• August 2023

Annual Update

By Michael Greenstone and Christa Hasenkopf

Air pollution is the greatest external threat to human life expectancy on the planet. The AQLI’s latest 2021 data reveals that permanently reducing global PM2.5 air pollution to meet the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline would add 2.3 years onto average human life expectancy—or a combined 17.8 billion life years saved. The impact of PM2.5 on global life expectancy is comparable to that of smoking, more than 3 times that of alcohol use and unsafe water, more than 5 times that of transport injuries like car crashes, and more than 7 times that of HIV/AIDS.

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India Fact Sheet

August 2023

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China Fact Sheet

August 2023

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Nigeria Fact Sheet

August 2023

Air pollution’s impact on life expectancy in Nigeria is greater than that of HIV/AIDS and almost on par with malaria and unsafe water and sanitation, shortening the average Nigerian’s life expectancy by 1.8 years, relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m3 was met. Some areas of Nigeria fare much worse than average, with air pollution shortening lives by almost 4 years on average in parts of Taraba state in Northeastern Nigeria.

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Bangladesh Fact Sheet

August 2023

Bangladesh is the world’s most polluted country. Fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) shortens the average Bangladeshi resident’s life expectancy by 6.8 years, relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m³ was met. Some areas of Bangladesh fare much worse than average, with air pollution shortening lives by 8.3 years in Gazipur, the country’s most polluted district located near the capital city of Dhaka.

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Guatemala Fact Sheet

August 2023

Guatemala is the most polluted country in North America and the 16th most polluted country in the world. Fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) shortens the average Guatemalan resident’s life expectancy by 2.4 years, relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5µg/m3 was met. Some areas of Guatemala fare much worse than average, with air pollution shortening lives by 4.4 years in Mixco, the country’s most polluted municipality in the Guatemala department.

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Southeast Asia Fact Sheet

August 2023

Virtually all of Southeast Asia’s 673.7 million people live in areas where fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) exceeds the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m³. Particulate pollution reduces the life expectancy of the average resident of Southeast Asia by 1.6 years relative to what it would be if the WHO guideline was met. Combined, the 11 countries that comprise this region lose 1.1 billion total life years to air pollution.

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South Korea Fact Sheet

August 2023

Fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) shortens the average South Korean’s life expectancy by 1.5 years, relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m3 was met. Some areas of South Korea fare much worse than average, with air pollution shortening lives by 2.1 years in Gyeyang.

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China Fact Sheet

August 2023

China’s fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) has been decreasing since the country announced a “war against pollution” in 2014. This decline has continued through 2021, with pollution levels down by 42 percent compared to 2013. Due to these improvements, the average Chinese citizen can expect to live 2.2 years longer, provided the reductions are sustained. Nevertheless, work remains. While China’s overall particulate pollution average is in compliance with its national standard of 35 µg/m³, pollution levels still significantly exceed the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m³. As a result, particulate pollution shortens an average Chinese resident’s life expectancy by 2.5 years, relative to what it would be if the WHO guideline was met.

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Central and West Africa Fact Sheet

August 2023

Of the world’s 30 most polluted countries, eight are in Central and West Africa, a region that comprises 27 countries and 638.7 million people. Fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) shortens the average Central and West African’s life expectancy by 1.6 years, relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m3 was met. In this region, average particulate pollution levels are 4.2 times the WHO guideline, which amounts to a total of 1 billion life years lost to pollution for this region as a whole. Central Africa is more polluted than Western Africa, with the Central African countries of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo and Rwanda being the most polluted countries. Air pollution is shortening lives by 2.4 years for the average resident of Central Africa. In comparison, an average resident of West Africa loses 1.2 years of life expectancy.

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Thailand Fact Sheet

August 2023

Fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) shortens the average Thai resident’s life expectancy by 1.8 years, relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m³ was met. Some areas of Thailand fare much worse than average, with air pollution shortening lives by 3 years in Phan, the country’s most polluted district in the Chiang Rai province.

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Colombia Fact Sheet

August 2023

Colombia is the sixth most polluted country in South America. Fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) shortens the average Colombian resident’s life expectancy by 10 months, relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m3 was met. Some areas of Colombia fare much worse than average, with air pollution shortening lives by 2 years in Puerto Leguízamo, the country’s most polluted municipality in the Putumayo department.

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Indonesia Fact Sheet

August 2023

Fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) shortens the average Indonesian resident’s life expectancy by 1.4 years, relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline (5 µg/m³) was met. Some areas of Indonesia fare much worse than average, with air pollution shortening lives by 2.9 years in Deli Serdang, the most polluted regency/city in Indonesia.

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Nepal Fact Sheet

August 2023

Nepal is the world’s third most polluted country based on satellite-derived PM2.5 data. Fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) shortens the average Nepalese resident’s life expectancy by 4.6 years, relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m3 was met. Some areas of Nepal fare much worse than average, with air pollution shortening lives by 6.8 years in the nine districts with the highest concentration of particulate pollution. These districts lie in southern Nepal and share their borders with the highly-polluted Northern Plains of India.

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Europe Fact Sheet

August 2023

Thanks to sustained enforcement of strong policies, European residents are exposed to 23.5 percent less fine particulate pollution (PM2.5) than they were in 1998, gaining 4.5 months of life expectancy because of it. Despite this success, the latest scientific evidence on the impact of particulate pollution at even the low levels that exist in much of Europe reveals that 98.4 percent of the population are now living in areas with unsafe levels of pollution.

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India Fact Sheet

August 2023

India is the world’s second most polluted country. Fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) shortens an average Indian’s life expectancy by 5.3 years, relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m3 was met. Some areas of India fare much worse than average, with air pollution shortening lives by 11.9 years in the National Capital Territory of Delhi, the most polluted city in the world.

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North India Fact Sheet

August 2023

The world’s 50 most polluted regions all belong to the Northern Plains of India. The seven states and union territories comprising the majority of this region—Bihar, Chandigarh, Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal face the greatest health burden due to particulate pollution in India. Fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) shortens an average Indian’s life expectancy by 5.3 years, relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m3 was met. In North India, it shortens lives by 8 years—underscoring the outsized benefits effective pollution policy would have, allowing residents of North India to gain 4.2 billion life years in total.

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Pakistan Fact Sheet

August 2023

Pakistan is the world’s fourth most polluted country. Fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) shortens the average Pakistani resident’s life expectancy by 3.9 years, relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m3 was met. Some areas of Pakistan fare much worse than average, with air pollution shortening lives by almost 7 years in the country’s most polluted regions like Lahore, Sheikhupura, Kasur and Peshawar.

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United States Fact Sheet

August 2023

Since the Clean Air Act was enacted in 1970, particulate pollution (PM2.5) in the United States has declined by 64.9 percent—extending the life expectancy of an average American by 1.4 years. The country’s average pollution has been in compliance with its national air quality standard (12 µg/m³) since 2001 (See figure 4). Despite this success, the latest scientific evidence on the impact of pollution at even the low levels that exist in much of the United States reveals that 96 percent of the population are living in areas with unsafe levels of pollution. While there is potential for further progress, the United States still has low levels of particulate pollution compared to many other parts of the world—making the health impacts from reducing particulate pollution small in comparison.

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Reports

2023 Annual Update

August 2023

Air pollution is the greatest external threat to human life expectancy on the planet. The AQLI’s latest 2021 data reveals that permanently reducing global PM2.5 air pollution to meet the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline would add 2.3 years onto average human life expectancy—or a combined 17.8 billion life years saved. The impact of PM2.5 on global life expectancy is comparable to that of smoking, more than 3 times that of alcohol use and unsafe water, more than 5 times that of transport injuries like car crashes, and more than 7 times that of HIV/AIDS.

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Reports

2022 Annual Update

June 2022

Particulate pollution remained high even while Covid-19 slowed the global economy. At the same time, mounting evidence on the health impacts of pollution at low levels led to new guidelines that brought most of the world into the unsafe zone. The AQLI finds that particulate pollution takes 2.2 years off global average life expectancy, or a combined 17 billion life-years, relative to a world that met the WHO guideline (5 µg/m3). This impact on life expectancy is comparable to that of smoking, more than three times that of alcohol use and unsafe water, six times that of HIV/AIDS, and 89 times that of conflict and terrorism.

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Reports

The 2008 Olympics to the 2022 Olympics: China’s Fight to Win its War Against Pollution

February 2022

China is winning Its ‘war against pollution,’ but further reductions would allow people to live longer and healthier lives.

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Indonesia’s Air Pollution and its Impact on Life Expectancy

September 2021

The average Indonesian can expect to lose 2.5 years of life expectancy at current pollution levels, according to the Air Quality Life Index (AQLI), because air quality fails to meet the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline for concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5). The pollution index shows that the health impacts of particulate pollution are the greatest in Depok, Bandung, and Jakarta, where particulate pollution concentrations are the highest.

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Reports

2021 Annual Update

September 2021

Over the last year, Covid-19 lockdowns brought blue skies to the most polluted regions of the globe, while wildfires exacerbated by a drier and hotter climate sent smoke to the normally clean skies of cities thousands of miles away. The conflicting events offer two visions of the future. The difference between those futures lies in policies to reduce fossil fuels. New data from the AQLI underscores the health threat of a world without policy action. Unless global particulate air pollution is reduced to meet the World Health Organization’s (WHO) guideline, the average person is set to lose 2.2 years off their lives. Residents of the most polluted areas of the world could see their lives cut short by 5 years or more. Working unseen inside the human body, particulate pollution has a more devastating impact on life expectancy than communicable diseases like tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, behavioral killers like cigarette smoking, and even war.

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Reports

2020 Annual Update

July 2020

Particulate air pollution was the greatest risk to human health before COVID-19, cutting global life expectancy by two years on average over the last two decades. And, without robust public policy, it will continue to be the greatest threat long after a COVID-19 vaccine exists. Working unseen inside the human body, air pollution’s deadly effects on the heart, lungs, and other systems have a more devastating impact on life expectancy than communicable diseases like tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, behavioral killers like cigarette smoking, and even war.

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Reports

Is China Winning its War on Pollution?

July 2020

For almost two decades, China remained one of the top five most polluted countries in the world. But after launching a successful “war against pollution” in 2014, China was able to reduce its particulate pollution by about 40 percent—dropping the country from its top five ranking in recent years. In fact, from 2013 to 2018, almost threequarters of the global reduction in particulate pollution came from China. If the reductions are sustained, China’s people can expect to live some 2 years longer. The Beijing- Tianjin-Hebei area, one of China’s most polluted areas in 2013, saw a 41 percent reduction in particulate pollution, translating to a gain of 3.4 years of life expectancy for its 108 million residents, if sustained.

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Fact Sheets

Indonesia Fact Sheet

July 2020

Indonesia is today the world’s ninth most polluted country. Air pollution shortens the average Indonesian’s life expectancy by 2 years, relative to what it would have been if the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline was met. Some areas of Indonesia fare much worse than average, with air pollution shortening lives by more than 7 years in the most polluted region.

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North India Fact Sheet

October 2019

More than 480 million people, or about 40 percent of India’s population, reside in the seven states and union territories comprising the bulk of the Indo-Gangetic Plain region of north India – Bihar, Chandigarh, Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal (Figure 1). Though the Indo-Gangetic Plain’s particulate pollution is exacerbated by geologic and meteorological factors, the AQLI’s dust- and sea salt-removed fine particulate matter (PM2.5) data imply that human activity plays a key role in generating the severe particulate pollution that these residents face. That is likely due to the fact that the region’s population density is more than three times that of the rest of the country, meaning more pollution from vehicular, residential, and agricultural sources. A denser population also means more human lives are impacted by each pollution source. Across India, reducing particulate pollution to the World Health Organization’s guideline of 10 μg/m3 would increase the national average life expectancy by 4.3 years. In north India, there would be outsize impacts of policy that reduces air pollution to meet Indian or International norms.

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Reports

India’s ‘War Against Pollution’: An Opportunity for Longer Lives”

January 2019

In 2019, India declared a “war against pollution” and launched its National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), signaling its desire to reduce particulate air pollution—the greatest threat to human health on the planet. The Programme, which aims to reduce particulate pollution by 20-30 percent nationally, will be implemented over the next five years. If successful in meeting its goals and sustaining the reduced pollution levels, the NCAP would produce substantial benefits, extending the life expectancy of the average Indian by about 1.3 years. People breathing the most polluted air—namely those in Delhi and parts of Uttar Pradesh—could live up to 3 years longer. Further, the NCAP highlighted 102 cities containing about one quarter of the country’s population that fell short of India’s air standards. If all the cities permanently reduced particulate pollution by 25 percent (the midpoint of NCAP’s goal), their residents would gain 1.4 years. Though achieving the NCAP’s goals would be an important step toward reversing India’s 69 percent increase in fine particulate pollution (PM2.5) concentrations since 1998, India could achieve further gains in life expectancy for its citizens through additional pollution reductions that bring the country into compliance with its own official air quality standards or the World Health Organization’s (WHO) guidelines for PM2.5 concentrations.

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Reports

Introducing the Air Quality Life Index

November 2018

The Air Quality Life Index, or AQLI, represents a completely novel advancement in measuring and communicating the health risks posed by particulate matter air pollution. This is because the AQLI converts particulate air pollution into perhaps the most important metric that exists: its impact on life expectancy. The AQLI reveals that, averaged across all women, men, and children globally, particulate matter air pollution cuts global life expectancy short by nearly 2 years relative to what they would be if particulate concentrations everywhere were at the level deemed safe by the World Health Organization (WHO). This life expectancy loss makes particulate pollution more devastating than communicable diseases like tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, behavioral killers like cigarette smoking, and even war.

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