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Pollution is beating us: only 0.18% of the earth is currently safe
By now we are aware of this, but our survival on earth is being challenged by air pollution, which combined with other forms of pollution is causing massive climate change that, if not stopped, will lead to a radical change in our existence within the next few decades.
We now also have scientific confirmation of the 'amount' of the world that currently has levels of air pollution that are harmful to human health. Thanks to the work of scientists at the Monash University School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine in Melbourne, we now know that just 0.18% of the earth has levels of particulate matter that are considered safe by the World Health Organisation.
Groundbreaking and stark research that shows us once again how close we are to the abyss.
Pollution is beating us: only 0.18% of the earth is currently safe
By now we are aware of this, but our survival on earth is being challenged by air pollution, which combined with other forms of pollution is causing massive climate change that, if not stopped, will lead to a radical change in our existence within the next few decades. We now also have scientific confirmation of the 'amount' of the world that currently has levels of air pollution that are harmful to human health. Thanks to the work of scientists at the Monash University School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine in Melbourne, we now know that just 0.18% of the earth has levels of particulate matter that are considered safe by the World Health Organisation. Groundbreaking and stark research, showing us once again how close we are to the abyss
The study
This prestigious study was published in the journal The Lancet Planetary Health, and was conducted in its entirety by scientists from the Monash University School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine in Melbourne, Australia. The research focuses on air pollution, the main cause of human health problems.
Global air pollution trend is increasing
The data was collected for two decades, from 2000 to 2019, so the situation could be even worse today. However, the data revealed a slight decrease in Europe and North America, but seem to have increased in South Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America and the Caribbean. The problem is very clear: scientists say that in these latter locations, air pollution at the level of fine particulate matter in the air exceeded the thresholds considered safe for human health on 70% of the days monitored.
An innovative study
At the beginning of the study, there was a shortage of pollution monitoring stations globally, but there is now a true world map of particulate matter levels. The study was conducted in an innovative way, using air quality monitoring observations, meteorological and satellite air pollution detectors, statistical and machine learning methods, in order to assess PM 2.5 concentrations as accurately as possible. As Yuming Guo, who led the team, explains: 'We focused on areas where exposure exceeded the threshold of 15 micrograms per cubic metre (μg/m³), which is considered the safe limit indicated by the World Health Organisation.
What emerges from observing the data
Examining the data globally, although there was a small decrease in high PM 2.5 exposure days globally, in 2019 on more than 70 per cent of the days, particulate concentrations were greater than 15 μg/m³. Especially in South and East Asia, more than 90% of the days were marked by concentrations harmful to humans. In Australia and New Zealand, there was a dramatic increase in the number of days on which the air exceeded the World Health Organisation's toxicity limits.
The final results of the research
The research therefore reveals alarming data that should make us reflect on how we are conducting our existence on this planet on which we all live. Considering the whole world, the annual average of particulate pollutants from 2000 to 2019 was 32.8 µg/m³ (15 is the safe threshold, we repeat). The 'best' values were seen in Australia and New Zealand (8.5 μg/m³). Analysing the findings, in 2019, only 0.18% of the earth's surface could be considered safe in terms of air pollution. Speaking directly of human health, which is after all what matters in this study, only 0.001% of the world's population was associated with annual levels below the guidelines.
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