Air Quality Alerts Issued in California Due to Wildfires

Posted on September 24, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Officials are advising those in the Bay Area and the San Joaquin Valley to limit their time outside as wildfire smoke and ash fills the air.

Air quality remains a concern in California thanks to severe active wildfires and health experts are warning people to limit their time outside.

Wildfires are also threatening California’s historic sequoia trees. Officials evacuated communities near Sequoia National Park as the Windy and KNP Complex fires got closer.

On Wednesday, officials showed reporters how Sequoia National Park’s famous Giant Forest has been protected from the KNP Complex fire by years of using carefully set and controlled fires to burn away vegetation that can serve as wildfire fuel.

The bases of some of the most famous giant sequoias were also wrapped in fire-resistant materials. Giant Forest has 2,000 sequoias and includes the General Sherman Tree, the largest tree in the world by volume.

Historic drought tied to climate change is making wildfires harder to fight. It has killed millions of trees in California alone. Scientists say climate change has made the West much warmer and drier in the past 30 years and will continue to make weather more extreme and wildfires more frequent and destructive.

Statewide, more than 9,000 firefighters remained assigned to 10 large, active wildfires, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

California fires have burned 3,671 square miles this year, destroying more than 3,200 homes, commercial properties and other structures.

Air Quality Alerts Issued in California Due to Wildfires (VIDEO)
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WHO slashes guideline limits on air pollution from fossil fuels

Posted on September 23, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Level for the most damaging tiny particles is halved, reflecting new evidence of deadly harm

The World Health Organization has cut its recommended limits for air pollution and urged nations to tackle dirty air and save millions of lives.

In the first update for 16 years, the guideline limit for the most damaging pollution – tiny particles from burning fossil fuels – has been halved. The new limit for nitrogen dioxide (NO2), mainly produced by diesel engines, is now 75% lower.

The stringent new limits reflect the large body of evidence produced in recent years of the deadly harm caused to people by much lower levels of pollution than previously thought. Air pollution kills at least 7 million people a year, the WHO said, while a recent study estimated 8.7 million early deaths a year from coal, oil and gas burning – 20% of all deaths.

Pollution cuts an average of two years from the lives of the global population, and up to six years in highly polluted nations such as India, making it a bigger killer than smoking, car crashes or HIV/Aids.

Scientists stressed that even the new limits should not be considered safe, as there appears to be no level at which pollutants stop causing damage. They said reducing pollution would boost health even in nations with relatively clean air. A 2019 review concluded that air pollution may be damaging every organ in the body, causing heart and lung disease, diabetes and dementia and reducing intelligence.

Air pollution is the biggest environmental threat to human health and is a public health emergency, according to the WHO, costing trillions of dollars a year. More than 90% of the global population already breathes levels of pollution above the WHO’s 2005 guideline for tiny particles. Cutting air pollution brings huge and cost-effective health benefits and reduces the carbon emissions driving the climate crisis.

“Air pollution is a threat to health in all countries,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director general. The guidelines are not legally binding but can be used by countries to plan their action. “I urge all countries to put them to use to reduce suffering and save lives,” he said. The WHO said dirty air often affected the most vulnerable people and that clean air should be a “fundamental human right”.

The campaigner Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, whose daughter Ella became the first person to have air pollution cited as an official cause of death, said: “Air pollution stunts children’s health and future. There is no safe level but at least following the WHO’s new guidelines will set us on the path to achieving clean air for all.”

Lwando Maki, a doctor at the Public Health Association of South Africa, said: “I saw the impacts of toxic air pollution every single day in Johannesburg. Updates to air quality standards were long overdue.”

Renewable energy is often cheaper than fossil fuels even without taking the economic burden of air pollution into account, said Avinash Chanchal, of Greenpeace India. “We have all the tools we need to solve the air pollution crisis. At this point, addressing air pollution is a question of political will, not technology.”

Every one of the 100 most populous cities in the world exceeded the new WHO guideline for tiny particle pollution in 2020, according to Greenpeace analysis. This includes Tokyo, Shanghai, New York, Lagos, London and Delhi, with the latter exceeding the limit by 17 times.

Dorota Jarosińska, the WHO’s technical lead for the new guidelines, said: “These are very ambitious public health recommendations and achieving the guideline levels would be the ultimate goal, but all the steps towards it are critical.

“The interim targets [the WHO has also set] are milestones on this continuous march towards getting air quality that is most protective to health. Every step you make towards improving air quality brings health benefits.”

The new guidelines are the product of five years of systematic review by dozens of scientists, considering more than 500 studies and including several rounds of peer review. The guidelines represent the level at which there is already strong evidence for harm to health.

“We feel confident that these are really robust,” said Jarosińska. “But these levels absolutely do not mean we are confident that there is no harm [at even lower levels].”

One of the most harmful pollutants is tiny particulate matter, smaller than 2.5 microns in size (PM2.5), which can pass through the lungs into the bloodstream and affect other organs. The WHO has reduced the guideline for annual average exposure to PM2.5 from 10 to 5 micrograms per cubic metre (µg/m3). The WHO classified these particles as cancer-causing in 2013. For NO2, the WHO has cut the annual average limit from 40 to 10 µg/m3.

Almost 80% of the millions of deaths related to PM2.5 could be avoided if today’s pollution levels were reduced to those in the new guidelines, according to the WHO, compared with a 48% reduction under the 2005 limit. The WHO also said: “Air pollution is most likely a contributing factor to the health burden caused by Covid-19.”

In the UK, the environmental lawyers ClientEarth said legal pollution limits for PM2.5 and NO2 were now four times the WHO guidelines, meaning people are exposed to levels far above that known to be acceptable. NO2 levels are already above UK limits in 75% of urban areas.

“These new guidelines reflect the best available science and the conclusion is irrefutable: air pollution, even at lower levels, seriously endangers people’s health,” said Andrea Lee, of ClientEarth. “This must serve as a wake-up call for the UK government – ministers should be scrambling to act.”

A spokesperson for the UK’s environment ministry said: “We will set ambitious targets on air quality through our environment bill. We will consider the updated WHO guidelines on PM2.5 to inform the development of air quality targets, but we must not underestimate the challenges these would bring, particularly in large cities and for people’s daily lives.” A consultation on the proposed targets is expected in early 2022.

via WHO slashes guideline limits on air pollution from fossil fuels | Air pollution | The Guardian

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Air pollution still too high in most EU Member States

Posted on September 22, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Concentrations of key air pollutants remain too high in most European countries. According to the European Environment Agency’s official data, published today, most European Union (EU) Member States exceed at least one or more of the EU’s legal limits for pollutants in ambient air in 2019.

The EEA briefing ‘Europe’s air quality status 2021’ presents the latest official data for 2019, as well as provisional data for 2020, on concentrations of key air pollutants measured at over 4,500 monitoring stations across 40 European countries.

The EEA data show that air pollution is still a major health risk for Europeans. In central and eastern Europe, the burning of solid fuels for domestic heating and industry results in high concentrations of both fine and coarse particulate matter, as well as benzo[a]pyrene, a known carcinogen. Exposure to fine particulate matter causes cardiovascular disease, lung cancer and other diseases that lead to premature deaths. In bigger cities, high concentrations of nitrogen dioxide persist due to road traffic, with nitrogen dioxide linked to asthma and breathing problems. And, especially in southern Europe, pollutants emitted from human activities react in heat and sunlight to produce high concentrations of ground-level ozone, linked to cardiovascular disease and irritation of the eyes, nose and throat.

Key results:

Particulate matter (PM10): 21 countries (of which 16 were EU Member States[1]) registered concentrations above the EU daily limit value in 2019, while 31 countries registered concentrations above the stricter World Health Organization (WHO) guideline from 2005.

Fine particulate matter (PM2.5): 7 countries (of which 4 were EU Member States) registered concentrations above the EU annual limit value in 2019, while 28 countries registered concentrations above the 2005 WHO guideline.

Ground-level ozone (O3): 24 countries (of which 19 were EU Member States) registered concentrations above the EU annual limit value in 2019, while all countries registered concentrations above the 2005 WHO guideline.

Nitrogen dioxide (NO2): 22 countries (of which 18 were EU Member States) registered concentrations above the EU annual limit value in 2019, which is the same as the 2005 WHO guideline.

The EEA’s data show that air quality in Europe improved in 2020, as lockdown measures to control the spread of COVID-19 led to a fall in transport emissions, combined with favorable weather patterns. An EEA analysis of the impacts of COVID-19 lockdowns on air quality in 2020 is presented in a separate briefing and more extensively in the Air Quality in Europe – 2020 report.

Background

The WHO has established air quality guidelines to protect human health from the impacts of air pollutants. These guidelines are from 2005 and based on the best scientific evidence available at that time. WHO is expected to publish new air quality guidelines on 22 September 2021.

The EU´s Ambient Air Quality Directives set maximum values for a total of 13 air pollutants. Although these values take into account relevant WHO guidelines, they also reflect the technical and economic feasibility of their attainment across EU Member States. For most air pollutants, the EU air quality standards are less strict than the WHO 2005 air quality guidelines.

Other key resources:

European Air Quality Index shows near real-time air quality data for Europe, allowing users to check local air quality where they live or travel.

European city air quality viewer compares average levels of fine particulate matter in 323 European cities, over the past two calendar years.

National air pollutant emissions data viewer gives access to the latest air pollutant emission data, reported by EU Member States under the National Emission reduction Commitments (NEC) Directive.

Air quality data center gives access to all relevant EEA data on air quality in Europe

Air pollution: how it affects our health shows how exposure to fine particulate matter contributes to disease and premature death in Europe and how this burden is distributed across European society

[1] The EEA’s assessment of the state of air quality in 2019 and 2020 includes data from the United Kingdom, in agreement with the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement, which entered into force on 1 February 2020.

Air pollution still too high in most EU Member States — European Environment Agency
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One-third of countries lack air quality standards, says report

Posted on September 20, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

A new report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has revealed that one-third of countries have no legally mandated outdoor air quality standards.

It also noted that where such laws exist, standards vary widely and are often misaligned with World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines; adding that at least 31 per cent of countries that do have the power to introduce such ambient air quality standards are yet to adopt them.

The report, which is the first-ever global assessment of air quality laws and regulations, was launched ahead of the International Day of Clean Air for blue skies. It examines national air quality legislation in 194 states and the European Union.

Exploring various dimensions of legal and institutional frameworks, the report assesses their effectiveness in ensuring the attainment of air quality standards and concludes with key elements for a robust model of air quality governance to be considered in national legislation and makes the case for considering a global treaty on ambient air quality standards.

Air pollution has been identified by WHO as the single largest environmental health risk with 92 per cent of the world’s population living in places where air pollution levels exceed, safe limit and disproportionately affecting women, children, and the elderly in low-income countries.

According to the UNEP’s study, in at least 34per cent of countries, ambient air quality is not yet legally protected. Even where legally adopted, it insisted that standards are difficult to compare as 49 per cent of the world’s countries define air pollution exclusively as an outdoor threat.

It further stated that institutional responsibility for attaining standards is weak globally with only 33per cent of countries imposing obligations to meet legally mandated standards. “Monitoring is critical to knowing if standards are being attained but are not legally required in at least 37 per cent of countries. Finally, although air pollution knows no borders, only 31 per cent of countries have legal mechanisms to address cross-border air pollution.

The Executive Director, UNEP, Inger Andersen said there will be no jab to prevent seven million premature deaths caused by air pollution each year, a number he said is poised to grow by more than 50 per cent by 2050.

The co-author of the report, Prof. Eloise Scotford explained that the study demonstrates that “even the most admirable national air quality objectives must be supported with strong institutional frameworks, implementation capacity and well-coordinated laws, if they are to be effective.”

The report also charged more countries to adopt robust air quality laws, which includes setting ambitious standards in law for both indoor and ambient air pollution, improving legal mechanisms for monitoring air quality.

One-third of countries lack air quality standards, says report | The Guardian Nigeria News – Nigeria and World News — Property — The Guardian Nigeria News – Nigeria and World News
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Indonesian court rules president negligent over Jakarta air pollution

Posted on September 17, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Thirty-two people filed a lawsuit against President Joko Widodo, as well as the country’s health, environment and internal affairs ministers, and three other local governors and claimed the defendants were negligent by failing to curb air pollution in the country’s capital city, Jakarta.

Indonesia’s president has been ordered to clean up the nation’s congested capital after a court ruled the leader failed to fulfil citizens’ rights to clean air.

Thirty-two people filed a lawsuit against President Joko Widodo, as well as the country’s health, environment and internal affairs ministers, and three other local governors of Jakarta, Banten and West Java.

In the case which began in July 2019, they claimed the defendants were negligent by failing to curb air pollution in the country’s capital city, Jakarta.

On Thursday, three judges at the Central Jakarta District Court voted in favour of the residents and said the seven officials have to take serious action including tightening air quality regulations, enforcing rules around emissions from cars, businesses and waste burning, and educating the public on the rules and health risks.

The court did not rule the actions of the defendants violated human rights.

Taxi drivers, parents and environmental campaigners were among the group which took the president and ministers to court.

Veronica joined the legal action after her daughter suffered from skin problems which she believes were caused by pollution.

She told Sky News the ruling was “a relief” as many of her children’s classmates had also developed health problems.

“It’s a good start for air quality improvement, especially in Jakarta. I wish that the government will take immediate action to make the judges’ decisions into reality,” she said.

“I really wish that the government will do persistent monitoring on air pollution, be more transparent to Jakarta residents and push stronger sanctions against those who contribute to pollution.”

More than 10 million people live in Jakarta which regularly has PM2.5 levels higher than those recommended by the World Health Organisation.

Campaigners say much of the air pollution is caused by traffic fumes and emissions from coal power stations.

According to figures from Greenpeace Southeast Asia, the city’s bad air is responsible for the loss of an estimated 9,700 lives since 1 January, 2021 and has cost the local economy approximately $2.5 billion US dollars this year to date.

Leonard Simanjuntak, Greenpeace Indonesia country director and one of the 32 plaintiffs, said while they were celebrating the work wasn’t over.

“We’re delighted, this is a people’s victory for us that 32 citizens can sue the president, three ministers and three governors. This is a problem of millions of people that we are bringing to the court and we are very happy that there is now a chance for an improvement of living quality starting with air quality in Jakarta,” he said.

“This is really just the beginning, we still need to work together… to ensure that this court ruling materialises in the near future.”

It is not clear if the defendants will be able to appeal.

Ayu Eza Tiara, a lawyer representing the residents group, said the ruling was sensible and appropriate, adding: “We hope the defendants can wisely accept their defeat and choose to focus on improving air conditions instead of doing useless things such as filing an appeal.”

The court ruling comes as environmental groups urged Indonesia to extend a moratorium on new palm oil permits and improve its implementation, warning of a risk of losing millions of acres of forest to plantation expansion.

Indonesian court rules president negligent over Jakarta air pollution | World News | Sky News

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Study links childhood exposure to air pollution and self-harm in later life

Posted on September 16, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

A study of over 1.4 million Danes has revealed a link between higher levels of exposure to two common pollutants during childhood and an increased risk of self-harm in later life.

The collaboration between academics at The University of Manchester and Aarhus University in Denmark is published today (16/09/2021) in a special issue on suicide prevention of the journal Preventive Medicine.

The team investigated if long–term residential exposure to particulate matter (PM2.5) with an aerodynamic diameter of less than 2.5µm and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) during childhood was linked to later self-harm risk.

The interlinked Danish national registers provided a uniquely powerful data source for researchers; the study including over 1.4 million people born in Denmark between 1979 and 2006.

The team were able to track each person’s place of residence from their birth to their tenth birthday, as well as the length of time that they resided at each address.

The information was linked to measurements of the outdoor levels of PM2.5 and NO2 in the local neighbourhood over time.

Ambient outdoor air pollution consists of a complex mixture of gasses, particulate matters and inorganic and organic compounds. PM2.5 and NO2 are among the pollutants with the strongest adverse impact on physical health.

The gasses are emitted from a range of sources including car exhausts, power generation, shipping and domestic heating.

Lead author Dr Pearl Mok, Research Fellow at The University of Manchester said: “This is the first population-based longitudinal study to reveal that long-term exposure to two common pollutants: PM2.5 and NO2, during childhood, is associated with subsequently elevated self-harm risks.

“Our findings add to the growing evidence-base indicating that higher levels of air pollution exposure are linked with poor mental health outcomes.

“Although air pollution is widespread,  it is a modifiable risk factor and we therefore hope  our study’s findings will inform policymakers who are devising strategies to combat this problem.”

The team controlled for some of the factors known to influence self-harm risk including history of mental illness in cohort members’ parents and socioeconomic position, information that is available from the Danish registers.

And they showed that exposure to 19 μg/m3 or above of PM2.5 on average per day from birth to 10th birthday was associated with a 48% higher risk of subsequent self-harm compared with a mean daily exposure of less than 13 μg/m3.

And for every 5 μg/m3 increase in exposure to PM2.5 on average per day during childhood, they found the risk of subsequent self-harm rose by 42%.

“This is the first population-based longitudinal study to reveal that long-term exposure to two common pollutants: PM2.5 and NO2, during childhood, is associated with subsequently elevated self-harm risks. Our findings add to the growing evidence-base indicating that higher levels of air pollution exposure are linked with poor mental health outcomes Dr Pearl Mok „

Similarly, exposure to 25 μg/m3 or above of NO2 on average per day from birth to 10th birthday was associated with a 50% higher risk of subsequent self-harm compared with a mean daily exposure of less than 10 μg/m3.

And for every 10 μg/m3 increase in exposure to NO2 on average per day during childhood, the risk of subsequent self-harm rose by 21%.

Professor Roger Webb from The University of Manchester, a co-author on the study said: “A growing body of evidence in recent years has indicated that exposure to air pollution is also associated with adverse mental health outcomes.

“Children living in neighbourhoods with higher levels of air pollution have been reported to have increased risks of developing a range of psychiatric disorders including schizophrenia, depression, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

“Though the mechanisms linking air pollution and development and exacerbation of mental disorders or its associated distress have not yet been explained, it has been well-established that it can cause inflammation and oxidative stress.

“This study is the first to provide valuable evidence on the association between childhood exposure to air pollution and subsequently elevated self-harm risk.

“However, further research is needed to investigate to what degree our findings can be generalised to other countries, especially lower- and middle-income countries where levels of ambient air pollution are far higher than they are in Denmark.”

Study was funded by The European Research Council.

“Exposure to ambient air pollution during childhood and subsequent risk of self-harm: a national cohort study” is published in Preventive Medicine.

Study links childhood exposure to air pollution and self-harm in later life
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Research: Air pollution from forest fires is linked to over 33.000 deaths worldwide each year

Posted on September 15, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

The deaths associated with smoke and air pollution from forest fires are estimated to be almost as high as the number of heat-related deaths worldwide each year, according to a new international scientific research with Greek contribution. At least 33.500 deaths a year worldwide can be attributed to air pollution from forest fires.

The study estimates that even short-term exposure of humans to tiny particles (PM2,5 or up to 2,5 millionths of a meter) that enter the lungs and bloodstream increases the risk of dying from lung disease, cardiovascular and other causes. . Particles from forest fires are usually smaller and more toxic than those from urban fires.

Researchers led by Yuming Guo of the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine at Australia’s Melbourne University alone analyzed data from 65,5 million deaths in 749 million deaths in the medical journal The Lancet Planetary Health. countries. Correlating these data with data on the levels of PM43 particle concentrations due to fires, they concluded that 2.5% of deaths from any cause internationally, 0,62% of cardiovascular deaths and 0,55% of deaths associated with lung disease, can be associated each year with the direct effects of microparticles from fires. By comparison, heat-related deaths are estimated to account for 0,64% of all deaths worldwide.

Guatemala was found to have the highest rate of annual fire-related deaths from fires (3,04%), followed by Thailand (2,32%), Paraguay (2,09%), Mexico (1,72 , 1,61%) and Peru (0,33%). In Greece the corresponding percentage was estimated at 0,26%, just like in Canada, while in the USA at 0,09% and in Britain only XNUMX%.

“Smoke pollution from fires can spread up to 1.000 km away and the risk of fires is projected to increase as climate change worsens,” Guo said. He estimated that children and the elderly are the most vulnerable to the effects of fires on health.

From the Greek side, professors Klea Katsougianni and Evangelia Samoli of the Laboratory of Hygiene, Epidemiology and Medical Statistics of the Medical School of the University of Athens participated in the study.

Research: Air pollution from forest fires is linked to over 33.000 deaths worldwide each year | ATHENS 9,84
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Air pollution exposure during pregnancy has long-term impact on children’s health, development

Posted on September 14, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Particulate matter (PM) is a major component of air pollution that is increasingly associated with long-term consequences for the health and development of children. In a study recently published in Nature’s Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine, Natalie Johnson, Ph.D., associate professor at the Texas A&M University School of Public Health, and her co-authors synthesized the findings of previous studies, reviews and meta-analyses on the adverse health effects of the two smallest types of particulate matter (PM): Fine (particles with an aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 μm) and ultrafine (particles with an aerodynamic diameter less than 1 μm). Both types of PM can be inhaled deep into the lung. Ultrafine particles have recently been shown to cross into circulation and even cross the placental barrier, directly reaching the developing fetus.

A range of adverse health outcomes associated with fine PM exposure was reported in the studies and reviews of human data, including low birth weight, asthma and other chronic respiratory conditions, cognitive and behavioral issues, obesity and diabetes. Research on the effects of prenatal ultrafine PM exposure has not been as extensive, but a growing body of evidence shows similarities with the effects associated with fine PM exposure. Studies and reviews of data obtained from animal models supported the findings from the human studies.

In addition, some of the studies examined the possible ways that PM could cause the observed adverse health effects. The two broad mechanisms documented in the literature are direct (ultrafine PM crosses the placenta and enters fetal circulation) and indirect (PM causes interactions that result in oxidative stress, inflammation, epigenetic changes and endocrine disruption).

The researchers also reviewed possible treatments and policies that might minimize or even undo the harms associated with prenatal PM exposure. Green spaces such as parks and other areas with trees and foliage provide a range of benefits for the communities that have them, including lower exposure to PM. Nutritional interventions, including maternal dietary changes and antioxidant and vitamin supplementation, can provide protective effects that are also associated with better health outcomes for children with prenatal air pollution exposure.

“It is important to review the body of literature on such an important and common environmental exposure. This helps in policy development and intervention strategies. The timing of exposure, like during pregnancy, is becoming recognized as an important window of susceptibility. So, protecting the most vulnerable can have a huge public health impact,” Johnson said.

Air pollution exposure during pregnancy has long-term impact on children’s health, development
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