Reduction of Global Life Expectancy Driven by Trade-Related Transboundary Air Pollution

Air pollution globalization, as a
combined effect of atmospheric
transport and international trade, can lead to notable transboundary
health impacts. Life expectancy reduction attribution analysis of
transboundary pollution can reveal the effect of pollution globalization
on the lives of individuals. This study coupled five state-of-the-art
models to link the regional per capita life expectancy reduction to
cross-boundary pollution transport attributed to consumption in other
regions. Our results revealed that pollution due to consumption in
other regions contributed to a global population-weighted PM2.5 concentration of 9 μg/m3 in 2017, thereby causing
1.03 million premature deaths and reducing the global average life
expectancy by 0.23 year (≈84 days). Trade-induced transboundary
pollution relocation led to a significant reduction in life expectancy
worldwide (from 5 to 155 days per person), and even in the least polluted
regions, such as North America, Western Europe, and Russia, a 12–61-day
life expectancy reduction could be attributed to consumption in other
regions. Our results reveal the individual risks originating from
air pollution globalization. To protect human life, all regions and
residents worldwide should jointly act together to reduce atmospheric
pollution and its globalization as soon as possible.