Pollution kills 9 million worldwide every year

While there is a great emphasis on the need for development to improve global health, a new study by the Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health sheds light on the ramifications of industrialization on the health of populations. Researchers found that in 2015, 9 million people died globally due to pollution, including dirty air, water, and soil. Those who are most affected  live in low- to middle- income countries where economic development is prioritized over environmental regulations, and the two priorities are often seen to be in conflict with one another by governments and development agencies.

Using data from sources such as satellites, monitors, and individual reporting, researchers analyzed and developed a participatory map to share information from around the world. They also did an economic analysis of pollution, finding that the “cost of inaction is high… welfare losses due to pollution are estimated at $4.6 trillion per year, 6.2 percent of global economic output.”

"The thing that worries me most in all this is the neurological damage that many of these toxins have," says Richard Fuller of Pure Earth and Lancet commission co-leader. Heavy metals, including lead, damage kids' brains… My concern is if you release a toxin in China, it can end up in L.A. just as easily. [Matter travels, and there is research demonstrating carbon from burning coal in China is in air pollution in California]… We need to look after it because they're going to poison us as well."

The authors call for immediate action to be taken on the part of governments and the development community to improve global environmental health in their policy development.

Pollution Infographic
(Source: CNN, The Lancet)