Opinion | Governments have no more excuses for delaying action on air pollution

Name: Air pollution hits highest level on Hong Kong’s scale, as city records hottest summer on record
Uploaded: 2021-09-22T22:45:08.000Z
Duration: 2 min 7 s
Description: Air pollution hits highest level on Hong Kong’s scale, as city records hottest summer on record

Nine out of 10 people around the world are still breathing unsafe air. We need to do better, and we have the tools to do so

As the WHO updates its air quality guidelines, governments must implement targets and enforce strategies so we are not left waiting years for clean air

Reading Time:3 minutes

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The sun shines through hazy, polluted air in Hong Kong on September 12. Air quality is deteriorating for half the world’s population. Photo: Felix Wong

Aidan Farrow

Published: 6:45am, 23 Sep 2021

Yesterday, the World Health Organization updated its guidelines for the quality of our air for the first time in 15 years.

Air pollution is one of the leading factors affecting health and mortality globally. It is a key contributor to heart disease, strokes, lung cancer, asthma and many other health problems.

Yet a decade and a half after the previous WHO air quality guidelines were published, nine out of 10 people around the world are still breathing unsafe air. This time we need to do better, and we have the tools to do so.

We have more comprehensive data on air pollution than ever before, a clearer understanding of the health implications of PM2.5 pollutants, nitrogen dioxide, ozone and other hazardous pollutants and a growing array of achievable and affordable solutions. There is no reason for governments to choose inaction on air pollution.

Computer models, satellites and monitoring stations on the ground help us clearly understand the scale of the air pollution problem. Sensor networks span cities and nations and, in many places, anyone with an internet connection can check pollution levels in real time. We can track pollution from space, meaning major polluters and unregulated operations have nowhere to hide.

02:07

Air pollution hits highest level on Hong Kong’s scale, as city records hottest summer on record

Findings tell us that air quality is deteriorating for half the world’s population. There have been air quality improvements in high-income regions since the 1990s, but for people living elsewhere – especially in Central and South Asia and large parts of Africa – exposure has worsened. There should be no doubt in the minds of policymakers that urgent action is needed.

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Opinion | Governments have no more excuses for delaying action on air pollution

Nine out of 10 people around the world are still breathing unsafe air. We need to do better, and we have the tools to do so As the WHO updates its air quality guidelines, governments must implement targets and enforce strategies so we are not left waiting years for clean air

Nine out of 10 people around the world are still breathing unsafe air. We need to do better, and we have the tools to do so

As the WHO updates its air quality guidelines, governments must implement targets and enforce strategies so we are not left waiting years for clean air