New research results on the tolerance of air show that there are European cities in which they can lead to many deaths. The scientists have them throughAir pollution causedMortality in more than 1000 cities in Europe. The mortality rate in the examined areas is due to the two air pollutants fine dust and nitrogen dioxide.
The most affected European cities
The results show that 51,000 or 900 premature deaths could be prevented every year if all analyzed cities would reach the levels recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). However, if all cities were to meet the air quality levels of the least dirty city on the list, even more deaths could be prevented. The number of early deaths, which can be prevented by reducing concentrations to the lowest measured values: 125,000 and 79,000. The highest mortality rates due to nitrogen oxide were determined in large cities in countries such as Spain, Belgium, Italy and France. This is a toxic gas that is mainly associated with motor vehicle traffic. European cities with the highest mortality rate are in the Italian Poe level, in southern Poland and in the Eastern Czech Republic. This is due to the fact that suspended matter not only emitted by motor vehicles, but also by other combustion sources, including industry, household heating and combustion of coal and wood.
At the other end of the ranking, there are European cities with the lowest mortality rates thanks to better air quality. This privileged position is currently occupied by the metropolises in the Scandinavian countries. The study results support the evidence that there is no safe exposure under which air pollution is harmful to health. They also suggest that the currently applicable European legal provisions do not contribute enough to protect people. According to the authorsthis studyshould therefore be revised by law the maximum of the approved air quality levels. They hope that the local authorities can use this data to implement urban and traffic planning strategies to improve the health of people.This websitewas created as a turntable for the ranking lists and detailed data for every city.
