Pakistan remained one of the world’s three smoggiest countries in 2023, as Bangladesh and India replaced Chad and Iran, with particulate matter about 15 times the level recommended by the World Health Organization, data published on Tuesday showed.
Average concentrations of PM2.5 – small airborne particles that damage the lungs – reached 79.9 micrograms per cubic meter in Bangladesh in 2023, and 73.7 micrograms in Pakistan. The WHO recommends no more than 5 micrograms.
“Because of the climate conditions and the geography (in South Asia), you get this streak of PM2.5 concentrations that just skyrocket because the pollution has nowhere to go,” said Christi Chester Schroeder, air quality science manager at IQAir, a Swiss air-monitoring organisation.
“On top of that are factors such as agricultural practices, industry, and population density,” she added. “Unfortunately, it really does look like it will get worse before it gets better.”
In 2022, Bangladesh was ranked as having the fifth-worst air quality, and India was eighth.
About 20 percent of premature deaths in Bangladesh are attributed to air pollution, and related healthcare costs amount to 4 percent-5 percent of the country’s GDP, said Md Firoz Khan, an air pollution expert at Dhaka’s North South University.
China also saw PM2.5 rise 6.3 percent to 32.5 micrograms last year, after five consecutive annual declines.
Only Australia, Estonia, Finland, Grenada, Iceland, Mauritius, and New Zealand met WHO standards in 2023.
