The average person living in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan is exposed to particulate pollution levels that are 51.3% higher than in 2000, according to a new study. In India, between 2020 and 2021, PM 2.5 levels increased from 56.2 µg/m3 to 58.7 µg/m3, which is 10 times more than the WHO guideline.
Air pollution is reducing the life span of people living in South Asia by 5.1 years, according to a new report. The region, which is home to the most polluted countries of Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan, accounts for more than half of the total life years lost globally due to high pollution.
In India, on average, poor air quality takes 5.3 years off the life of a person, the report added. In contrast, cardiovascular diseases decrease the average Indian’s life expectancy by around 4.5 years, while child and maternal malnutrition reduce life expectancy by 1.8 years.
The report, ‘Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) Annual Update 2023’, was published on Tuesday (August 29) by the University of Chicago’s Energy Policy Institute. AQLI measures the impact of particulate pollution on life expectancy and the latest report analysed particulate matter data from 2021 to determine its impact on life expectancy. Here is a detailed look at the report’s findings and how harmful pollutants like particulate matter (PM) 2.5 affect humans.
South Asia and air pollution
Air pollution is a major threat to South Asians, especially those living in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan. Its impact on life expectancy in each of the previously mentioned countries is far greater than other prominent health threats. “Tobacco use, for instance, reduces life expectancy in these countries by as much as 2.8 years; unsafe water and sanitation by as much as 1 year; and alcohol use by half a year,” said the report.
As of now, the average person living in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan is exposed to particulate pollution levels that are 51.3% higher than at the turn of the century.
“Had pollution levels in 2000 remained constant over time, the residents in these countries would be on track to lose 3.3 years of life expectancy — not the 5.2 years that they stand to lose in 2021,” the report added.
Bangladesh remains the most polluted country in the world. Although it witnessed a drop of 2.1% in particulate pollution in 2021 compared to 2020 levels, pollution in the country was about 14 to 15 times the WHO guideline for the past decade. The South Asian nation stands to lose 6.8 years of life on average per person. According to the WHO, annual average concentrations of PM 2.5 should not exceed 5 µg/m3.
In India, the second most polluted nation, all 1.3 billion people live in areas where the annual average particulate pollution level surpasses the WHO guideline. Moreover, 67.4% of the population live in areas that exceed the country’s own national air quality standard of 40 µg/m3, the report said.
Over the years, air quality levels have been plummeting across India. The report said from 1998 to 2021, average annual particulate pollution increased by 67.7%, further reducing average life expectancy by 2.3 years. Between 2020 and 2021, PM2.5 level in India increased from 56.2 µg/m3 to 58.7 µg/m3, which is 10 times more than the WHO guideline. The analysis also said from 2013 to 2021, 59.1% of the world’s increase in pollution has come from India.
The most polluted region of the country is “the Northern Plains, where more than a half billion people live”. Notably, Delhi’s annual average PM2.5 level in 2021 was found to be 126.5 µg/m3 and the life expectancy of an average person living in the city has shortened by 11.9 years.
A 2022 study, published in the journal Lancet, found that air pollution caused more than 16.7 lakh premature deaths in India in 2019. Out of the total deaths, 9.8 lakh were caused by PM2.5 pollution, and another 6.1 lakh by household air pollution. “In India and Pakistan, the number of vehicles on the road has increased about four-fold since the early 2000s. The number of vehicles roughly tripled in Bangladesh from 2010 to 2020,” the analysis said.Not only this, electricity production using fossil fuels tripled between 1998 and 2017 in Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan combined. Although high energy use has contributed to better living standards and economic output in these countries, the consequent increase in particulate pollution has had grave repercussions.
Adverse effects of particulate pollution
One of the most harmful atmospheric pollutants is PM 2.5. Sized at just 2.5 micrometres, which is around 3% of the diameter of a human hair, it can easily enter the circulatory system of humans through the nose and throat. PM 2.5 particles can cause chronic diseases such as asthma, heart attack, bronchitis and other respiratory problems.
Source: Indian Express, 31/08/23
