2022 World Air Quality Report
The recently published IQAir 2022 World Air Quality Report includes data from 7,323 cities in 131 countries and shows that in 2022, only 13 of them achieved annual PM2.5 concentrations at or below WHO guidelines.
Why PM2.5?
PM2.5 concentration describes the amount of fine particulate aerosol particles up to 2.5 microns in diameter and is used as the standard air quality indicator for the World Air Quality Report.
PM2.5 can be produced by a variety of sources which can result in different chemical compositions and physical characteristics. Sulfates, nitrates, black carbon, and ammonium are some of the most common particles that make up PM2.5.
The data analysed for this report comes exclusively from empirically measured PM2.5 data collected from ground-level air monitoring stations, which are operated by government agencies, educational institutions, non-profit organizations, and individual citizens who contribute to monitoring their local air quality. Most of the data is collected in real time, with additional supplementary air quality measurements sourced from historical year-end datasets.
The PM2.5 data in this report is measured in units of micrograms per cubic meter (μg/m3)
- annual is 5 µg/m3
- daily is 15 µg/m3
The two different standards arise due to different health risks posed by short-term and long-term exposure to PM2.5 and take into account the concentration of pollutants and the length of time a person is exposed to them.
Daily threshold values are intended to protect people from short-term events that can cause immediate health problems, such as forest fires and dust storms, or heavy traffic and agricultural fires with intermittent emissions that occur on a timescale of minutes to hours.
The annual average guidance is intended to quantify the risks associated with long-term, chronic exposure. Long-term exposure to PM2.5 concentrations above the average recommended level causes chronic effects on the respiratory and circulatory systems of individuals, leading to long-term complications such as heart disease and deterioration of lung function. They can have detrimental consequences for the mental health of affected populations.
Short summary:
90% out of 131 countries and regions exceeded the WHO annual PM2.5 guideline value of 5 µg/m3.
Africa remains the most underrepresented continent (only 19 countries out of 54 have sufficient air quality data).
There are now 20 new countries represented that were not in last year's report, including Burkina Faso, which ranked 6th, and Rwanda, which ranked 13th on this year's list of most polluted countries.
8 of the world's 10 cities with the worst air pollution are in the region of Central and South Asia
Lahore (Pakistan) is the most polluted metropolitan area of 2022. It ranked #15 in 2021.
Chile became home to eight of the region's top 15 most polluted cities.
The top 5 most polluted countries
(more than 13-17 times higher than the annual guideline
Chad – 89.7
Iraq – 80.1
Pakistan – 70.9
Bahrain – 66.6
Bangladesh – 65.8
The 10 most polluted countries in Europe
Bosnia Herzegovina – 33.6
North Macedonia – 25.6
Serbia – 24.7
Croatia – 23.5
Moldava – 22.6
Turkey – 21.1
Greece – 19.0
Italy – 18.9
Bulgaria – 18.3
Romania – 17.2
13 countries met
the annual guideline or less
Finland – 5.0
Estonia – 4.9
New Zealand – 4.8
Puerto Rico – 4.3
Australia – 4.2
Grenada – 3.8
New Caledonia – 3.5
Iceland – 3.4
Bonaire, Sint Eusatius and Saba – 3.3
Bermuda – 3.0
U.S. Virgin Islands – 2.9
French Polynesia – 2.5
Guam – 1.3
While the number of countries and regions with air quality monitoring has steadily increased over the past five years, there remain significant gaps in government-operated regulatory instruments in many parts of the world.
“In 2022, more than half of the world’s air quality data was generated by grassroots community efforts. When citizens get involved in air quality monitoring, we see a shift in awareness and the joint effort to improve air quality intensifies.
We need governments to monitor air quality, but we cannot wait for them. ”
“Too many people around the world don’t know that they are breathing polluted air. Air pollution monitors provide hard data that can inspire communities to demand change and hold polluters to account, but when monitoring is patchy or unequal, vulnerable communities can be left with no data to act on. Everyone deserves to have their health protected from air pollution.”
Source: IQAir
