Poor Air Lowers Visibility in Hong Kong, Raises Death Rates : Report
Visibility in Hong Kong continues to deteriorate due to air pollution
“Visibility in Hong Kong has deteriorated so sharply over the last 50 years because of air pollution that variations in levels can even be used to predict mortality rates, health experts warned Wednesday.” Source
Report Highlights:
- Current Average Visibility in Hong Kong: 12.6km (7.8 miles)
- Visibility in other polluted population centers (Paris, Berlin, Auckland and Vancouver) : 20 to 25km
- Number of smoggy days when visibility falls below 8 km: 54 days in 2007 (up from 6.6 days in 1968)
- HK air has 7 times more particulate than even the polluted Auckland and Vancouver (80 µgm–³ —micrograms per cubic meter of air—in HK compared to 24 in Auckland and 20 in Vancouver)
- Each 6.5km reduction in visibility corresponds to 1.13% rise in the number of non-accidental deaths
- An additional 1,200 deaths per year have occurred between 2007 and 2010
“Loss of visibility is a direct measure of serious harm to health. Loss of visibility kills people,” said Anthony Hedley, Honorary Professor at the School of Public Health. Source
“Air pollutants increase the stickiness of elements in the blood … With increased stickiness, blood cells stick together, they form a clot. If you form a clot, you may obstruct a vessel and if the vessel is in the heart or the head, you get a heart attack or a stroke,” Hedley said.
The true non-accidental death rates for Hong Kong may be even higher than those stated in the report, FIRE-Earth contends. According to one report:
- Studies in Greater Vancouver have found that more than 2700 deaths and 33,000 emergency room visits could be avoided with a 25% reduction in particulate matter
- Air pollution with particulate matter (PM) claims an average of 8.6 months from the life of every person in the European Union (EU)
- Exposure to ground-level ozone for even short periods at relatively low concentrations has been found to significantly reduce lung function in healthy people during periods of exercise. Source
- Particulate air pollution causes 455,000 premature deaths in the EU each year, the European Environmental Bureau (EEB) says. Source
Related Links:
- HK’s Air Pollution Claims 600 Lives
- Breast Cancer Risk Linked to Traffic Pollution
- Air Quality and Pollution is Getting Worse in China
Other Related Links:
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