Delhi Could Reduce PM2.5 Exposure By 20% By 2040, Says UN Report
The report cautions that an eight-year delay, in line with the average global implementation lag, would reduce the projected improvement to just 10 per cent and lead to significantly greater health impacts during the period.
Delhi could see a 20 per cent reduction in its PM2.5 exposure burden by 2040 if India meets its existing national air quality standards on schedule from 2026, according to a new UN assessment.
But an implementation delay of around eight years could cut the projected improvement by half, limiting the reduction to about 10 per cent and increasing the health burden linked to air pollution. The findings are part of a report titled Hidden Assets: The Economic and Health Case for Climate and Clean Air Action, released Monday by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC).
The assessment examines the economic and health benefits of tackling climate change and air pollution together. It outlines 25 solutions that are already considered feasible, including expanding renewable energy, improving energy efficiency, promoting cleaner cooking and heating technologies, and enforcing stricter vehicle emission and efficiency standards.
The report estimates that implementing these measures could deliver annual economic benefits equivalent to 2.8 per cent of global GDP by 2035. The gains could rise to 4.5 per cent of GDP by 2050 and 11.4 per cent by 2100.
Delays, however, could carry a significant economic cost. The analysis estimates that every year of postponed action would forgo more than 0.5 per cent of global GDP in potential benefits, representing over $1.5 trillion in combined market and non-market value.
The report said stronger economic, social, technological and institutional conditions could allow all 25 solutions to be implemented up to a decade earlier, accelerating reductions in PM2.5 and ozone-forming pollutants between 2025 and 2050.
Globally, implementation is expected to face an average delay of 7.5 to eight years. Institutional barriers are identified as the largest source of delay, accounting for roughly 2.4 years within an assumed 15-year implementation period.
According to the report, a delay of this scale could roughly halve the emissions reductions achievable by 2035, highlighting the economic and public-health costs of postponing clean-air and climate measures.
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