2016 AAAS Annual Meeting (February 11-15, 2016)

February 10 - 15, 2016

The Burden of Disease From Air Pollution

Exposure to ambient fine particulate air pollution contributes to approximately 3.2 million premature deaths each year, with fully two-thirds of those deaths occurring in China, India, and other developing countries of Asia. It is a significant problem in Eastern Europe as well. Estimating and communicating the burden of disease attributable to ambient air pollution from specific major sources is a critical next step to control both air pollution and climate effects from burning coal and other major sources of air pollution. This symposium presents the most recent estimates of the global disease burden attributable to air pollution. In addition, estimates of both present and future sector-specific contributions to disease from coal combustion and other key emission sources for China and India are discussed. These estimates incorporate predictions of future sector-specific impacts based on projected trends in mortality and air pollution emissions. The symposium also outlines progress in extending such estimates to Eastern Europe, where coal use is high and unlikely to decrease in the near future, absent major changes in energy policy.