The State of Global Air 2019 Report

The State of Global Air 2019 report, released on April 3, 2019, brings into one place the latest information on air quality and health for countries around the globe. It is produced annually by the Health Effects Institute (HEI) and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) – both in the US - as a source of objective, peer-reviewed air quality data and analysis.

The report presents the latest information on worldwide air pollution exposures and health impacts. It draws from the most recent evidence produced as part of the Global Burden of Dis­ease (GBD) project of IHME.

Key global messages of the report:

·      More than 90 percent of the world’s population lives in areas where fine particle levels exceed WHO Guideline for healthy air.

·      Air pollution is the fifth leading risk factor for mortality worldwide. Each year, more people die from air pollution-related diseases than from road traffic injuries or malaria.

·      In 2017, air pollution is estimated to have contributed to close to 5 million deaths globally — nearly 1 in every 10 deaths.

·      Air pollution exposures, including exposure to outdoor fine particulate matter (PM2.5), household air pollution (HAP), and ozone, have been linked with increased hospitalizations, disability, and early death from respiratory diseases, heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, and diabetes. Most (82%) deaths are from chronic non-communicable diseases.

·      In 2017, exposure to PM2.5 was the third leading risk factor for deaths and years of healthy life lost due to type 2 diabetes, after high blood sugar and high body mass index.

·      Life expectancy: Air pollution collectively reduced life expectancy by 1 year and 8 months on average worldwide, a global impact rivaling that of smoking. This means a child born today will die 20 months sooner, on average, than would be expected in the absence of air pollution.

·      Ambient PM2.5: In 2017, the highest annual average exposures to PM2.5 (population-weighted concentrations) were in South Asia, led by Nepal (100 μg/m3), India (91 μg/m3), Bangladesh (61 μg/m3), and Pakistan (58 μg/m3).

·      The region with the second-highest average PM2.5 exposure was western sub-Saharan Africa with 59 μg/m3.

·      In East Asia, China continues to experience the highest population exposures to PM2.5 (53 μg/m3). However, PM2.5 levels have declined by nearly 20% since the implementation of stringent air pollution controls in 2013.

·      Household Air Pollution: Nearly half of the world’s population — a total of 3.6 billion people — were exposed to household air pollution in 2017.

·      Globally, the proportion of people cooking with solid fuels has declined from about 64% in 2005 to 47% in 2017. However, disparities persist, and less-developed countries continue to suffer the highest exposures to household air pollution.

·      Ozone contributed to approximately 472,000 deaths globally from COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) in 2017.

Key messages with respect to India:

·      Air pollution is the 3rd leading risk factor for mortality, accounting for almost 13% of deaths (1.2 million) in India in 2017 alone.

·      Air pollution exposures, including exposure to outdoor particulate matter (PM2.5) and household air pollution (HAP), have been linked to increased hospitalizations, disability, and early death from respiratory diseases, heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, and diabetes. Exposure to ambient ozone is linked to COPD.

·      Air pollution is the 3rd leading risk factor in India in 2017, after only dietary risks and high blood pressure. Individually, outdoor air pollution and household air pollution are ranked as the 4th and 10th leading risk factors.

·      The entire Indian population lives in areas with PM2.5 concentrations above the WHO Air Quality Guideline of 10 μg/m3, and only about 15% of the population lives in areas with PM2.5 concentrations below the WHO’s least-stringent target of 35 μg/m3.

·      There were 673,100 deaths due to exposure to outdoor PM2.5, and more than 481,700 deaths due to exposure to HAP.

·      Exposure to outdoor PM accounted for a loss of nearly 1 year and 6 months in life expectancy, and exposure to HAP accounted for a loss of nearly 1 year and 2 months.