Air quality report: Montreal residents indirectly smoke 124 cigarettes a year

Feb 9 2023, 4:39 pm

Canada’s air quality is, for the most part, very good. In fact, we consistently rank among the world’s cleanest and least polluted countries.

Unfortunately, this reputation is not upheld in some parts of the country.

A new air quality study by HouseFresh illustrates the health risks of pollution by calculating the number of cigarettes people in Canada are indirectly smoking due to poor air quality.  That number was highest in Montreal.

To determine the number of cigarettes people around the world are indirectly smoking due to poor air quality, HouseFresh reviewed data on PM2.5 concentrations in cities worldwide from AQICN.org.

According to the study, Montrealers are indirectly smoking an average of 124 cigarettes a year due to air pollution.

housefresh.com

While vehicle emissions account for the majority of Montreal’s pollution, the city has reported that domestic wood-burning appliances’ emissions can contribute significantly to the city’s smog during the winter.

As for the rest of the list, many Canadian cities with the worst air pollution are in the Prairie Provinces and Quebec, along the US border. Meanwhile, fellow major cities Toronto and Vancouver finished in ninth and 16th place, respectively.

According to HouseFresh, many cities with the worst air quality are in developing economies in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Africa. In some of those cities, residents are consuming the equivalent of over 1,000 cigarettes every 12 months.

To read the entire report, click here.

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