Life Expectancy In Nigeria Shortened By 1.8 Years Due To Air pollution
According to a new report, the average life expectancy in Nigeria is being shortened by 1.8 years as a result of air pollution which is relative to what the average life expectancy would be if the World Health Organisation (WHO) guideline of 5 µg/m3 was met.
The Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) states that air pollution causes more harm than HIV/AIDS and is almost on par with malaria and unsafe water and sanitation. The index says that particulate air pollution takes 2.2 years off of the global average life expectancy, or a combined 17 billion life years which is relative to the world that met the WHO guideline 5 micrograms per cubic meter of air (µg/m3).
In the report, Akwa Ibom, Taraba, Cross River, and Delta states, the residents are losing 2.6 to 3 years of life expectancy on average, relative to the scenario in which the WHO guideline is met. Some areas in Nigeria face much worse than average as air pollution shortens lives by nearly 4 years on average in some parts of Taraba State, according to the report. The highest pollution levels in Nigeria had been observed in the Niger Delta, where the oil refineries — many illegal — are linked to the grim daily reality of air pollution.
The AQLI displayed that the impact on life expectancy could be compared to that of smoking, 3 times more than that of alcohol use and unsafe water, 6 times that of HIV/AIDS, and 89 times more than that of conflict and terrorism.
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The report said: “All of Nigeria’s 208.3 million people live in areas where the annual average particulate pollution level exceeds the WHO guideline. However, measured in terms of life expectancy, particulate pollution ranks among the top threats to human health in Nigeria, reducing life expectancy by 1.8 years on average. Malaria, in comparison, reduces average life expectancy by about 2.2 years, while HIV/ AIDS and unsafe water and sanitation reduces average life expectancy by 1.1 and 2.2 years respectively.”
Read Also: Air Pollution Reduces Global Life Expectancy By 2 Years, Researchers Say
Particulate pollution, according to the AQLI, has increased over time, and that the average annual PM2.5 concentration has increased by a near 15 percent since 2000, thereby cutting average life expectancies short by roughly 4 months.
The report stated that during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, even though the world’s economy had slowed down, the global annual average particulate pollution (PM2.5) was largely unchanged from the 2019 levels.
“In addition, at the same time, growing evidence shows air pollution — even when experienced at very low levels — hurts human health.”
As a result, the report said that it had led the WHO to revise its guideline (from 10 µg/m³ to 5 µg/m³) for what it had considered to be a safe level of exposure to particulate pollution, bringing most of the world— 97.3 percent of the global population — into the unsafe zone.
Additionally, in Lagos, which is Nigeria’s most populous city and home to 20 million people, the average resident, on average, can gain 1.5 years of life expectancy from clean air.
SOURCE: BusinessDay
