Vietnam is listed amongst the top ten countries with the worst air
pollution in the world, according to the 2012 Environmental Performance
Index (EPI) released during this year's World Economic Forum in Davos,
Switzerland.
The annual study uses satellite data to measure air
pollution concentrations and has been produced by researchers at Yale
and Columbia universities.
Of 132 countries whose environments
were surveyed in relation to effects on human health, Vietnam places
123rd in the air category, 80th in the water category and 79th in
addressing pollution control and natural resource management challenges.
Professor
Pham Ngoc Dang, chairman of the Vietnam Environment Construction
Association, said air in most urban areas is filled with dust,
especially in traffic junctions, construction sites and industrial
parks.
According to experts, air pollution will seriously affect
people's health, causing diseases related to the respiratory system,
eyes, ears and skin.
The United States places 49th in the 2012
EPI, significantly behind other industrialised nations, including France
(6th), the United Kingdom (9th), Germany (11th), and Japan (23rd).
Switzerland leads the world in addressing pollution control./.
