Bangladesh can save 81,282 untimely deaths by improving air quality as air pollution is responsible for roughly 1,02,456 deaths in the country annually, according to a report revealed on Saturday.
The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air study also said that the deaths were related to ischaemic heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lower respiratory infections, and lung cancer.
Among them, children under five are especially vulnerable, with 5,258 deaths annually attribute to PM2.5-related lower respiratory infections.
Center for Atmospheric Pollution Studies and the CREA jointly organised a press conference at the National Press Club to launch the report titled 鈥楶ublic health impacts of fine particle air pollution in Bangladesh鈥�.
CREA始s analysis finds that meeting Bangladesh鈥檚 national air quality standard (35碌g/m鲁) has a dramatic impact, reducing deaths by 19 per cent, Years of Life Lost by 21 per cent, and Years Lived with Disability by 12 per cent.
Moreover, achieving the stricter WHO 2021 guideline of 5碌g/m鲁 could reduce deaths by 79 per cent, saving 81,282 lives each year, as well as eliminating almost all asthma-related emergency visits, preterm births, and avoiding 263 million annual sick leave days.
In 2023, Bangladesh was ranked the most polluted country globally, with an annual average particulate matter (PM2.5) concentration of 79.9碌g/m鲁, more than double the national standard of 35碌g/m鲁 and 15 times the World Health Organization鈥檚 guideline of 5碌g/m鲁.
Amid this monumental health crisis, the government鈥檚 decision in 2022 to set the standard at 35碌g/m鲁 along with a lack of a comprehensive strategy tailored to Bangladesh鈥檚 specific conditions raised serious concerns and greatly hindered progress for Bangladesh.
The report reads that the impact of PM2.5 exposure in Bangladesh also contributes to significant morbidity, with approximately: 6,70,000 annual emergency room visits due to asthma, 263 million lost workdays annually, 9,00,000 preterm births, and 7,00,000 low birth weight births annually. These health burdens also come with tremendous economic costs, including higher healthcare expenses and reduced productivity, costs which in 2019 amounted to $11 billion, or nearly 5 per cent of Bangladesh始s GDP.
Bangladesh Institute of Planners president Adil Muhammad Khan, CAPS chairman Ahmad Kamruzzaman Majumdar, Swedish embassy in Bangladesh鈥檚 first secretary Nayoka Martinez 鈥揃ackstrom and environment ministry additional secretary Tapan Kumar Biswas spoke at the event, among others.
The study recommended that Bangladesh should adhere to and enforce its own national guideline and further move towards the 2005 WHO guideline of 10碌g/m鲁 in the medium term, and a longer-term goal of achieving the 2021 WHO guideline of 5碌g/m鲁.
It also recommended reducing reliance on coal and diesel as primary energy sources, a stricter industrial emission regulation and expanding monitoring networks, and establishing a national monitoring framework.
