460,000 die prematurely from pollution in China each year

ABOUT 460,000 Chinese die prematurely each year from breathing polluted city air and drinking dirty water, a World Bank study reports.

The Financial Times reported yesterday that the Chinese government, the bank’s partner in the research project, had asked the lender not to publish the estimates for fear they could trigger social unrest.

The conference version of the study says some estimates of the physical and economic cost of pollution have been omitted because of uncertainties about calculation methods and their application.

However, the report goes on to estimate the health costs from premature deaths associated with outdoor air pollution at 394 billion yuan (€38.09bn). With each life valued at 1 million yuan, that works out at a death toll of 394,000.

The study puts the cost of deaths from diarrhoea and cancer caused by drinking polluted water at 66bn yuan, pointing to 66,000 premature deaths a year.

China specialists say it is standard practice in research conducted with the government for both sides to have a veto over the conclusions.

The World Bank said the final report would be out soon. “Consistent with the World Bank’s approach to this type of joint research project, the findings of the report are being discussed with the government,” the bank’s Beijing office said

The World Bank also estimates that 300,000 Chinese a year die prematurely from indoor air pollution.