The Guardian - Fossil fuel burning is not just damaging the world’s climate; it is also threatening the health of at least 1.6 billion people through the toxic pollutants it produces, data shows.
Carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas from fossil fuel burning, does not directly damage health, but leads to global heating. However, coal and oil burning for power generation, and the burning of fossil fuels in industrial facilities, pollute the air with particulate matter called PM2.5, which has serious health impacts when breathed in.
A new interactive map from Climate Trace, a coalition of academics and analysts that tracks pollution and greenhouse gases, shows that PM2.5 and other toxins are being poured into the air near the homes of about 1.6 billion people. Of these, about 900 million are in the path of “super-emitting” industrial facilities – including power plants, refineries, ports and mines – that deliver outsize doses of toxic air.
The organisation highlighted 10 urban areas particularly badly affected by super-emitters, including Karachi in Pakistan; Guangzhou in China; Seoul in South Korea; and New York in the US, where leaders from around the world are meeting this week for the UN general assembly.
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