- “The deterioration of the environment is related to the invasion of Ukraine and the coronavirus”
The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday that the high levels of pollution recorded in cities are endangering the health of practically the entire world population, 99%, due to the high concentrations of fine particles that exist that people are breathing in.
The agency published the data on the eve of World Health Day, which this year is celebrated under the slogan ‘our planet, our health’. On World Health day, the WHO updates its data on air quality in cities and introduces new measurement systems that include the finest particles that were not previously recorded.
To prepare this report, the air of more than 6,000 cities located in 117 countries on all continents has been monitored.
For the first time, the average annual concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), an urban pollutant precursor of ozone particles, have been measured from the ground.
Very fine particles with diameters equal to or less than 10pm (PM10) or 2.5pm (PM2.5) have also been measured, which, when accumulated in the respiratory system can cause serious damage to the lungs or even the brain. These types of particles come mainly from the emissions of diesel vehicles.
The WHO is building a database that now includes some 2,000 more cities, multiplying the registered data by six compared to the last update in 2011. Since last year, the organization has revised its criteria on air quality and made them more stringent to prevent health problems.
“Current energy concerns highlight the importance of accelerating the transition to cleaner and healthier energy systems,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “Fossil fuel price hikes, energy security and the urgency of combining pollution and climate change all underline the need to move faster.”
