Air pollution kills 242 a day: Study

Invisible to the naked eye, fine particulate matter in the air is quietly claiming an average of 242 lives every day across Bangladesh’s major cities.

Several thousand are dying prematurely from non-communicable diseases linked to air pollution, including heart disease, stroke, chronic respiratory illness and lung cancer, according to a study by Jahangirnagar University’s Climate Change, Air Quality and Health Research Unit, under its Department of Public Health and Informatics, published this week.

Beyond the death toll, the pollution is eroding productivity and inflicting massive economic losses on the country each year, the research found.
The unit has spent years studying Bangladesh’s mounting health and economic crisis linked to air pollution, and its latest findings have now been published in the internationally recognised journal Pollution.

Conducted under the supervision of Md Shakhaoat Hossain, department chairman and associate professor, the study analysed the health and economic impact of PM2.5, or fine particulate pollution, across six major cities: Dhaka, Chattogram, Rajshahi, Khulna, Sylhet and Barishal.

The findings show these six cities alone see around 88,240 premature deaths a year linked to PM2.5 pollution, translating to roughly 260 deaths per 100,000 people, or an average of 242 lives lost daily.

The economic toll is equally steep.

Researchers estimate annual losses of nearly $23 billion, or about Tk2.8 trillion at current exchange rates, equivalent to almost five percent of Bangladesh’s gross domestic product (GDP).

Heart disease accounts for the largest share of pollution-linked deaths, at roughly 37,519 a year, followed by chronic respiratory illness at 8,344 and lung cancer at 811.

Dhaka fares worst among the six cities, with around 68,703 premature deaths a year, followed by Chattogram with 11,202, Rajshahi with 2,827, Khulna with 2,625, Sylhet with 1,488 and Barishal with 1,395.

By analysing data from 2013 to 2021, the researchers found that premature deaths due to air pollution have consistently risen across all six cities.

The situation is most alarming in the capital, where an average of 3,484 additional people die each year due to PM2.5 pollution, signalling a rapid decline in urban air quality.

Hossain, the lead researcher, pointed out that air pollution is often viewed merely as an environmental issue, but the study proves it is a major public health and economic crisis.

Close to 88,000 premature deaths a year, alongside losses equivalent to nearly five percent of GDP, served as a critical warning for policymakers, he said, adding that the toll would only worsen without effective action now.

The study, however, also offers a note of hope.

Researchers say a significant share of these premature deaths and economic losses could be prevented if the World Health Organization’s air quality guidelines were effectively implemented.

To that end, they have called for evidence-based policies to cut PM2.5 emissions, tighter control of pollution sources including industry and vehicles, stronger integrated air quality management in urban areas, and swift, coordinated action to safeguard public health. -bdnews24