Toxic air, water and soil are responsible for the premature death of 9 million people each year.
This is 1 in 6 deaths that occur each year in the world. 15 times more than deaths from war and hunger, and three times more than deaths from AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.
This is reflected in a study published by the prestigious journal The Lancet . Most deaths are from pollution-related illnesses, such as heart disease, stroke, and lung cancer.
Half of the deaths are caused by air pollution caused by automobiles. Another 2.9 million deaths come from indoor air pollution, such as that caused by wood stoves.
Toxic water is responsible for another 1.8 million deaths each year. Finally, pollution in the workplace is responsible for around 800,000 deaths a year.
The United States and Japan top the dangerous list highest number of deaths from pollution
And the situation could get worse. Deaths from dementia or diabetes, whose relationship to pollution is still little investigated by the scientific community, are not yet counted.
Additionally, the unknown impact of hundreds of chemicals and pesticides could increase the total number of pollution-related deaths.
