Pollution causes 6.5 million premature deaths per year

                  

London - A total of 6.5 million people a year die prematurely due to air pollution, as revealed on Monday the International Energy Agency (IEA).

The "World Energy Outlook" document, presented in London, "showed that Asia and Africa are the regions with the highest pollution mortality rate and that this problem has become the fourth factor of risk to human health, behind the blood pressure, poor diet and smoking. "

Of the total, 3.5 million deaths are linked to the use of biomass for cooking and kerosene to light homes in poor areas, while 3 million correspond to breathing polluted air, especially in large cities.

The IEA warned that if no immediate action, premature deaths from direct contact with air pollution will increase to 4.5 million in 2040, mostly in developing countries of Asia.

The survey pointed out that most of the pollution comes from the energy sector, specifically from fuel combustion in factories, cars, power plants and in private kitchens.

For the IEA's executive director, Faith Birol, these data are "alarming" and reveal a "big problem at the global level", and that "the efforts made to stop it are not enough."

Birol stressed that "this is not a problem only of emerging countries such as China, India, Indonesia, Brazil and Mexico, but also affects the advanced economies," although the United States, European Union and Japan have reduced their emissions by regulations.

The report collects that "high levels of pollution in China challenge to public health", given that cause up to 2.2 million premature deaths and reduce by 25 months to life expectancy.

The organization also pointed to India as a worrying case, since "12 of the 20 cities in the world with the highest air pollution" are in this Asian country, and pointed out that this standard is "moving to Africa, to cities such as Lagos and Cairo ".

At the other end of the scale, the EU stands as one of the areas that "has taken important steps to improve air quality," although in 2015 have been 340,000 deaths due to pollution and life expectancy have been reduced in six months .

To combat this scenario, Birol proposed to reach a "Clean Air Scenario" ( "Air Clean Scenario") for 2040, which "would reduce premature deaths by 50%."

To decrease the number to 3.3 million deaths per year, the IEA called for a 7% increase in investment in the energy sector, which comes to $ 4.7 trillion.

Among the measures put on the table by this organization are reducing pollutant emissions through control technologies, replacing fuels with renewable energy, cheapen the cost reduction and ensure effective implementation of these actions.

Birol ensured that present this report to the G20, "because there are countries like China, India and Indonesia", and to the UN in New York to review the current legislation, which despite being "good" is not effective .

Getting the "Clean Air Scenario" also would report benefits added to other policies such as access to energy and climate change.

A lower emission of pollution mean an atmosphere freed from -an carbon dioxide from the gases and estufa- a weapon against global warming, one of the major battles of international politics, in which Birol described the EU as a "great fighter".