Statement on New WHO Report on Environment-Related Deaths
The World Health Organization today released a report that showed nearly a quarter of all deaths are related to living or working in an unhealthy environment. In response, Alliance CEO Radha Muthiah released the following statement:
“The new WHO report provides further evidence of the urgent need to address household air pollution. Of the more than 12 million deaths attributed to living or working in an unhealthy environment, more than four million were attributable to household air pollution from cooking with solid fuels.
“The WHO rightfully highlights proven, cost-effective measures such as reducing the use of solid fuels for cooking as immediate actions countries can take to reverse the upward trend of environment-related disease and deaths. Household air pollution causes the majority of deaths attributable to noncommunicable diseases such as stroke, heart disease, cancers and chronic respiratory disease, and the report found that NCDs contribute to largest share of environment-related deaths.
“Increasing access to clean, efficient cookstoves and fuels not only saves lives and dramatically improves health, but also protects the environment and empowers women, who are the large majority of the world’s cooks. Clean cookstoves and fuels will also play a critical role in achieving the new Sustainable Development Agenda, as well as the recently-adopted climate goals.
“I commend the World Health Organization on its new report, and we look forward to working with the WHO on its upcoming road map for an enhanced global response by the health sector aimed at reducing the adverse health effects of air pollution. We must all work together to build a world where cooking no longer kills.”
See the full WHO statement here: An estimated 12.6 million deaths each year are attributable to unhealthy environments