Health impacts of exposure to human-made air pollution – Media release
23 February 2023
Emerging evidence shows that exposure to two human-made air pollutants is associated with significant health impacts, Stats NZ said today.
The indicator Human health impacts of PM2.5 and NO2 reports on the health impacts associated with exposure to PM2.5 (fine particulate matter less than 2.5 micrometres in diameter) and NO2 (nitrogen dioxide) from human-made air pollution. It supersedes the previous health impacts indicator, Health impacts of PM10.
The new indicator:
- focuses on PM2.5 (particulate matter 2.5) and NO2 (nitrogen dioxide), the air pollutants now known to be of most concern in Aotearoa New Zealand
- expands the list of health impacts to cover estimated childhood asthma prevalence and hospitalisations associated with exposure to human-made NO2 air pollution
- shows the proportion of Aotearoa New Zealand’s population living in areas with poor air quality (based on exposure to concentrations of air pollutants above the World Health Organization (WHO) 2021 global guidelines)
- presents health impact data at the territorial authority and national levels.
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