The 2019 report of the Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change shows that climate change is already damaging the health of the world’s children and is set to shape the well-being of an entire generation unless the world meets Paris Agreement targets to limit warming to well below 2˚C.
Romania is among the European countries where people’s lives are shortened due to pollution according to the 2019 report.
Life expectancy is eight months less due to air pollution, compared to the European Union average of 5.7 months. Poland and Hungary are about the same level of Romania. Ninety percent of towns are affected by pollution.
The report that was published Wednesday said there were 2.9 million premature deaths globally from outdoor air pollution in 2016, and over 440,000 of those deaths were from coal emissions alone, according to a new analysis, which warns that the impact of air pollution will worsen, and children will be among the worst affected.
Exposure to ambient air pollution, and most importantly fine particulate matter, constitutes the largest global environmental risk factor for premature mortality, and results in several million premature deaths from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases every year, says the report,
More than 90% of children are exposed to PM 2.5 concentrations that are above the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines, which can affect their health throughout their life, with an increased risk of lung damage, impaired lung growth, and pneumonia, and a subsequent risk of developing asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, says the analysis.
The Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change is a comprehensive yearly analysis tracking progress across 41 key indicators.
