03/20/2024

Only Seven Countries Met WHO Air Standards in 2023, Report Says

The report examined fine particular matter pollution

Only seven countries and three territories last year met World Health Organization pollution guidelines for fine particulate matter, the most risky form of pollution to human health.

A report published Tuesday by the Swiss company IQAir looked at fine particular matter pollution (also known as PM 2.5) data collected by more than 30,000 ground-level air quality monitoring stations across 134 countries last year.

Of these countries, seven had annual averages within the WHO’s guidelines of 5 micrograms per cubic meter in 2023: Australia, Estonia, Finland, Grenada, Iceland, Mauritius and New Zealand. French Polynesia, Bermuda and Puerto Rico also met the guidelines.

Please select this link to read the complete article from The Washington Post.