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October 30, 2018

Ranking Member Johnson Statement on WHO Report on Children’s Exposure to Air Pollution

(Dallas, TX) – Last night, the World Health Organization (WHO) released a report on air pollution’s global effects on children’s health. A few key findings include:

  • Air pollution is one of the leading threats to child health, accounting for almost 1 in 10 deaths in children under five years of age.
  • Air pollution affects neurodevelopment, leading to lower cognitive test outcomes, negatively affecting mental and motor development.
  • About 600,000 deaths in children under 15 years of age were attributed to the joint effects of ambient and household air pollution in 2016.
  • Globally, 93% of the world’s children under 15 years of age are exposed to ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) levels above WHO air quality guidelines, which include 630 million children under 5 years of age, and 1.8 billion children under 15 years.

 Ranking Member Eddie Bernice Johnson’s (D-TX) released the following statement.

“The World Health Organization’s report is another sobering example of why we must make drastic steps to mitigate the impacts of the poor air quality that is poisoning our children, citizens, and planet. Air pollution has no borders. We have a distinct opportunity as a world leader to identify our local threats to the environment and public health, and to determine the fairest and most cost-effective ways to remedy them. I hope that this report reminds this Nation’s leaders that the negative consequences of humankind’s actions will not go away if they are ignored, and that we owe it to our children to address these issues with urgency.”