The Policy Playbook for Reducing Pollution-Linked Deaths
- Fossil fuel air pollution already causes 91,000 premature U.S. deaths each year, according to a recent study.
- A new Princeton-led study finds that ambitious climate policies could prevent 6,000 deaths annually by 2030.
- Cities like New York, London, and Mexico City show that low-emission zones and congestion charges improve air quality and public health.
Recent studies have shown the severe health effects of air pollution on human health, with fossil fuel air pollution alone linked to 91,000 U.S. deaths every year. Now, another study shows how cutting U.S. air pollution could save as many as 6,000 lives a year by 2030. Some cities around the globe have already introduced measures to cut air pollution, while air pollution in other areas continues to worsen, with a significant knock-on effect on human health.
Air pollution from oil and gas causes as many as 91,000 premature U.S. deaths a year, according to a study published in Science Advances in August. Meanwhile, the United States Trump administration is working to water down regulations protecting communities across the country from the worst sources of air pollution, much to the dismay of climate scientists and health experts worldwide.
Now, a recently published study suggests that the efforts being taken to tackle climate change could help reduce the number of deaths caused by air pollution by around 6,000 annually by the end of the decade. The study, led by Princeton University and published in One Earth, says that the growing and ageing population is more vulnerable to the impacts of air pollution and that the deaths linked to this form of pollution are likely to increase unless action is taken.
The study assesses pollution sources and population, exploring the health gains from climate action across each U.S. state and most counties. It revealed that reducing fossil fuel combustion results in an almost immediate reduction in air pollution.
The study’s lead author, Xinyuan Huang, stated, “Climate actions not only reduce carbon emissions but also bring significant air-quality improvements to regions with historically high pollution levels.” Huang added, “Under ambitious climate policies, states like West Virginia and Kentucky could see deaths from particle pollution decrease by over 19 percent in 2030, demonstrating the substantial health benefits of shifting away from fossil fuels.”
Some of the actions that could help reduce air pollution include the accelerated rollout of renewable energy projects, the replacement of gas boilers in buildings with heat pumps, an increase in the uptake of electric vehicles and the electrification of passenger transport and freight. The study suggested that some of these changes may be encouraged by the introduction of low- and zero-emission zones and decongestion charging schemes that have already been introduced in cities such as New York, London, and Mexico City.
In New York, the government introduced a $9 congestion toll in January to deter people from driving in the city and encourage more people to use public transport. The fees will contribute towards improvements to the city’s severely underfunded public transit system. New York lawmakers have been proposing the congestion zone charge in New York’s busiest areas for decades, since 1952 in fact, but it was first proposed to the state government and rejected in 2007. State legislators have long criticised the fee, saying it would have the greatest impact on blue-collar workers and that it should not be used to fix the mismanagement of public transport funding by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Some also warned of congestion in outer-borough streets in response to the charge.
However, the new charge was finally granted approval by the federal government in 2023, although implementation was paused in June 2024, and the fee was eventually rolled out at a reduced rate of $9 in January, rather than the planned $15. The initial results from the charge have been positive, with public transit ridership reaching its highest level since the pandemic and anticipated annual revenues from the toll of $500 million.
In the U.K., London has had a congestion and low-emissions charge in place for several years, which has encouraged greater passenger transport uptake and has decreased traffic in the centre of the city. In August 2023, the Mayor of London expanded the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) across all London boroughs – covering nine million people – to tackle climate pollution. In the first year of the scheme, the mayor’s office found that ULEZ helped reduce the number of older, more-polluting vehicles seen driving in London and has reduced the levels of harmful air pollution that Londoners are exposed to.
Similar efforts have been seen in Mexico City, which once had one of the highest levels of air pollution in the world. The Hoy No Circula initiative was first introduced in 1989, and the most recent version was launched in 2014, as part of the city’s Comprehensive Program Against Atmospheric Pollution (PICCA), to restrict the use of private vehicles on specific days, thereby reducing vehicle emissions that harm health. Since the launch of the initiative, Mexico City has experienced a significant improvement in air quality.
With more studies showing the clear link between air pollution and premature deaths, it is vital that governments do more to reduce the level of harmful emissions linked to various health conditions. The introduction of schemes such as low-emission zones and congestion charges across major cities worldwide has been shown to improve air quality and encourage healthy habits, such as the wider use of public transport. Meanwhile, greater reductions in the burning of fossil fuels could further reduce air pollution beyond urban areas.
By Felicity Bradstock for Oilprice.com
Ethnicity and social class affect lung cancer survival rates
ByDr. Tim Sandle
SCIENCE EDITOR
September 13, 2025
People from different backgrounds interacting in London. Image by Tim Sandle.
The most comprehensive study yet conducted of lung cancer diagnosis in England has revealed significant disparities between ethnic groups and striking evidence that people living in the most deprived areas were diagnosed with lung cancer at twice the rate of those in affluent areas.
The study, published in the journal The Lancet Regional Health – Europe, which is the largest of its kind, analysed health records of over 17.5 million people and more than 84,000 lung cancer cases, found that Bangladeshi men had the highest rates of lung cancer, while people from the most deprived areas developed the disease at twice the rate of those from affluent areas.
Among those who developed lung cancer, people from deprived areas had a 35% higher risk of being diagnosed with more aggressive forms of the disease.
Researchers from Oxford’s Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences found clear evidence that different ethnic groups show distinct patterns of lung cancer types, with important implications for screening and early detection.
Professor Julia Hippisley-Cox, senior author of the study, states: “This research provides the strongest evidence yet of how your ethnic background and social circumstances affect both your risk of developing lung cancer and the type of cancer you may develop. These findings are particularly timely as the NHS rolls out its targeted lung cancer screening programme.”
Key findingsBangladeshi men showed the highest lung cancer rates, followed by White, Chinese and Caribbean men
Women and people from Indian, Caribbean, Black African, Chinese and other Asian backgrounds were twice as likely to be diagnosed with adenocarcinoma, one of the most common types of lung cancer
Lung cancer occurred twice as frequently in the most deprived areas compared to the least deprived areas (215 vs 94 cases per 100,000 person-years for men; 147 vs 62 for women)
Men and current smokers were more likely to be diagnosed at later stages of cancer than women and non-smokers
These data show clear patterns in how lung cancer affects different communities across England. This infers that ethnic background and social circumstances play crucial roles in both cancer risk and how the disease develops.
The findings come in the context of the UK NHS rolling out its Targeted Lung Health Check Programme across England. This screening initiative currently focuses on areas with high lung cancer rates and social deprivation, aiming to detect cancer earlier when it’s more treatable. The new research could help ensure these vital health checks reach those most at risk and are tailored to different community needs.
Early detection through targeted screening could significantly reduce treatment costs for the NHS, as late-stage cancer care is considerably more expensive. More importantly, catching cancer earlier could save thousands of lives each year.
The research highlights how social factors like poverty and healthcare access affect cancer outcomes.
To address this, cancer services need to reach out to all communities effectively so that everyone has the same opportunity for early diagnosis, regardless of their background or where they live.
This needs to go hand-in-hand with policies that address fundamental inequalities in healthcare access and to reduce social deprivation.
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