Pollution caused by landscape fires, including incidents like agricultural burning in northern India during winter, could lead to an average of more than 1.2 lakh deaths every year in India over the 20-year period between 2000 and 2019, according to a new study published in the journal Lancet. Can happen. Said.
Agricultural burning is one type of landscape fire that contributes to air pollution. The study covers all types of fires in any natural cultural landscape such as forests, grasslands, vegetation areas or wildfires.
The study said that over this 20-year period, about 25.54 lakh deaths in India could be due to respiratory or cardiovascular diseases caused by air pollution induced by these types of fires. China had the highest number of such casualties during this period, followed by the Democratic Republic of Congo, India, Indonesia and Nigeria.
The study said such landscape fire events could cause as many as 1.53 million deaths globally.
The study, led by Yuming Guo, head of the Climate, Air Quality Research (CARE) Unit at the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine at Monash University in Melbourne, reveals for the first time the real health risks from bushfires , especially PM2.5 substances released during the process.
“The flames and heat of landscape fires can kill people near fire areas, with 221 direct deaths recorded globally in 2018. However, the health risks from landscape fires are much greater, as are landscape fire-source (LFS) air pollution (particularly fine) particulate matter with a diameter of 2·5 μm or less. [PM2·5] and ozone) often travel hundreds and even thousands of kilometers away and affect far larger populations than flames and heat,” Guo said in the study.
They reported that wildfires are likely to contribute at least 90 percent of global landscape fire emissions of PM2.5, and this proportion may increase with climate change. The study found geographic and socio-economic differences in mortality rates and a global trend of increased cardiovascular deaths due to fire pollution.
“Our study is the largest and most comprehensive assessment to date of health risks associated with air pollution from landscape fires. “It found that the number of global cardiovascular deaths linked to this pollution is increasing, with approximately 450,000 deaths per year caused by cardiovascular disease, and 220,000 deaths caused by respiratory disease,” he said.
Prakash Doraiswamy, director of air quality at the World Resources Institute, India, said large-scale burning events such as forest fires or agricultural fires contribute to the larger air quality problem at both the local and regional levels.
“Such fire events result in significant emissions of smoke containing black carbon and other particulates that affect health, air quality and climate. Fine particles have been linked to several health effects such as respiratory and cardiovascular effects. Given the magnitude of large-scale fire incidents, impacts on air quality are seen up to 100 kilometers downwind. Black carbon is a product of incomplete combustion and has high global warming potential leading to long-term climate impacts. There is also a feedback loop with climate change resulting in disruption of weather patterns and impacts on ecosystems,” Doraiswamy said.
As preventive measures, volunteers from villagers living in the forest are appointed as fire monitors, said NR Praveen, Chief Conservator of Forests. Pune Circle said.
“About 20 percent MaharashtraThe geographical area is forest land. At least 1,000 fires occur every year, except for 2019, which saw very good rainfall and few fire incidents. It starts in the fields where the cheapest way to dispose of agricultural waste is to burn them. It is not healthy and often spreads from agricultural land to adjacent forest land. Hence awareness activities are increased with the onset of winter,” he said.
Deaths from wildfire/bush fires are four times higher in low-income countries than in high-income countries, the study said.
Lower socio-economic countries were more likely to die from respiratory disease caused by fires than higher socio-economic countries. Global cardiovascular deaths due to fire pollution increased by an average of 1.67 percent per year.
Professor Guo said in the report that the global health burden due to pollution from fires “will increase as the frequency and severity of fires increases in a warming climate.”