Health consequences of air pollution on populations

Posted on November 30, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

What are the health consequences of air pollution on populations?

Exposure to high levels of air pollution can cause a variety of adverse health outcomes. It increases the risk of respiratory infections, heart disease and lung cancer.  Both short and long term exposure to air pollutants have been associated with health impacts.  More severe impacts affect people who are already ill.  Children, the elderly and poor people are more susceptible.  The most health-harmful pollutants – closely associated with excessive premature mortality –  are fine PM2.5 particles that penetrate deep into lung passageways. 

What can citizens do to protect themselves?

Fighting air pollution is everybody’s responsibility. We all need to do more, a lot more. Swiftly and proactively to reduce air pollution. Concerted and coordinated efforts with active involvement of all the sectors is imperative. This includes the Government (national, state and local governments), cities, community at large and individuals.

To national governments: reduce emissions and set national standards that meet WHO air quality guidelines. Invest in research and education around clean air and pollution – they are an essential tool.

To cities and local communities: Public policies across sectors must factor in public health from the beginning, followed up with sufficient data and tools to assess them.

To individuals: Continue to stand up for your right to healthy and sustainable environments. Hold your governments accountable.  

All of us – in government, business, and individual – we are all accountable. Think and rethink, about the way you live and consume and make sustainable choices for yourself, your children and your children’s children.

What is particulate matter, or PM?

Particulate matter is the term for particles found in the air, including dust, dirt, soot, smoke, and liquid droplets. Large concentrations of particulate matter are typically emitted by sources such as diesel vehicles and coal-fired power plants. Particles less than 10 micrometers in diameter (PM10) pose a health concern because they can be inhaled into and accumulate in the respiratory system. Particles less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter (PM2.5) are referred to as “fine” particles and pose the greatest health risks. Because of their small size (approximately 1/30th the average width of a human hair), fine particles can lodge deeply into the lungs.

What are some of the major sources or causes of ambient air pollution?

Major sources of ambient air pollution include inefficient modes of transport (polluting fuels and vehicles), inefficient combustion of household fuels for cooking, lighting and heating, coal-fired power plants, agriculture, and waste burning.

What can countries do to reduce air pollution?

Interventions to reduce air pollution include developing sustainable transport in cities; implementing solid waste management; providing access to clean household fuels and cookstoves; developing market for renewables energies and energy efficiency,  and implementing industrial emissions reductions.

How is WHO working with countries to reduce air pollution?  

WHO’s main function is to identify and monitor those air pollutants with the greatest impact on people’s health. This helps the WHO Member States to focus their actions on the most effective way to prevent, or reduce health risks. WHO’s task is to review and analyze the accumulated scientific evidence, and use expert advice to draw conclusions on how much different air pollutants affect health as well as identify effective measures to reduce the air pollution burden.  

WHO Member States adopted in 2015 a resolution to “address the adverse health effects of air pollution”. The following year, Member States agreed on a road map for “an enhanced global response to the adverse health effects of air pollution”. WHO is working on four pillars:

Expanding the knowledge base

Monitoring and reporting

Global leadership and coordination

Institutional capacity strengthening

Health consequences of air pollution on populations
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Lahore is again world’s most polluted city today

Posted on November 29, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

The capital of Punjab Lahore has been declared the most polluted city globally again. 

Lahore had an air quality ranking of 398, well over the hazardous level of 300, according to IQAir, the technology company that operates the AirVisual monitoring platform.

According to details, the worst quality of air was recorded in Gulberg as AQI reached 728, followed by Kot Lakhpat 652, Model Town 572, Thokar Niaz Baig 523 and DHA Phase 8 at 449.

Residents choking in acrid smog pleaded with officials to take action. Air pollution has worsened in Pakistan in recent years, as a mixture of low-grade diesel fumes, smoke from seasonal crop burn off, and colder winter temperatures coalesce into stagnant clouds of smog.

Lahore, a bustling megacity of more than 11 million people in Punjab province near the border with India, consistently ranks among the worst cities in the world for air pollution.

In recent years residents have built their own air purifiers and taken out lawsuits against government officials in desperate bids to clean the air — but authorities have been slow to act, blaming the smog on India or claiming the figures are exaggerated.

Lahore is again world’s most polluted city today – SUCH TV
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Pakistan orders three-day weekends in Lahore amid ‘deadly’ air pollution

Posted on November 26, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Private offices and schools will close on Mondays in Lahore in a bid to tackle toxic levels of smog in the city.

Private offices and schools will stay closed on Mondays in Pakistan’s second-largest city in a bid to tackle toxic levels of smog. 

The measure will be in place until 15 January, after Lahore was this week declared the most polluted city in the world by an air quality monitor – with residents suffering from shortness of breath, stinging eyes and nausea from thick pollution.

Last week, an air quality index ranked Lahore at 348 for air pollution, much higher than the threshold at which pollution is considered hazardous. It has since been overtaken by Delhi, which was scored at 422.

Health effect

Diesel fumes, seasonal crop burning and colder winter temperatures have contributed to worsening air quality in Lahore.

Residents have been feeling that their city is harder and harder to live in, filing petitions against the government, according to The Guardian.

One resident, Abubaker Umer, felt compelled to send his elderly parents to another town because of their high sensitivity to air pollution – and his worsening skin allergy and throat irritation prompted him to stop going for walks. 

“When you open the window or step outside you see no sky. Smog is everywhere,” he said. 

He added: “People don’t even wear masks and they don’t know how deadly the weather is. They lack awareness but this is the responsibility of the government to share awareness and find solutions.”

Pulmonary doctor Aamir Iqbal confirmed Umer’s health fears, saying the smog is “making it very hard for people to breathe” and highlighting the damage it does to the throat, eyes and lungs.

While Pakistanis on average lose approximately two years of their lives to air pollution, Lahore residents lose more than five years of their lives because of it according to a report by the University of Chicago. 

UK found to have ‘consistently’ breached air pollution limits

Fawad Chaudhry, the information minister in Pakistan, has blamed previous local leaders for Lahore’s serious pollution problem. 

“We see Lahore engulfed by fog every winter due to the past rulers of the city, who had cut trees for erecting a jungle of concrete there which badly affected the green cover of Lahore and its surroundings,” he said last week. 

Earlier this year, the UK was found guilty of “systematically and persistently” breaching air pollution limits by the European Court of Justice – which Britain’s ministers want to scrap after Brexit.

The damning judgement came just months after a coroner found that Britain’s illegal levels of air pollution contributed to the death of Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah in south east London in 2013.

EU judges later found that the UK failed to follow through on a legal obligation to put in place adequate plans to tackle the growing problem of nitrogen dioxide pollution.

Nitrogen dioxide – or NO2 – is emitted by gas-heating boilers and cars; across Britain, the level of pollution exceeded the legal annual average limit of 40 micrograms per cubic metre of air in 33 out of 43 air quality assessment zones in 2019.

Pakistan orders three-day weekends in Lahore amid ‘deadly’ air pollution
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Pakistan orders Monday closure of schools and offices in Lahore to cut smog

Posted on November 25, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Officials hope three-day weekend will help reduce toxic pollution levels in country’s second largest city

Pakistan has ordered private offices and schools to remain closed on Mondays in Lahore in the hope that a three-day weekend will help reduce toxic levels of smog in the country’s second-largest city.

The directive, issued by Punjab relief commissioner Babar Hayat Tarar, aimed to act “as a preventive and speedy remedy” during the winter smog season and will last until 15 January.

Lahore was temporarily declared the most polluted city in the world by an air quality monitor earlier on Wednesday, as residents complain of shortness of breath, stinging eyes and nausea from thick, acrid pollution.

Last week, the air quality index in the city of about 12 million people was ranked at 348, much above the hazardous level of 300, according to IQAir, the Swiss technology company that operates the AirVisual monitoring platform. Since then, Lahore has been overtaken by Delhi, India, which ranked at 422. The number is a calculation based on the level of several pollutants in the air.

Pakistan has witnessed the worst air pollution in recent years from Karachi to Lahore, as a mixture of low-grade diesel fumes, smoke from seasonal crop burn off, and colder winter temperatures coalesce into stagnant clouds of smog.

As air pollution got worse and the city felt unliveable, the desperate residents filed petitions in the courts in Lahore against the government to take action against the smog, which is a mix of smoke and fog.

Abubaker Umer, a communication specialist and a resident in Lahore, said he stopped going for morning walks and sent his elderly parents to another town as they were very sensitive to air pollution. Umer says his skin allergy and throat irritation has gotten worse over a few weeks since the city has been engulfed in the smog.

“When you open the window or step outside you see no sky. Smog is everywhere,” he said. “We are inhaling smog and toxic air pollution has become part of our lives and bodies. The government has to do more than closing educational institutes as Lahore has become an unlivable city.”

He said that he is able to work from home but over a million people do not have this privilege. He added: “People don’t even wear masks and they don’t know how deadly the weather is. They lack awareness but this is the responsibility of the government to share awareness and find solutions.”

Dr Aamir Iqbal, a private doctor who practises pulmonary medicine in Lahore has seen the symptoms of his patients getting worse. “The smog is making it very hard for the people to breathe and having issues in the throat, irritation in eyes and the weather is very dangerous for people who have lung issues and some other diseases. I have instructed some of my patients not to go out.”

On average, Pakistanis are estimated to lose two years of their life due to air pollution. But Lahore suffers the worst, with the average resident losing 5.3 years of their lives, claims the report on air quality life index , produced by the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago.

The information minister, Fawad Chaudhry, has blamed previous authorities for smog in Lahore. “We see Lahore engulfed by fog every winter due to the past rulers of the city, who had cut trees for erecting a jungle of concrete there which badly affected the green cover of Lahore and its surroundings,” he said on Saturday.

Rimmel Mohydin, a south Asia analyst at Amnesty International, said the smog crisis was a human rights issue, given that it impedes the right to health. “People should not be endangered by the air they breathe. If the expertise is available, if the consequences are dire, if the evidence of the damage is mounting, then the government must not waste time initiating smog protection protocol.”

Malik Amin Aslam, climate change adviser to the prime minister, Imran Khan, said the government was working on the recommendations of the smog action committee. “We are doing everything possible,” he said.

Aslam said that without regional efforts between India and Pakistan the issue of the smog cannot be tackled, as the crops are burned off on the other side of the border. “We have put this request for a dialogue between regional countries during Cop26 (climate summit). Hopefully, it will take place.”

However, Rafay Alam, a lawyer and environmental activist said that while there was a need for dialogue with India and regional countries, the smog cannot be blamed on Pakistan’s neighbours.

“There is no overnight solution to the problem. The government has to improve fuel quality and shift to renewable energy, and provide pollution control devices for the industries..”

Pakistan orders Monday closure of schools and offices in Lahore to cut smog | Pakistan | The Guardian
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11 out of Africa’s 15 most polluted cities are all in South Africa – report

Posted on November 24, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Eleven out of the 15 most polluted African cities – excluding those in Nigeria – are in SA, according to a report by IQAir, a Swiss air quality technology and consultancy company.

Pretoria, Vereeniging, Springs and Sasolburg  are some of the major towns on the list.

However, there was an improvement in the quality of air in SA during 2020 due to a lack of cars on the road because of Covid-19 restrictions and because of load shedding.

While the quality of breathable air in South Africa improved in 2020, thanks to reduced vehicle emissions due to Covid-19 restrictions and load shedding, 11 out of the 15 most polluted African cities are situated in this country. 

The list of the 15 most polluted African cities was released by IQAir, a Swiss air quality technology and consultancy company, on Monday, but does not include data for Nigeria, the continent’s largest economy.

According to the 2020 World Air Quality Report, the southern and western coastal locations in South Africa have the lowest concentrations of pollution while “interior cities to the north carry the highest” pollution concentrations.

The Malian capital, Bamako, tops the list of most polluted African cities, with the air quality there considered “unhealthy for sensitive groups”.

Sebokeng in South Africa is second, followed by Accra, the Ghanaian capital, in third place.

The city of Vereeniging is fourth while Kampala in Uganda is fifth, followed by the South African cities of Soshanguve, Sasolburg, Pretoria, Springs, Midstream and Ga-Rankuwa. Secunda and Hartbeespoort, ranked 14th and 15th respectively.

South Africa recently struck a climate financing deal to move away from coal thermal power stations but is already among the biggest polluters in the world.

“In 2020, only 4.9% of South African cities met World Health Organisation (WHO) targets for annual pollution exposure. South Africa’s heavy reliance on coal-based energy and other fossil fuels, comprising 91% of the country’s energy mix, is a major source of ambient particle pollution,” notes the report.

Although SA features prominently on the list of 15 most polluted African cities, about “90% of cities in South Africa experienced improved air quality” in 2020. This has resulted in South African cities also dominating the index of 15 least-polluted cities in Africa.

Cape Town, Gqeberha and Mokopane are ranked as the three least-polluted cities in Africa followed by Ziguinchor in Senegal, Mahikeng, Potchefstroom, Phalaborwa and Mombasa in Kenya. Liphalale, Luanda in Angola, East London, Thabazimbi and Addis Ababa also make the list of the 15 least-polluted African cities.

For South Africa, the improvement in air quality by its cities in 2020 “is attributable to measures taken to reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-2, namely reduced vehicular emissions as a result of shuttered businesses and facilities during lockdown periods and measures to protect the electricity power system from a total collapse” through load shedding.

Although there was reduced electricity demand during periods of lockdown for most of 2020, power utility Eskom “still had limited capacity and implemented load-shedding frequently” and this was deemed as “further contributing to the decline” in emissions for South African cities.

With populations across Africa expected to double in the next 30 years, balancing rapid growth, industrialisation, and urbanisation with clean air is becoming imperative.

Further worsening this are outbreaks of fire across much of the continent, resulting in NASA satellite data exposing Africa as the “fire continent” with an estimated 70% of global fires occurring in the region and further worsening pollution and health hazards.

The report by IQAir estimates that “air pollution claims up to 780 000 African lives” each year. 

11 out of Africa’s 15 most polluted cities are all in South Africa – report | Fin24
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Particulates from solid fuel burning pose threat to health, warns EPA

Posted on November 23, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Air pollution linked to about 1,300 premature deaths in State each year

Fine particulate matter arising from burning solid fuels remains the biggest contributor to poor air quality in Ireland, with “worrying localised issues” in cities, towns and villages, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Monitored levels of particulate matter were above World Health Organisation (WHO) air-quality guideline values – either annual or daily – at 38 of 67 monitoring stations last year, mainly as a result of pollution from the burning of solid fuel for home heating, according to the 2020 Air Quality in Ireland report from the agency.

While air quality was generally good, the main threat to public health is from tiny particles known as PM2.5 and PM10, the report concludes.

It reiterates that air pollution is responsible for an estimated 1,300 premature deaths in the State per year.

In a similar pattern to carbon emissions, air pollution from traffic fell at all monitoring stations last year, particularly at urban roadside locations, as a consequence of reduced traffic volumes due to Covid-19 restrictions, the report issued on Tuesday confirms.

Open fires

Ireland compares favourably with many of its European neighbours, the report finds. However, Ireland was above WHO air-quality guidelines for particulate matter (PM), sulphur dioxide (SO2) and ozone at 52 monitoring sites, mostly due to the burning of solid fuel. The WHO standards are more demanding than EU limits though air pollution is the single biggest environmental health risk in Europe.

Burning coal, peat and wood in stoves, especially in open fires, is an inefficient process – a lot of heat is lost and not all the fuel is fully burned. Unburnt particles leave the fireplace or stove by the chimney or go directly into the room they are heating. This causes both indoor and outdoor PM air pollution.

It “greatly impacts respiratory and cardiovascular health. This is particularly problematic in or near villages, towns and cities because of the cumulative effects of multiple sources of the pollutant and the large numbers of people exposed,” the EPA points out.

“The choices we make in how we heat our homes and how we travel directly impact the quality of the air we breathe,” the report adds.

Ireland was compliant with EU legal limits in 2020, largely assisted by the significant reduction in traffic due to Covid-19 restrictions. Air pollution from traffic – nitrogen dioxide (NO2) – fell at all monitoring stations, but most notably at urban-traffic locations where levels fell by up to 50 per cent.

Urban areas

Levels of particulate matter, however, are of growing concern and are particularly high during the winter months when solid fuel use increases, the EPA warns. Any movement towards cleaner home-heating choices and less smoky solid fuel choices will result in a subsequent improvement on air quality, it adds.

Dr Micheál Lehane, director of the EPA’s office of radiation protection and environmental monitoring, said there were “dramatic and immediate decreases in air pollution in our urban areas due to reduced traffic volumes associated with Covid-19”.

He added: “As we now start to travel more, we must not lose sight of the obvious link between our journey choices and levels of traffic-derived air pollutants. Pollutants from traffic have a negative impact on people’s health and our actions, as individuals, do impact the air we breathe.”

With exceedances of WHO air-quality guideline values at many locations, EPA programme manager Pat Byrne said “it is imperative that we each, as individuals, make cleaner air choices when deciding how to heat our homes, as this can improve our local air quality and have associated health benefits”.

The Government has announced new regulations on the use of solid fuels will come into force in 2022 – all coal products sold will be required to be low-smoke and all wood sold for immediate use must have a moisture content of 25 per cent or less.

“This is a positive step for air quality, which will need to be supported by clear communications to ensure public engagement and the best outcome for air quality and health,” the report says.

Outdoor air pollution causes an estimated 4.2 million deaths per year worldwide due to stroke, heart disease, lung cancer and chronic respiratory diseases. In children and adults, both short- and long-term exposure can lead to reduced lung function, respiratory infections and aggravated asthma.

Particulates from solid fuel burning pose threat to health, warns EPA
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More kids in hospital, schools shut as smog smothers Delhi

Posted on November 19, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

More children are in hospital with breathing problems as pollution levels remain dangerously high in New Delhi, doctors warned on Wednesday, and the government shut five power stations and extended school closures to try to contain the crisis.

The city of 20 million was the world’s most polluted capital for the third straight year in 2020, according to IQAir, a Swiss group, and air quality has hit hazardous levels there and in other parts of northern India this month https://www.reuters.com/world/india/why-air-quality-has-deteriorated-sharply-indias-capital-2021-11-08.

On some cloudless mornings the sun struggles to break through the smog, and landmarks just a few hundred metres away are barely visible.

Hospitals are seeing a sharp increase in the number of children https://www.reuters.com/world/india/respiratory-complaints-among-children-spike-delhi-pollution-worsens-2021-11-17 with respiratory complaints, raising concern among parents and doctors about their health in the short and long term.

Numbers have jumped threefold in the past seven to 10 days, according to Arvind Bountra, head of paediatrics at Max Super Speciality Hospital.

“This is directly linked to high levels of pollution that the city of Delhi and NCR are witnessing…” Bountra said, referring to the National Capital Region that includes Delhi’s satellite cities.

Extended exposure to pollutants, including lead, could lead to more severe complications.

“There is some study that shows that the cognitive functions of the brain (among kids) are also affected by these very small particles,” Bountra added.

On most days, the Air Quality Index (AQI) has stayed above 451 on a scale of 500, indicating “very poor” and “severe” conditions that affect even healthy people and seriously impact those with existing diseases, according to the federal pollution control board’s guidance.

The AQI measures the concentration of poisonous particulate matter PM2.5 in a cubic metre of air. The government prescribes a “safe” PM2.5 reading at 60 micrograms per cubic meter of air over a period of 24 hours.

TRUCKSSTOPPED, CONSTRUCTIONHALTED

India’s Supreme Court has rapped the government over its failure to mitigate pollution for residents who endure toxic air almost every winter when temperatures and wind speed drop and pollutants get trapped in thick smog.

The country’s top court also asked the Commission for Air Quality Management, a panel under the federal Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, to come up with measures to cut pollution.

After the Court’s intervention, the Commission on Wednesday shut down five coal-fired power plants around New Delhi, banned trucks carrying non-essential goods and stopped construction in the capital and its satellite cities.

The panel also indefinitely extended the closure of schools, after the Delhi government ordered them to shut for a week last Saturday.

At least half of government employees should work from home until Nov. 21, it added.

November usually brings worsening pollution, with a surge in the concentration of tiny airborne particles, partly because farmers burn crop waste ahead of a new sowing season.

India’s efforts to reduce the burning of crop waste, a major source of air pollution during winter, have had little benefit, despite spending billions of rupees over the past four years.

More kids in hospital, schools shut as smog smothers Delhi | Euronews
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Respiratory complaints among children spike as Delhi pollution worsens

Posted on November 18, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Worsening air quality in India’s capital New Delhi has led to a spike in chronic respiratory conditions such as asthma among children, and prolonged exposure to deadly pollutants could impair their cognitive development, doctors said.

Pollution has been hitting dangerous levels across New Delhi and other parts of northern India this month. read more

On most days, the Air Quality Index (AQI) has stayed above 451 on a scale of 500, indicating “very poor” and “severe” conditions that affect even healthy people and seriously impact those with existing diseases, according to the federal pollution control board’s guidance.

The AQI measures the concentration of poisonous particulate matter PM2.5 in a cubic metre of air. The government prescribes a “safe” PM2.5 reading at 60 micrograms per cubic meter of air over a period of 24 hours.

A sharp increase in respiratory cases among children in the Indian capital has raised concerns among doctors and parents.

The number of children with respiratory ailments has gone up threefold in the past seven to 10 days, said Arvind Bountra, head of paediatrics at Max Super Speciality Hospital.

“This is directly linked to high levels of pollution that the city of Delhi and NCR are witnessing…” Bountra said, referring to the National Capital Region that includes Delhi’s satellite cities.

There’s been a significant increase in the number of cases with respiratory and bronchial issues, said Praveen Khilnani, director of Madhukar Rainbow Children’s Hospital.

While most children get treated by the outpatient department, some need oxygen and intensive care, Khilnani added.

“My son couldn’t sleep due to breathing difficulties,” said Anamika Gangwal, mother of a three-and-a-half-year-old son.

Extended exposure to pollutants, including lead, could lead to even more severe complications.

“There is some study that shows that the cognitive functions of the brain (among kids) are also affected by these very small particles,” said Bountra.

Respiratory complaints among children spike as Delhi pollution worsens | Reuters
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