Air pollution costs India $150 billion in a year

Air pollution costs India $150 billion in a year
Air pollution from burning fossil fuels is generating economic losses of $8 billion a day, according to a Greenpeace report.
That’s about 3.3% of global gross domestic product, or $2.9 trillion per year, according to a report from Greenpeace Southeast Asia and Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air.China, the US and India bear the highest economic cost of soaring pollution, at an estimated $900 billion, $600 billion and $150 billion a year, respectively.Air pollution continues to harm billions of people on a daily basis, despite efforts by some countries and companies to push for greater use of renewable energy and cleaner fuels.Particles thrown off by fossil fuel use account for 4.5 million premature deaths each year around the globe, including 1.8 million in China and a million in India, the researchers found.Phasing out existing coal, oil and gas infrastructure and transitioning to renewable energy is required to avoid the worst impact of climate change, Greenpeace said. In the absence of efforts to curb greenhouse gas emissions, the earth could warm by 2 degrees Celsius by 2050, cutting global GDP by 2.5% to 7.5%, Oxford Economics said in a November report.The financial cost of dealing with polluted air is the result of respiratory and non-communicable diseases, as well as an economic valuation of the years of life lost through premature death, Greenpeace said. Deaths of children and young people bring an economic cost through lost contributions to society and economy, which can be large, it said.Compared to other pollutants such as ozone and nitrogen dioxide, the PM 2.5 leads to the greatest health impact and cost due to increased work absences, while nations with large populations typically have a heavier absolute cost burden, according to the report. In 2019, about 91% of the global population lived in places where levels of air pollution exceeded guidelines set by the World Health Organization.The global cost for 2018 was $2.9 trillion, the report estimated.Each year the global economy takes $350 billion and $380 billion.By far the most costly pollutant is microscopic fine particulate matter, which accounts for more than two trillion dollars per year in damages, measured in health impacts, missed work days and years lost to premature death.