Tag: air pollution

Air pollution from fires hits world’s poorest hardest: study

People in poorer countries are disproportionately suffering from air pollution spewed from the increasing scourge of fires in forests and fields around the world, according to new research published Wednesday. Landscape fires include blazes in forests, shrub, grass, pastures and agricultural lands, whether planned or uncontrolled such as the wildfires that have ravaged countries including Algeria, Canada and Greece this year. They generate smoke that can travel up to thousands of kilometres, creating public health […]

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As wildfires multiply, a new era of air pollution

By Issam AHMED WASHINGTON, Aug 22, 2023 (AFP) – From Quebec to British Columbia to Hawaii, North America is facing an extraordinary wildfire season — and regions both near and far have found themselves increasingly blighted by smoke exposure. Here’s what you should know about air pollution from these blazes. – What we know – One of the defining aspects of smoke from wildfires is “particulate matter” — toxins that, in their numbers, can make […]

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Air pollution kills 1,200 children a year: EU agency

Copenhagen, Denmark (AFP) by Marc PRÉEL Air pollution still causes more than 1,200 premature deaths a year in under 18’s across Europe and increases the risk of chronic disease later in life, the EU environmental agency said Monday. Despite recent improvements, “the level of key air pollutants in many European countries remain stubbornly above World Health Organization” (WHO) guidelines, particularly in central-eastern Europe and Italy, said the EEA after a study in over 30 countries, […]

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MMDA encourages traffic personnel, street sweepers to continue wearing face masks outdoors

Says face masks could also serve as protection against air pollution   (Eagle News) — The Metropolitan Manila Development Auhthority (MMDA) has encouraged its field personnel to continue wearing face masks outdoors and in open spaces amid the new policy for optional wearing of face masks outdoors. Because of traffic-related pollution that affects the health of its traffic personnel and street sweepers, MMDA Acting Chairman Engr. Carlo Dimayuga III said that the wearing of face […]

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Health groups calls for fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty

PARIS, France (AFP) – Around 200 health organizations and more than 1,400 health professionals on Wednesday called for governments to establish a binding international treaty on phasing out fossil fuels, which they said pose “a grave and escalating threat to human health”. A letter proposing the “fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty” said it could work similarly to the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control — except this time the harmful controlled substances would be […]

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WHO says air pollution kills 7 million a year, toughens guidelines

by Robin MILLARD GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The World Health Organization strengthened its air quality guidelines on Wednesday, saying air pollution was now one of the biggest environmental threats to human health, causing seven million premature deaths a year. Urgent action is needed to reduce exposure to air pollution, said the UN body, ranking its burden of disease on a par with smoking and unhealthy eating. “WHO has adjusted almost all the air quality guideline […]

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Air pollution linked to irreversible sight loss: study

  PARIS, France (AFP) — Air pollution is likely to increase the risk of irreversible sight loss, according to the results of a long-term study published Tuesday. Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness among over-50s in richer nations, with roughly 300 million people predicted to be affected by 2040. Known risk factors include age, smoking and genetic make-up. Now researchers have drawn a link between AMD and air pollution, which is […]

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As Oregon fires burn, smoggy air suffocates Portland residents

by Cyril JULIEN Agence France-Presse PORTLAND, Oregon (AFP) — The deadly fires spreading across three western US states are causing record-breaking pollution and a spate of health woes, from headaches and coughs to impaired vision, that have residents worried about the long-term consequences. Portland, the largest city in Oregon, has been blanketed for days by a dense smog that has sent pollution meters soaring. On Monday, the city ranked second-worst on IQAir’s live global air […]

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Air pollution ‘pandemic’ shortens lives by 3 years: study

By Marlowe HOOD Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — A ‘pandemic’ of air pollution shortens lives worldwide by nearly three years on average, and causes 8.8 million premature deaths annually, scientists said Tuesday.  Eliminating the toxic cocktail of molecules and lung-clogging particles cast off by burning oil, gas and coal would restore a full year of life expectancy, they reported in the journal Cardiovascular Research. “Air pollution is a larger public health risk than tobacco smoking,” […]

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Air pollution costs $2.9 trillion a year: NGO

by Marlowe HOOD PARIS, France (AFP) — The global cost of air pollution caused by fossil fuels is $8 billion a day, or roughly 3.3 percent of the entire world’s economic output, an environmental research group said on Wednesday. The report from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) and Greenpeace Southeast Asia is the first to assess the global cost of air pollution specifically from burning oil, gas and coal. “We […]

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Red Sea huge source of air pollution, greenhouse gases: study

by Patrick GALEY Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Hydrocarbon gases bubbling from the bottom of the Red Sea are polluting the atmosphere at a rate equivalent to the emissions of some large fossil fuel exporting countries, researchers said Tuesday. The gases seeping from the waters — which are ringed by the resorts and ports of several countries, including Egypt, Israel, Jordan and Saudi Arabia — then mix with emissions from industrial shipping and turned […]

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Barcelona bans older, most polluting cars

MADRID, Spain (AFP) — Barcelona imposed a ban Thursday on older, more polluting vehicles during most of the day in a bid to reduce air pollution in Spain’s second largest city. Gasoline-powered cars registered in Spain before 2000, and diesel-powered cars registered before 2006 are now banned from most city streets on weekdays between 7:00 am and 8:00 pm and face a fine of at least 100 euros ($112) if they violate the rule. All banned vehicles […]

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