The Issue: Declining air quality

Our View: Action needed now to minimize pollutants

Athletes competing in the Beijing Olympic Games are getting a taste of life in a country with severely polluted air.  Toronto, one of Canada’s worst cities when it comes to air quality, actually looks healthy (for now) in comparison.
According to a report released by the Canadian Medical Association on Wednesday, 21,000 Canadians will die as a result of polluted air this year, 2,500 of which as a direct result of  “acute, short-term exposure.” Worse yet, CMA estimates by 2031, a mere 23 years away, around 710,000 people will die from long-term exposure, or 31,000 people annually if averaged out over that timeframe.
Other findings of the study, which are posted on the CMA website (www.cma.ca), include:
- Air pollution will result in more than 620,000 visits to Canadian doctors’ offices this year, and another 30,000 visits to emergency departments.
- The economic impact of air pollution because of worker absenteeism, higher health care costs and other factors will top $10 billion this year, and the cumulative total between now and 2031 will be more than $300 billion.
- Those living in Ontario and Quebec will have a greater risk of dying prematurely because of air pollution. They will account for about 70 per cent of these deaths, while having only 62 per cent of the population.
- The “vast majority” of deaths will be among Canadians older than 65.
Thirty-seven people in Dufferin County are expected to die prematurely this summer because of air pollution, the Ontario Medical Association said in a report published in June. Air quality is a contributing factor in almost 9,500 premature deaths in the province annually, it said.
Sceptics may question the timing of the reports being released, given the focus on air quality due to the Olympic Games. Others may question the methods used to gather the data or the resulting interpretation. But even the smallest possibility of this becoming a reality should be enough to take our breath away.
The time for a comprehensive strategy to significantly reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and other environmentally sustainable initiatives is now; we can’t afford to wait.