Environmental Pollution And Its Effects on Health and Nature

India’s Air Pollution Rivals China’s as World’s Deadliest - The New York Times : NEW DELHI — India’s rapidly worsening air pollution is causing about 1.1 million people to die prematurely each year and is now surpassing China’s as the deadliest in the world, a new study of global air pollution shows. The number of premature deaths in China caused by dangerous air particles, known as PM2.5, has stabilized globally in recent years but has risen sharply in India, according to the report, issued jointly on Tuesday by the Health Effects Institute, a Boston research institute focused on the health impacts of air pollution, and the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation, a population health research center in Seattle.

It is wrong to assume that wood smoke is harmless . Smoke from wood stoves, fireplaces, burn fires and so on form a major part in air pollution problems. This is because wood smoke contains particles and gases that have the potential of causing serious health problems when they are breathed. These gases contain toxic chemicals that can irritate the respiratory track and may even cause cancer. In environments where wood is burned, they are bound to be higher levels of indoor smoke and more environmental pollutants in form of particles and gases. Also, smoke from wood stoves can seep into houses where wood stoves are not used.