A study of 24 European capital cities show Athens fared the best in curbing air pollution while Reykjavik slipped the worst
A survey of 24 European capitals revealed Athens to be the most serious about tackling air pollution while Reykjavik lagged the most. Six of 24 capitals in the region marked increased pollutants in 2021 than in 2019.
The highest jumps were recorded in:
The survey was conducted by Uswitch, which lets users compare prices online for products including gas and electricity.
Researchers used United States government-generated air quality index data for 2019-2021 for 75 countries.
Though Reykjavik topped the list for increase in pollutants in its air, the Icelandic capital also remained at the bottom of the index. Budapest, the second-worst was not that lucky — the capital of Hungary placed high on the index.
Air quality index helps determine daily air quality; four pollutants are accounted for — ground-level ozone, particle pollution like PM-2.5 and 10, carbon monoxide and sulfur dioxide.
In Reykjavik’s case, while the city did experience a rise in air pollutants, it might not substantially change the overall air quality due to lower base hence a bigger jump when calculating the percentage increase in air pollutants.
The World Health Organisation has estimated that seven million deaths can be attributed to poor air quality every year.
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