Poor environment will take the world $2.6 trillion a year, OECD

Almaty. August 16. Silkroadnews – Air pollution will cause a premature death of over 200 million people within next 45 years, Russian mass-media reports with reference to the analysts at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Thus, according to the OECD estimates, up to 2060 including 6-9 million people will die for this reason annually, compared with 3 million in 2010. By the end of 2060 the world economy will lose 3.75 billion “man-days” a year due to the impact of air pollution on the health of employees and productivity, the experts believe. The direct effect of such pollution may exceed 1% of global GDP or $2.6 trillion a year.

At the same time the forecasts signal a growth of spread of diseases related to air pollution, including four times increase in number of new cases of bronchitis among children of 6 to 12 years old up to 36 million per year and three times growth among the adults up to 10 million a year. Number of asthma cases is expected to grow among the children.

The worst situation is expected in countries with high population density and contamination level, including India and China; high mortality and morbidity rates are also expected in the Caucasus region, Eastern Europe and Asia, including South Korea.

As analysts say, air pollution reduces life expectancy and impairs life quality for both adults and children, as well as reduces volumes and quality of food production. The organization believes the world does already have a technology allowing greater purification of the air. However, the authorities prefer to consider only the short-term costs of such technologies rather than their long-term benefits – both economic and social, the OECD experts warn.

According to the OECD estimates, people are ready to pay about $30 a year to reduce the risk of premature death from air pollution by one hundred thousandth. With such willingness the economic impact of early deaths in 2060 would range from $18 trillion to $25 trillion per year, which is comparable to GDP of the U.S., the world leader on this indicator. The OECD experts, including Simon Upton, Environment Director, recognize the point in case is not about the “real money” or market transactions, yet believes the consequences of the issues shall not be underestimated.