In a recent report, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) stressed the connection between air pollution and climate change.
This is rather evident today as rise in temperatures, occurrences of storms and other disasters, and deterioration of the quality of air affect the lives and wellbeing of people and the environment.
The information in this report reveals a relation between air pollution, which is often resultant from human activities, and climate systems, resulting in significant effects on the planet.
Climate Change’s Impact on Air Quality
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Increasing global temperatures result in extensive and severe wildfires, events that emit huge quantities of particulate matter and other poisonous gases into the atmosphere.
According to the WMO, smoke plumes from wildfires in Australia and California are becoming more widespread and have the ability to travel thousands of kilometers, which has an impact on the quality of the air worldwide.
Other effects of climate change include heatwaves that also enhance emission of foul air, hence increasing pollution. Heat enhances the formation of smog, which is in turn a cocktail of compounds that irritates the respiratory system and, in most instances, causes it to shrink.
The WMO also points out that, owing to global warming, dangerous levels of ozone will be even more frequent; the people most sensitive to illness will be at further risk.
How Air Pollution Affects Climate
And while we know that air pollution impacts the health of people living in a given region, it also increases climate change. Other greenhouse gases, such as black carbon, methane, and ground-level ozone, belong to the potent climate forcing agents.
We have for example, black carbon, a component of soot whose emissions result from the burning of fossil fuels and biomass. When it settles on the snow or ice, it makes the surface darker, thus trapping more heat from the sun and thus speeding up the process of melting that ice or snow.
Another important pollutant is methane, which is 87% more effective than CO2 in terms of its heat retention capability in the atmosphere in the course of 20 years. The emission of methane can therefore be seen to present immediate climate advantages when it is reduced. According to the WMO, lowering these pollutants is crucial for both slowing down the rate of climate change and improving air quality.
The Need for Integrated Action
Among the messages that WMO brings into the focus, there is information on the fact that the measures to address these two problems should be incorporated and comprehensive.
Hitherto, these problems have been solved individually. Nevertheless, since emissions of both greenhouse gases and other air pollutants are linked, the report calls upon governments and organisations to seek measures that would lead to a reduction of both.
For instance, shifting incidence to renewable energy sources not only lowers carbon dioxide emissions but also clears particulate matter plus other unhealthy pollutants resulting from the burning of coal or oil. Likewise, locally and globally, modification of public transport and decrease of car pollution remedy both air quality and global warming.
This is according to WMO, which has noted that only by embracing an integrated approach will it be possible for policies to score higher gains in the fight against these two issues.
Looking Ahead: Urgency for Action
It is evident from WMO conclusion that there is very important and immediate call for operational and synchronized dealing with air pollution and climate change.
As the intensity of vane and more frequent climate changes, the scenario of doing nothing will cost society a lot. In this regard, the report notes that, whereas considerable progress has already been made in the reduction of emissions of some pollutants, much more still has to be done.
Climate change is happening at an alarming rate, and any efforts towards a decrease in emissions of both greenhouse gases and air pollutants must be initiated now; otherwise emissions will exacerbate.
To sum up, the latest report of the WMO shows that air pollution and climate change are not two different problems that occur individually, but meaningful connections exist between them, and the solutions call for an interdisciplinary approach.
Therefore, even if there is no possibility to completely eliminate their negative impacts and protect human health as well as the climate system of the Earth using separate policies, it is still possible to do it using coordinated policies.
ASH CK