61 percent of the total estimated 8.3 million deaths globally due to ambient (outdoor) air pollution from all sources in 2019
A recent modelling study published in The BMJ reveals that outdoor air pollution from all sources contributes to 2.18 million deaths per year in India, making it the second-highest globally after China.
The research, conducted by a team including researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Germany, indicates that air pollution resulting from fossil fuel use in industry, power generation, and transportation leads to 5.1 million additional deaths annually worldwide.
This figure represents 61 percent of the total estimated 8.3 million deaths globally due to ambient (outdoor) air pollution from all sources in 2019.
The researchers suggest that these new estimates of fossil fuel-related deaths are larger than most previously reported values, emphasising that phasing out fossil fuels could have a more significant impact on attributable mortality than previously thought.
The study used a new model to estimate all-cause and cause-specific deaths resulting from fossil fuel-related air pollution. It also assessed potential health benefits from policies that replace fossil fuels with clean, renewable energy sources.
The researchers considered four scenarios, ranging from the complete phase-out of all fossil fuel-related emission sources to a scenario removing all human-induced sources of air pollution, leaving only natural sources.
The results highlight that in 2019, 8.3 million deaths worldwide were attributable to fine particles (PM2.5) and ozone (O3) in ambient air, with 61 percent (5.1 million) linked to fossil fuels. China and India had the highest attributable deaths to all sources of ambient air pollution, with 2.44 million and 2.18 million per year, respectively.
The study emphasises that phasing out fossil fuels would result in significant health benefits, particularly in South, Southeast, and East Asia, where about 3.85 million potentially preventable deaths could be averted annually.
The researchers argue that the replacement of fossil fuels by clean, renewable energy sources aligns with the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement and would have substantial public health and climate co-benefits.
They suggest that ongoing climate change negotiations, such as COP28, offer an opportunity to make substantial progress toward phasing out fossil fuels, with health benefits high on the agenda.