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Atmospheric science

The death toll from air-pollution sources

Nature volume 525, pages 330–331 (2015)Cite this article

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Estimates of worldwide deaths associated with exposure to fine particles in atmospheric pollution provide some surprising results. The findings will guide future research and act as a wake-up call for policymakers. See Letter p.367

In this issue, Lelieveld et al.1 (page 367) estimate the number of worldwide deaths each year caused by seven sources of air pollution. To do this, they used advanced global atmospheric-chemistry models, detailed country-level population and health data, and integrated exposure–response (IER) functions — statistical models that describe how mortality varies with exposure to fine particulate air pollution. The atmospheric-chemistry model allowed the researchers to attribute air pollution and premature deaths in different regions to emissions associated with various sectors of the economy.

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Figure 1: Burning waste in India.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Michael Jerrett is in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences, and at the Center for Occupational and Environmental Health, Fielding School of Public Health,University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095.,

    Michael Jerrett

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  1. Michael Jerrett
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Correspondence to Michael Jerrett.

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Jerrett, M. The death toll from air-pollution sources. Nature 525, 330–331 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/525330a

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