Health effects of PM2.5 exposure — Styria

The Federal Environment Agency has investigated the reduction of life expectancy due to PM2.5 exposure to fine dust in Styria. The analyses are based on exposure-response relationships derived, inter alia, from the WHO. For the years 2005 to 2008, PM2.5 loads were estimated on the basis of PM10 in Styria. The results show that life expectancy is expected to be reduced by an average of eleven months in Graz. The average reduction in life expectancy due to particulate matter pollution is estimated at seven months for Styria. Compared to the 2005 estimates, there is a significant improvement. The reasons for this are the low pollution levels of recent years and a more precise spatial allocation in the calculation model.