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NEW DELHI z India has once again topped an annual list of cities with the worstair qualitylinkinthe world, according to a new report, while Chinese cities have continuedto show improvements from the previous year.
Twenty-one of the world’s 30 citieslinkwiththe worst air pollutionlinkarein India, according to data compiled in IQAir AirVisual’s 2019 World AirQuality Report,linkwithsix in the top ten.
Ghaziabad, a satellite city of the capital New Delhi in northern UttarPradesh state, is ranked as the world’s most polluted city, with an average PM2.5 concentration measurement of 110.2 in 2019. That’s far more than doublethe level which the US Environmental Protection Agency regards as healthylink–it’s nine times more.
And in November, a public health emergency was declaredlinkafterthe air quality index (AQI) level exceeded 800 in certain parts of NewDelhi, which was more than three times the “hazardous” level.
Researchers from IQAir — a global air quality information and tech company– gleaned data for the report from on the ground monitoring stations thatmeasure levels of fine particulate matter, known as PM 2.5, per cubic meter.
The microscopic particles, which are smaller than 2.5 micrometers indiameter, are considered particularly harmful as they are small enough toenter deep into the lungs and cardiovascular system.
PM 2.5 includes pollutants such as sulfate, nitrates and black carbon.Exposure to such particles has been linked to lung and heart disorders andcan impair cognitive and immune functions.
According to the World Health Organization, air pollution causes an estimated7 millionlinkprematuredeaths a year globally, mainly as a result of increased mortality fromcardiovascular diseases, cancers and respiratory infections.
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It is estimated that more than 80% living in urban areas which monitor airpollution are exposed to air quality levels that exceed WHO guidelinelimits, with low- and middle-income countries most at risk.
“Air pollution constitutes the most pressing environmental health riskfacing our global population,” the AirVisual report said.
South Asia continues to be of particular concern, with 27 of the 30 mostpolluted cities in India, Pakistan or Bangladesh. Pakistan’s Gujranwala,Faisalabad and Raiwind, are among the ten most polluted cities, and themajor population centers of New Delhi, Lahore, and Dhaka rank 5th, 12th and21st respectively, according to AirVisual data.
Regionally, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East are worstaffected overall, with only six of 355 cities included meeting WHO annualtargets, the report said.
However, South Asia has seen improvements from the previous year. Nationalair pollution in India decreased by 20% from 2018 to 2019, with 98% ofcities experiencing of varying levels of improvement. The report points toeconomic slowdown, favorable weather conditions, and efforts towardscleaning the air as reasons behind the decrease.
For example, the most polluted city, Ghaziabad, had an average AQI of 110.2this year. But in 2018 it was 135.2 and 144.6. in 2017.
The report also points India’s launch of the country’s first National CleanAir Programme (NCAP) which aims to reduce PM 2.5 and the bigger particulatePM 10 air pollution in 102 cities by 20-30% by 2024 compared to 2017levels. – CNN
