By CARLY READ
PAKISTAN has been issued an urgent action warning amid a terrifying smog cloud that is putting “every person is at risk” in Lahore.
The warning was issued by Amnesty International in what they have called an “unprecedented step” amid concerns about how the poor air quality poses a risk to the health of every person in the Pakistani city which is home to more than 10million people. Rimmel Mohydin, South Asia campaigner at Amnesty International, said: “The government’s inadequate response to the smog in Lahore raises significant human rights concerns. “The hazardous air is putting everyone’s right to health at risk.
“The issue is so serious that we are calling on our members around the world to write to the Pakistani authorities to tell them to stop downplaying the crisis and take urgent action to protect people’s health and lives.”She also said that for one in every two days this month, the air quality here has been classified as “hazardous” by air quality monitors installed by the United States Consulate in Lahore and the Pakistan Air Quality Initiative.
As a result, the Pakistan government shut schools down on at least three days this month.
The smog cloud has caused the air quality in Lahore to dramatically deteriorate to “hazardous” level since the beginning of November.
The month is part of “smog season” by locals, a term coined that runs from October through to February the following year.
A shocking 2015 report published by the UK medical journal, Lancet, revealed that more than 310,000 people die each year in Pakistan because of poor air quality.
Ms Mohydin added: “Today, people are not aware of just how much danger they are in because of the air they breathe. If the expertise is available, if the consequences are dire, if the evidence of the damage is mounting, then the government must not waste time.
“A good starting point would be to acknowledge the risks of the quality of air and initiate smog protection protocol as recommended by the court-appointed Smog Commission.”
Cities across South Asia are consistently reporting ‘unhealthy’ or ‘hazardous’ air quality levels.
Delhi has been cloaked in smog that has consistently surpassed the range that is measurable by air quality monitors of 999.
In Pakistan, Karachi, Peshawar and other cities in Punjab also show signs of worsening air quality.
Low-income workers, such as laborers, construction workers and farmhands, and marginalized groups are particularly vulnerable as the nature of their workforces them to be exposed to hazardous air throughout the day.
The news comes after experts in climate change revealed that air pollution causes a “huge” reduction in intelligence.
A study carried out by Beijing University researchers Xin Zhang, Xi Chen, and Xiaobo Zhang revealed this year that air pollution could be hindering cognitive performance.
The tests, ran on elderly people living in China - one of the worst nations for air pollution - revealed their ability to pay attention, recall past knowledge and generate new information declined.
Results from the experiment also showed men were especially at risk, though the reason why is not known yet.
There is compelling evidence that the invisible particles within pollution damage the brain of humans and animals.
Traffic pollution can already be associated with dementia, delinquent behaviour in adolescents and stunted brain development in children.
Repeatedly inhaling nanoparticles found in air pollution may have a number of negative effects on the brain, including chronic inflammation of the brain’s nerve cells.
Postmortem brain samples from people exposed to high levels of air pollution in both Mexico City and Manchester revealed typical signs of Alzheimer’s disease.
https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1207579/pakistan-news-smog-cloud-warning-amnesty-international-Rimmel-Mohydin-death-toll
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