The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) reported on Friday that wildfires are releasing a “witches’ brew” of pollutants that could end up destroying air quality across the globe. These pollutants are likely to have been made more frequent by climate change.
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In its fifth annual Air Quality and Climate Bulletin, the WMO outlined how significant an impact air quality can be on a global scale following such wildfires in the Amazon, Canada, and Siberia.
The WMO stated in a statement that “wildfires are a major contributor to particle pollution and the problem is expected to get worse as the climate warms, putting rising risks to infrastructure, ecosystems, and human health.”
“Air quality and climate change cannot be addressed alone,” he said. In order to safeguard our planet, our communities, and our economies, Deputy Secretary-General Ko Barrett said, “They must be tackled together.”
The WMO cited the importance of tiny aerosols as aerosols in wildfires, winter fog, shipping emissions, and urban pollution as particular risks because they can penetrate deep into the lungs or cardiovascular systems.
According to the WMO, wildfires in 2024 caused above-average PM 2.5 levels in Canada, Siberia, and central Africa. However, the Amazon basin experienced the biggest PM 2.5 surge.
According to WMO Scientific Officer Lorenzo Labrador, who coordinated the bulletin, wildfires in Canada also ended up causing air pollution in Europe.
“That occurred last year and this year as well.” When the weather is right, the air quality will deteriorate across continents, Labrador said at a press conference.
“We have essentially a witches’ brew of components that pollute the air,” the author says.
According to the WHO, air pollution causes 4.5 million premature deaths annually.
To protect human and environmental health, as well as reduce agricultural and economic losses, the WMO has called for better monitoring and better policies.
According to Paolo Laj, the WMO’s global atmosphere chief, the improvement can be clearly seen in meteorological data when nations take steps to combat poor air quality.
He told the AFP news agency, “Look at Europe, Shanghai, Beijing, and the cities in the United States: Many cities have taken measures and you see a significant decrease” in air pollution over the long term.
“Over the past ten years, Chinese cities have significantly improved their air quality. What they have accomplished is truly impressive.
The WMO attributed the decline in PM 2.5 levels in eastern China to sustained mitigation measures last year.
Source: Aljazeera
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