Peru among the countries that “breathe the worst air on the planet”

This Saturday, March 26, another edition of Earth Hour is held, an event that seeks to raise awareness among the inhabitants of the actions they carry out in their routines and that cause a negative impact on Earth. From 8:30 p.m. we Peruvians will be able to join this environmental movement. One of the signs that characterizes this event is the turning off lights and appliances in our home. Among the topics discussed during these days are air pollution and the damage they cause.

What is the situation in Peru regarding the pollution of the planet? Earlier this month, the Swiss company IQAir shared an official report on the analysis carried out in 2021, in which the list of capitals and countries with the lowest air quality is detected.

According to the recorded data, we are the first country in Latin America to breathe the worst air in the world after recording an average of 29.6 μg/m3 of particles. The countries of Chile, Colombia and Mexico had the greatest progress in air quality monitoring with a 51%, 38% and 28% increase in the number of monitoring stations, respectively. Citizens of this region play an active role in monitoring air quality.

If we talk about cities with negative air quality, the global study indicates that the national territory ranks 22nd, leaving behind Santiago de Chile, Mexico City, Montevideo in Uruguay, Bogota in Colombia, among others.

According to WHO, air pollution causes nearly four million deaths annually worldwide. The global air quality report for the last year revealed that only 3% of cities — 222 of the 6,475 analyzed — met the latest annual PM2.5 air quality guidelines established by WHO, which recommends not exceeding 5 μg/m3. No country met these expectations.

WHAT CAUSES POOR AIR QUALITY?

In Latin America, the increases in energy production generated by fossil fuels, vehicle exhaust gases from obsolete vehicle fleets, the increasing use of solid-state fuels as a heat source in low-income cities and the absence of government regulation on the quality of air contribute to poor air quality.

What happens in regions far from capitals? These destinations see the steady increase in the use of wood burning for heating and cooking in low-income regional cities, combined with lower rainfall rates, as well as post-quarantine economic mobilization, are factors that have contributed to this year's increase.

In order to take swift action, local organizations and individuals have launched monitoring station projects in several Latin American countries, in order to be able to analyze in detail the quality of the air that citizens breathe.

One such group is called the Aires Nuevos Citizens Early Childhood Air Quality Network in Latin America, which operates with numerous air quality monitoring stations in eight Latin American countries: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay.

Despite efforts, there is still a long way to go. In recent years, Peruvian authorities have promoted actions such as street closures so that vehicles are not circulated on certain days, as well as motivating people to use bicycles and other types of transport that do not harm the environment.

KEEP READING