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Solely 222 cities of the 6,475 analyzed had common air high quality that met WHO’s normal. Three territories had been discovered to have met WHO pointers: the French territory of New Caledonia and the US territories of Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.
India, Pakistan and Bangladesh had been among the many international locations with the worst air air pollution, exceeding the rules by not less than 10 occasions.
The Scandinavian international locations, Australia, Canada, Japan and United Kingdom ranked among the many greatest international locations for air high quality, with common ranges that exceeded the rules by 1 to 2 occasions.
In the US, IQAir discovered air air pollution exceeded WHO pointers by 2 to three occasions in 2021.
“This report underscores the necessity for governments all over the world to assist cut back international air air pollution,” Glory Dolphin Hammes, CEO of IQAir North America, instructed CNN. “(High-quality particulate matter) kills far too many individuals yearly and governments must set extra stringent air high quality nationwide requirements and discover higher international insurance policies that promote higher air high quality.”
IQAir analyzed pollution-monitoring stations in 6,475 cities throughout 117 international locations, areas and territories.
“The (United States’) reliance on fossil fuels, growing severity of wildfires in addition to various enforcement of the Clear Air Act from administration to administration have all added to U.S. air air pollution,” the authors wrote.
Researchers say the principle sources of air pollution within the US had been fossil fuel-powered transportation, vitality manufacturing and wildfires, which wreak havoc on the nation’s most weak and marginalized communities.
“We’re closely depending on fossil fuels, particularly when it comes to transportation,” stated Hammes, who lives a number of miles from Los Angeles. “We will act well on this with zero emissions, however we’re nonetheless not doing it. And that is having a devastating influence on the air air pollution that we’re seeing in main cities.”
“That is all part of the formulation that may result in or is resulting in international warming.” Hammes stated.
The report additionally unveiled some inequalities: Monitoring stations stay scant in some creating international locations in Africa, South America and the Center East, leading to a dearth of air high quality information in these areas.
“When you do not have that information, you are actually at nighttime,” Hammes stated.
Hammes famous the African nation of Chad was included within the report for the primary time, resulting from an enchancment in its monitoring community. IQAir discovered the nation’s air air pollution was the second-highest on the planet final yr, behind Bangladesh.
Tarik Benmarhnia, a local weather change epidemiologist at Scripps Establishment of Oceanography who has studied the well being influence of wildfire smoke, additionally famous that relying solely on monitoring stations can result in blind spots in these studies.
“I feel it’s nice that they relied on completely different networks and never solely governmental sources,” Benmarhnia, who was not concerned on this report, instructed CNN. “Nevertheless, many areas wouldn’t have sufficient stations and various methods exist.”
Hammes stated the IQAir report is much more purpose for the world to wean off fossil gasoline.
“We have the report, we are able to learn it, we are able to internalize it and actually commit ourselves to taking motion,” she stated. “There must be a significant transfer in the direction of renewable vitality. We have to take drastic motion with a view to reverse the tide of world warming; in any other case, the influence and the practice that we’re on (can be) irreversible.”
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