WHO / AIR QUALITY

STORY: WHO / AIR QUALITY
TRT: 04:05
SOURCE: WHO
RESTRICTIONS: PLEASE CREDIT WHO ON SCREEN
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 04 APRIL 2022, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND / FILE

SHOTLIST:

FILE - GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

1. Zoom out, exterior WHO Headquarters

04 APRIL 2022, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

2. Med shot, dais
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Maria Neira, Director, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, World Health Organization (WHO):
"We are very pleased to launch this report containing 6,000 cities monitoring now the quality of the air we are breathing. Maybe we can say that 6000 is not enough. We have many cities around the world, but compared with what's happened in previous year, this is a very important increase on the willingness by cities to measure the quality of the air we are breathing. The bad news is that when we look at that, all of these data, still what the data is telling us, that a big, big proportion, almost 100 percent of the global population is still breathing air that exceeds the standards recommended by the World Health Organization."
4. Med shot, dais
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Maria Neira, Director, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, World Health Organization (WHO):
"The good news is that for the first time we see that cities are as well measuring, and we have for the first-time data about nitrogen dioxide. And as you know, this is a proxy indicator for traffic and it's telling us what is happening at urban level and how these gas that we know that is so damaging and causing so many of respiratory diseases, one of them being asthma, is increasing in many cities around the world."
6. Med shot, dais
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Sophie Gumy, Technical Officer, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, World Health Organization (WHO):
"About ten years ago we were releasing this database. Ten years ago, we had 1,100 cities in 91 countries. And ten years later, we have six times more cities and we have 26 more countries. So, this is this is a huge effort. And we are very happy about this good news as Maria has highlighted."
8. Med shot, dais
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Sophie Gumy, Technical Officer, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, World Health Organization (WHO):
“With this database, we cover about 80 percent of the urban population worldwide so far. And the other good news is that within the last ten years, countries have really recognized air pollution as a big issue because it has really raised on the international agenda. Exposure to air pollution has been recognized as a sustainable development goal indicator. This is one important indicator that countries are monitoring more and more."
10. Med shot, dais
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Sophie Gumy, Technical Officer, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, World Health Organization (WHO):
“Globally, with the cities that we have been assessing, we have about only 10 percent of the cities who comply with the PM 2.5 guideline values. And for NO2 we have 23 percent of all cities that may comply. This is not a very good sign. Based on the monitor settlement, air quality is the poorest in specific regions like the Eastern Mediterranean region, the Southeast Asian region and also Africa."
12. Med shot, dais
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Sophie Gumy, Technical Officer, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, World Health Organization (WHO):
"An interesting pattern that we have seen when we were comparing the regional differences between particulate matter and NO2 was that while for particulate matter, we know that some regions are really impacted by air pollution, like the one I just mentioned, there has been also a huge difference between high income countries versus low- and middle-income countries for particulate matter. For NO2 the pattern is a little bit different in the sense that we see much less difference between low-middle-income countries and high-income countries showing that this is still a huge problem even for high-income countries. And as it was mentioned at the beginning by my colleague NO2 is a gas that is mainly coming from anthropogenic fuel combustion, this is a very good proxy indicator for urban air pollution, and this is linked often to transportation. So, this is really a sign that countries still need to work on that and make much more in efforts to reduce that emission of NO2."
14. Med shot, dais

STORYLINE:

Almost the entire global population breathes air that exceeds the World Health Organization’s (WHO) air quality limits and threatens their health.

A record number of over 6,000 cities in 117 countries are now monitoring air quality, but the people living in them are still breathing unhealthy levels of fine particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide, with people in low and middle-income countries suffering the highest exposures.

The findings have prompted the WHO to highlight the importance of curbing fossil fuel use and taking other tangible steps to reduce air pollution levels.

SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Maria Neira, Director, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, World Health Organization (WHO):
"We are very pleased to launch this report containing 6,000 cities monitoring now the quality of the air we are breathing. Maybe we can say that 6,000 is not enough. We have many cities around the world, but compared with what's happened in previous year, this is a very important increase on the willingness by cities to measure the quality of the air we are breathing. The bad news is that when we look at that, all of these data, still what the data is telling us, that a big, big proportion, almost 100 percent of the global population is still breathing air that exceeds the standards recommended by the World Health Organization."

Released in the lead-up to World Health Day, which this year celebrates the theme Our planet, our health, the 2022 update of the World Health Organization’s air quality database introduces, for the first time, ground measurements of annual mean concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a common urban pollutant and precursor of particulate matter and ozone. It also includes measurements of particulate matter with diameters equal or smaller than 10 μm (PM10) or 2.5 μm (PM2.5). Both groups of pollutants originate mainly from human activities related to fossil fuel combustion.

SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Maria Neira, Director, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, World Health Organization (WHO):
"The good news is that for the first time we see that cities are as well measuring, and we have for the first-time data about nitrogen dioxide. And as you know, this is a proxy indicator for traffic and it's telling us what is happening at urban level and how these gas that we know that is so damaging and causing so many of respiratory diseases, one of them being asthma, is increasing in many cities around the world."

The new air quality database is the most extensive yet in its coverage of air pollution exposure on the ground. Some 2,000 more cities/human settlements are now recording ground monitoring data for particulate matter, PM10 and/or PM2.5, than the last update. This marks an almost 6-fold rise in reporting since the database was launched in 2011.

SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Sophie Gumy, Technical Officer, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, World Health Organization (WHO):
"About ten years ago we were releasing this database. Ten years ago, we had 1,100 cities in 91 countries. And ten years later, we have six times more cities and we have 26 more countries. So, this is this is a huge effort. And we are very happy about this good news as Maria has highlighted."

Meanwhile, the evidence base for the damage air pollution does to the human body has been growing rapidly and points to significant harm caused by even low levels of many air pollutants.

SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Sophie Gumy, Technical Officer, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, World Health Organization (WHO):
“With this database, we cover about 80 percent of the urban population worldwide so far. And the other good news is that within the last ten years, countries have really recognized air pollution as a big issue because it has really raised on the international agenda. Exposure to air pollution has been recognized as a sustainable development goal indicator. This is one important indicator that countries are monitoring more and more."

Particulate matter, especially PM2.5, is capable of penetrating deep into the lungs and entering the bloodstream, causing cardiovascular, cerebrovascular (stroke) and respiratory impacts. There is emerging evidence that particulate matter impacts other organs and causes other diseases as well.

SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Sophie Gumy, Technical Officer, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, World Health Organization (WHO):
“Globally, with the cities that we have been assessing, we have about only 10 percent of the cities who comply with the PM 2.5 guideline values. And for NO2 we have 23 percent of all cities that may comply. This is not a very good sign. Based on the monitor settlement, air quality is the poorest in specific regions like the Eastern Mediterranean region, the Southeast Asian region and also Africa."

NO2 is associated with respiratory diseases, particularly asthma, leading to respiratory symptoms (such as coughing, wheezing or difficulty breathing), hospital admissions and visits to emergency rooms
WHO last year revised its Air Quality Guidelines, making them more stringent in an effort to help countries better evaluate the healthiness of their own air.

SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Sophie Gumy, Technical Officer, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, World Health Organization (WHO):
"An interesting pattern that we have seen when we were comparing the regional differences between particulate matter and NO2 was that while for particulate matter, we know that some regions are really impacted by air pollution, like the one I just mentioned, there has been also a huge difference between high income countries versus low- and middle-income countries for particulate matter. For NO2 the pattern is a little bit different in the sense that we see much less difference between low-middle-income countries and high-income countries showing that this is still a huge problem even for high-income countries. And as it was mentioned at the beginning by my colleague NO2 is a gas that is mainly coming from anthropogenic fuel combustion, this is a very good proxy indicator for urban air pollution, and this is linked often to transportation. So, this is really a sign that countries still need to work on that and make much more in efforts to reduce that emission of NO2."

A number of governments are taking steps to improve air quality, but WHO is calling for a rapid intensification of actions to adopt or revise and implement national air quality standards according to the latest WHO Air Quality Guidelines; monitor air quality and identify sources of air pollution; support the transition to exclusive use of clean household energy for cooking, heating and lighting; build safe and affordable public transport systems and pedestrian- and cycle-friendly networks; implement stricter vehicle emissions and efficiency standards; and enforce mandatory inspection and maintenance for vehicle; invest in energy-efficient housing and power generation; improve industry and municipal waste management; reduce agricultural waste incineration, forest fires and certain agro-forestry activities (e.g. charcoal production); and include air pollution in curricula for health professionals and providing tools for the health sector to engage.