Thanks To Explosive Wildfires And Dust, The Majority Of Earth's People Breathed Unhealthy Air In 2024
A new report on global air pollution shows that the majority of the world’s population breathes unhealthy air, and climate change is making the problem worse. The report was published Tuesday by IQAir, a Swiss air monitor and purifier company that posts real-time air quality data aggregated from sensors around the world. It shows that in 2025, most of the world’s cities were plagued with unhealthy levels of air pollution, and that climate-driven wildfires and dust storms as well as the continued burning of fossil fuels are driving toxic air across borders and worsening the problem.
Supercharged wildfires in California, Canada and South Korea and dust storms from China to Texas last year made it harder for millions to breathe. In an era of larger and more severe weather events, living far from the pollution’s origin is no protection.
Only 14 percent of the more than 9,000 cities included in the report met the World Health Organization’s target level for toxic particulate matter pollution. Canadian wildfires, intensified by climate change, led to deteriorating air quality in regions previously seeing improvements.
The report also found that global disparities in access to pollution data are a persistent problem, particularly in Africa, Latin America and West Asia, which have less robust networks for air quality monitoring. The problem was exacerbated last year by the U.S. Department of State’s decision to stop monitoring global air quality data from embassies and diplomatic posts. The report’s results have broad implications for global health. Fine particulate matter, or PM2.5, is a mix of tiny particles of soot, smoke and other substances. Smaller than 2.5 micrometers, they can infiltrate the lungs and bloodstream, causing widespread health harms—from cardiovascular damage and respiratory distress to premature death.
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https://insideclimatenews.org/news/24032026/wildfires-dust-storms-air-pollution-risks/