Daily Times

GENEVA: Nine out of 10 people globally are breathing poor quality air, the World Health Organisation said on Tuesday, calling for dramatic action against pollution that is blamed for more than six million deaths a year.

According to UN’s global health body “is enough to make all of us extremely concerned,” WHO’s department of public health and environment head Maria Neira told reporters. The problem is most acute in cities, but air in rural areas is worse than many think, WHO experts said.

Poorer countries have much dirtier air than the developed world but pollution “affects practically all countries in the world and all parts of society,” Neira said. “It is a public health emergency,” she said.

“Fast action to tackle air pollution can’t come soon enough,” she added, urging governments to cut the number of vehicles on the road, improve waste management and promote clean cooking fuel. Tuesday’s report was based on data collected from more than 3,000 sites across the globe. It found that “92 per cent of the world’s population lives in places where air quality levels exceed WHO limits.”