Co-benefits of mitigating global greenhouse gas emissions for future air quality and human health
Open accessAbstract
Actions to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions often reduce co-emitted air pollutants, bringing co-benefits for air quality and human health. Past studies 1-6 typically evaluated near-term and local co-benefits, neglecting the long-range transport of air pollutants 7-9, long-term demographic changes, and the influence of climate change on air quality 10-12. Here we simulate the co-benefits of global GHG reductions on air quality and human health using a global atmospheric model and consistent future scenarios, via two mechanisms: a) reducing co-emitted air pollutants, and b) slowing climate change and its effect on air quality. We use new relationships between chronic mortality and exposure to fine particulate matter 13 and ozone 14, global modeling methods 15, and new future scenarios 16. Relative to a reference scenario, global GHG mitigation avoids 0.5±0.2, 1.3±0.5, and 2.2±0.8 million premature deaths in 2030, 2050, and 2100. Global average marginal co-benefits of avoided mortality are $50-380 (ton CO 2)-1, which exceed previous estimates, exceed marginal abatement costs in 2030 and 2050, and are within the low range of costs in 2100. East Asian co-benefits are 10-70 times the marginal cost in 2030. Air quality and health co-benefits, especially as they are mainly local and near-term, provide strong additional motivation for transitioning to a low-carbon future.
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Mitigation efforts can benefit population health by reducing disease or promoting healthier lifestyles.
“benefit population health by reducing disease or promoting healthier lifestyles (for example, cycling/walking instead of driving) 12,15,16”
From Co-benefits of addressing climate change can motivate action around the world (2016) · cites this paper as [12]
Mitigation efforts can reduce pollution.
“mitigation efforts can reduce pollution 11,12”
From Co-benefits of addressing climate change can motivate action around the world (2016) · cites this paper as [12]
Commonly cited co-benefits addressing Dysfunction (for example, pollution, disease) were the weakest motivators of action overall.
“Commonly cited co-benefits addressing Dysfunction (for example, pollution, disease 11,12,15,16 ) were actually the weakest motivators of action overall.”
From Co-benefits of addressing climate change can motivate action around the world (2016) · cites this paper as [12]
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- Authors
- West, J. J., Smith, S. J., Silva, R. A., Naik, V., Zhang, Y., Adelman, Z., Fry, M. M., Anenberg, S., Horowitz, L. W., & Lamarque, J.-F.
- Affiliations
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (US)
- Joint Global Change Research Institute (US)
- Environmental Protection Agency (US)
- NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (US)
- Corresponding author
- West, J. Jason
- ORCID
- Venue
- Nature Climate Change
- Published
- 2013-09-22
- Volume
- 3
- Issue
- 10
- Pages
- 885-889
- ISSN
- 1758-678X (ISSN-L)
- 1758-6798
- PMC
- PMC4051351
- OpenAlex
- W2118877747
- Cited by
- 764
- References
- 31
- Citations by year
- 2026: 56 · 2025: 60 · 2024: 80 · 2023: 78 · 2022: 62 · 2021: 76 · 2020: 57 · 2019: 55 · 2018: 74 · 2017: 51 · 2016: 46 · 2015: 39 · 2014: 27 · 2013: 3
- FWCI
- 28.06
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Nature Climate Change (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Science Foundation
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
- National Institutes of Health (5r21es022600-02)
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (R21 ES022600)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Air Quality and Health Impacts
- Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Economics and Econometrics › Climate Change Policy and Economics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Climate Change and Health Impacts
- Keywords
- greenhouse gas emissions reduction, co-benefits, air quality, human health, premature mortality, PM2.5, ozone, long-range transport of air pollutants, marginal abatement cost, low-carbon transition, East Asia
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