Beneficial ban
a ban on the sale, marketing and distribution of bituminous coal in Dublin since 1990 has decreased particulate emissions in Ireland. According to a study published in Lancet, the Irish government's move to forbid the burning of bituminous coal has also reduced the mortality rate in the area. The research was conducted by a team of Irish and US experts.
It shows that the total annual mortality in Dublin has come down by over 5.7 per cent. Respiratory and cardiovascular deaths have also declined by 15.5 per cent and 10.3 per cent, respectively, as black smoke concentration decreased by two-thirds after the restrictions were put in place. The time period chosen for the study was six years before the ban and six years after it.
Surprisingly, the fall in mortality and morbidity rates was higher than that predicted on the basis of previous studies done in other European countries. This led the researchers to conclude that such exercises, perhaps, fail to capture the public health benefit that would accrue from reducing cumulative exposure to air pollution. However, the results of this study were similar to another, which investigated the impact of a reduction in particulate levels due to a 13-month strike at a local steel mill in Utah Valley in the US.
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