have helped produce cleaner air in developed countries. But air quality concerns have not disappeared, and many Western cities still experience unhealthy pollution levels, causing premature deaths.As industrial pollution declines, households are increasingly contributing to poor air quality, alongside road transport. In Europe, emissions of all major air pollutants have been declining since 1990, according to a 2009 EU-wide emissions inventory report by the European Environment Agency (EEA). It found that the biggest cuts concern sulphur oxides (SOx), which cause acidification, but levels of the three main pollutants behind ground-level ozone – nitrogen oxides (NOx), non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOCs) and carbon monoxide (CO) – and fine particulate matter have also steadily declined. Nevertheless, the EEA warned that up to half of Europe’s urban population may have been exposed to particulate matter concentrations in excess of EU limits while as many as 61% of urban Europeans may have been exposed to ozone levels above EU targets. Particulate matter and ground-level ozone are generally considered to negatively affect health the most, causing respiratory illnesses like asthma and reducing the life expectancy of city dwellers. In the US, emissions of most air pollutants have fallen since 1990, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which sets national air quality standards. Despite this, the US economy has continued to grow. Air quality problems remain, though. In 2008, around 127 million Americans lived in counties where one or more ambient air quality standards were exceeded, according to the EPA, while ozone and particle pollution continue to undermine air quality in many parts of the country. To read more about related subjects, please follow these links:
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