TITLE:
Human Health Cost of Air Pollution in Kazakhstan
AUTHORS:
Ussen Kenessariyev, Alexander Golub, Michael Brody, Askhat Dosmukhametov, Meiram Amrin, Aya Erzhanova, Dinara Kenessary
KEYWORDS:
Air Pollution; PM; Kazakhstan; Health Risk; Uncertainty
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Environmental Protection,
Vol.4 No.8,
August
9,
2013
ABSTRACT: Kazakhstan, like other former Soviet
Republics, inherited a number of serious environmental problems. Air pollution
is one of these serious problems, leading to significant environmental health
effects on the population of Kazakhstan. This study provides a baseline
analysis of health damages from air pollution, based on readily available
information. Mean estimates of mortality risk attributable to air pollution are
about 16,000 cases per year with a 95% confidence level of the risk not
exceeding 25,500. Even taking into account all the uncertainties related to the
collection and processing of primary data, as well as the application of risk
analysis methodology, we conclude that air pollution in Kazakhstan constitutes
a significant contribution to the environmental burden of diseases. In relative terms, the impact of air pollution on premature
mortality in Kazakhstan is notably higher than in Russia and the Ukraine.