PM10 levels in 2021 have a maximum cap at 15 (in 2005, the max cap was 20 for annual average).
Nitrogen di-oxide level maximum cap as per latest WHO guidelines is at 10 yearly average, which is 10 times lower than what it was set in 2005.
Maximum cap on Sulphur Di-Oxide levels have also been slashed from 100 in 2005 to 40 in 2021.
Carbon-monoxide maximum levels are set at 4 (daily average), and maximum cap on ozone levels as per the 2021 WHO Guidelines is 100 (8 hourly average).
According to the WHO, since its last 2005 update there has been a marked increase of evidence that shows how air pollution affects different aspects of health. For that reason, and after a systematic review of the accumulated evidence, WHO has adjusted almost all the Air Quality Guideline levels downwards, warning that exceeding the new air quality guideline levels is associated with significant risks to health.
By striving to achieve these guideline levels, countries will be both protecting health as well as mitigating global climate change. When action is taken on these so-called classical pollutants - particulate matter (PM), ozone (O� "��'), nitrogen dioxide (NO� "�"�), sulfur dioxide (SO� "�"�), and carbon monoxide (CO), it also has an impact on other damaging pollutants.
Outdoor air pollution and Particulate Matter are carcinogens
Particulate Matter (PM) is primarily generated by fuel combustion in different sectors, including transport, energy, households, industry, and from agriculture. In 2013, outdoor air pollution and particulate matter were classified as carcinogenic by WHO's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
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