According to a report published by the European Environment Agency, air pollution continues to cause over 430,000 premature deaths in Europe per year.
This is very bad news that comes as the Paris Climate Change Conference opens (COP21). the 2015 report of the European Environment Agency (EEA) on air quality in Europe takes stock on Monday of the exposure of the European population to atmospheric pollutants.
432,000 premature deaths in Europe in 2012
This document which provides an overview of air quality is based on the monitoring station data official throughout Europe.
The report shows that most city dwellers remain exposed to levels of air pollution deemed harmful by the World Health Organization (WHO).
The main pollutants affecting human health are particulate matter (PM), ground-level ozone (O3) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2).
Estimates of the impact on health of chronic exposure to fine particles (PM2.5) show that this pollutant was responsible for 432,000 premature deaths in Europe in 2012. “A figure similar to the estimates of previous years”, specify the authors of the study.
Exposures to nitrogen dioxide and ozone are believed to be responsible for approximately 75,000 and 17,000 premature deaths, respectively.
Suspended particles
They can cause or aggravate cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases, heart attacks and arrhythmias. They can also cause cancer. In 2013, 87% of the urban population of the European Union was exposed to concentrations of PM2.5 exceeding the value set by the WHO to protect human health.
With less stringent European air quality standards, only 9% of the population was exposed to PM2.5 levels exceeding the target value set by the EU.
Compliance by all EU countries with WHO air quality standards would reduce average PM2.5 concentrations and reduce the number of premature deaths by 144,000 per year, compared to the current situation. PM2.5 refers to particles with a maximum diameter of 2.5 μm. Small particles can penetrate deep into the lungs.
Considerable economic impact
“Despite the constant improvements observed over the last decades, air pollution continues to affect the general health of Europeans, reducing their quality of life and their life expectancy,” laments EEA Executive Director Hans Bruyninckx. “Air pollution also has a huge economic impact. It is at the origin of an increase in medical costs and a reduction in productivity linked to the loss of working days in all sectors ”, he adds.
Finally, in addition to their effects on health, air pollutants also have significant adverse effects on plant life and ecosystems. “These problems, including eutrophication caused by ammonia (NH3) and nitrogen oxides (NOX), as well as damage to plants caused by ozone, remain widespread in Europe,” he concludes.
.
