Polución

Local villagers carry coal from an open-cast mine near Jharia, India. Photo by Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images.

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The Indian delegation won many plaudits in Glasgow – demanding sufficient climate finance for developing countries, updating its nationally determined contributions (NDCs) for the first time in six years, and setting its first ever net-zero target for 2070, a date with ample room to be brought forward.

But, in the final moments when the text of the agreement was thought to have been agreed, India revised it with Chinese backing and the pledge to ‘phase out’ coal became one to only ‘phase down’ its use instead. Many countries – especially island states such as the Maldives facing existential threat – were palpably furious at this late move.…  Seguir leyendo »

London’s Ulez area will be significantly expanded to help cut emissions in the capital. Photograph: Vuk Valcic/SOPA Images/REX/Shutterstock

ReflexionesNaturaleza, ,

Air pollution is a global health crisis and tackling it is a crucial part of our response to the climate emergency. Toxic air is leading to premature deaths, making people sick, harming the health of our children and inflicting profound and lasting damage on our precious natural environment.

In a week’s time, leaders from around the world will meet at the Cop26 climate conference in Glasgow to try to agree on the vital action we need to protect our planet and to save lives. Health professionals will be attending the conference in record numbers, including a group of paediatricians who are cycling from London’s famous Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children to raise awareness of the devastating effect of air pollution on children’s health, including stunted lung growth.…  Seguir leyendo »

The wildfires and poisonous air in the American West are best seen as a product of negligence at all levels of society.Credit Max Whittaker for The New York Times

MundoAmérica, , ,

Among the few remaining advantages that Americans can claim over other countries is the relative cleanliness of our air. Air pollution is a leading risk factor for early death; it is linked to an estimated four million premature fatalities around the world annually. But over the last 50 years, since Congress passed environmental legislation in 1970, air quality in the United States has steadily improved. Today, America’s air is significantly cleaner than in much of the rest of the world, including in many of our wealthy, industrialized peers.

Well, not literally today, considering I needed an N95 mask to walk to the mailbox this morning.…  Seguir leyendo »

La voiture, en ville, est de loin la première source de pollution

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Entretien. Jocelyne Just est pédiatre, pneumologue et chef du service d’allergologie pédiatrique à l’hôpital Armand-Trousseau, à Paris. Alors que la France subissait un premier épisode de canicule et de pollution, elle publiait, dans Le Monde du 27 juin, avec l’appui de 150 médecins et chercheurs, un appel à l’action contre la pollution automobile.

Comment, en tant que médecin, considérez-vous la voiture ?

La voiture, en ville, est de loin la première source de pollution extérieure. Les scientifiques anglo-saxons mettent en exergue que c’est le trafic automobile qui est responsable des problèmes, notamment respiratoires, liés à la pollution. De nombreuses études observent l’incidence des maladies par rapport au fait que vous habitiez à 50, 100, 200 ou 500 mètres d’une voie à fort trafic, et on trouve des corrélations très significatives entre la distance domicile-axe routier et certaines pathologies.…  Seguir leyendo »

Dos mujeres pasan por un puente que ve hacia el viaducto Miguel Alemán, en Ciudad de México, durante la hora pico. Credit Luis Antonio Rojas para The New York Times

MundoAmérica, ,

Cuando el gobierno de Claudia Sheinbaum en Ciudad de México cumplió un mes, en enero de 2019, se implementaron cambios que hicieron más laxa la verificación de automóviles, el proceso de medición de contaminantes del que dependen los distintos permisos para circular.

Al hacerlo, su gobierno cometió un error de cálculo y un acto inconstitucional que afecta la salud de los casi nueve millones de habitantes de la capital mexicana: se calcula que aproximadamente 200.000 coches adicionales comenzaron a circular desde inicios del año. El gobierno de Sheinbaum sabía que expertos internacionales aconsejaban no relajar la verificación de automóviles porque eso podía deteriorar la calidad del aire de la ciudad.…  Seguir leyendo »

ReflexionesNaturaleza,

La polución es uno de los grandes desafíos existenciales del siglo veintiuno. Amenaza la estabilidad de los ecosistemas, socava el desarrollo económico y pone en riesgo la salud de miles de millones de personas. Y, sin embargo, a menudo no se le da la importancia adecuada, ya sea en las estrategias de desarrollo o en los presupuestos de ayuda extranjera, como los de la Unión Europea o la Agencia estadounidense para el Desarrollo Internacional. Como resultado, la amenaza sigue creciendo.

El primer paso hacia la movilización de los recursos, el liderazgo y la participación cívica necesarios para ir reduciendo la amenaza de la polución es crear conciencia de su verdadera escala.…  Seguir leyendo »

Why China’s Good Environmental Policies Have Gone Wrong

MundoAsia,

As my plane was landing in Beijing in mid-December, I realized I had forgotten to bring my N95 respirator mask, and instantly regretted it. But that day turned out to be clear, if chilly. A Chinese public-health expert later told me that it was no exception: There were far fewer days of smog in 2017 than just a couple of years ago.

Terrific, I thought — until I came to understand the unintended costs of the dramatic improvement in the capital’s air quality.

To reduce the levels of hazardous particles known as PM2.5, the Chinese authorities started a major campaign in 2013 to convert coal-generated heating to gas or electric heating.…  Seguir leyendo »

Indian security personnel stand guard at the Rajghat memorial amid heavy smog in New Delhi on November 7, 2017. New Delhi woke up to a choking blanket of smog on November 7 as air quality in the world’s most polluted capital city reached hazardous levels. (PRAKASH SINGH/AFP/Getty Images)

MundoAsia,

This week India’s capital city, Delhi has been hit with extreme air pollution – so extreme that the city’s Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal described it as a gas chamber.  The city’s Air Quality Index has been in the range of 700 to 1,000; the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency considers anything over 300 to be hazardous. The index measures the concentration of particulate matter, microscopic particles that can harm the lungs, causing cancer, exacerbating asthma, and damaging organs.

In response, the city is taking extreme measures. On Tuesday, the Delhi government closed schools for the week. The National Green Tribunal has banned construction, one source of particulate pollution, in the region through November 14; truck and car travel has also been limited.…  Seguir leyendo »

ReflexionesNaturaleza,

La pollution atmosphérique est responsable d’un nombre croissant de cancers et de maladies respiratoires. Face à ce fléau, les mesures politiques font peser principalement l’ajustement sur le consommateur, soit par des régulations (circulation alternée, péage à l’entrée des centres-villes comme à Londres), soit par des incitations pour orienter les achats vers des véhicules moins polluants (fiscalité verte, bonus-malus). Ces dispositifs ont une certaine efficacité mais négligent la question centrale de l’offre de véhicules et son impact sur le choix des consommateurs.

Ces mesures ont été conçues en postulant que les constructeurs automobiles s’adaptent au souhait des consommateurs et qu’il faut donc, via des incitations et des réglementations, orienter leur choix.…  Seguir leyendo »

A man burns rubbish on the side of a road in Dandora in Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Siegfried Modola

MundoÁfricaReflexionesNaturaleza,

The World Health Organisation (WHO) recently launched BreatheLife, a campaign to make people more aware about the fact that air pollution – which it calls the invisible killer – is a major health and climate risk.

“Invisible” may refer to the lack of awareness that air pollution is a major health risk. In fact, air pollution levels exceeding the WHO air quality guidelines are often very visible, particularly in developing countries. This is especially true for billions of people living in close contact with air pollution sources. Those who, for example, cook on inefficient stoves with fuels such as coal. Or live in an industrial area.…  Seguir leyendo »

EuropaUnión EuropeaEconomía,

Nous reconnaissons tous l’importance économique du secteur automobile. Il crée des emplois dans l’industrie, ainsi que dans l’ensemble des chaînes d’approvisionnement, de vente et d’après-vente et dans la recherche de pointe. Les voitures représentent une large part de nos exportations.

Mais la croissance de l’industrie automobile n’est pas une fin en soi, et elle ne devrait certainement pas être poursuivie à n’importe quel prix. Nous devons concilier les intérêts des entreprises, des consommateurs et de l’environnement. Il ne s’agit pas d’une idée nouvelle. Elle a déjà été formulée auparavant.

Mais aujourd’hui, l’industrie automobile doit s’atteler sérieusement à faire de cet objectif une réalité.…  Seguir leyendo »

A man in Jingshan Park, overlooking the Forbidden City, Beijing, China, December 8, 2015

MundoAsia, ,

I am a member of a martial arts group that performs at annual temple fairs around Beijing. Half of our group are children, and almost without fail they meet at a park on the west side of town at around three in the afternoon to practice fighting with staffs with our teacher, a bear-like thirty-seven-year-old bus driver named Mr. Zhao. His personal motto: “Life is but a dream; keep smiling all the time.”

On Tuesday, Mr. Zhao wasn’t smiling. Around two, one of the children sent out a message on China’s most popular social media site, WeChat, asking if anyone was going to the park.…  Seguir leyendo »