News Archive
Car Emissions More Deadly Than Accidents
April 20, 2012
New research by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has suggested that air pollution from vehicles causes more deaths per year than road accidents.
MIT in the US has estimated that more than 5,000 people die from conditions such as lung cancer and cardiovascular disease each year due to traffic emissions. A further 2,000 deaths are thought to be caused by aeroplane fumes.
Pollution linked to the energy and industrial sectors as well as emissions from Europe take the total to 19,000 deaths, according to the study published by the Environmental Science and Technology journal. In contrast 1,850 people have been killed due to road accidents in 2010.
The study also suggested that 40% of the major pollutant comes from abroad rather than from the UK.
Commenting for MIT, Professor Steven Barrett said:
"It does appear to be the case that air pollution from road traffic causes more deaths per year than the number who die on the roads."
However Professor Barrett also added that "those who die from air pollution tend to die about 10 years earlier than they would otherwise, whereas people who die in road traffic accidents might be on average middle aged, so it is likely that road traffic accidents cause more loss of life years overall than air pollution."
Consequently experts have called on European governments to take action to cut fuel emissions.
Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/9209597/Exhaust-fumes-are-twice-as-deadly-as-roads-study-claims.html