The UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said in a new report last week that around 2,000 million tons of dust enter the atmosphere every year, “darkening skies and harming air quality in regions that can be thousands of kilometers away.”
WMO chief Petteri Taalas said this was partly due to poor water and land management. The phenomenon was also exacerbated by higher temperatures and drought brought on by a warming climate, leading to higher evaporation and drier soils.
WMO said that exposure to dust particles has been associated with heart attacks, cardiovascular disease and lung cancer. Sand and dust storms also pose risks to aviation and ground transportation as well as agriculture.
According to WMO in 2022, hotspots with significantly higher dust concentrations were identified in Central and South America, most of Central Africa, Spain, the Red Sea, the Arabian Peninsula, as well as in Iran, south Asia and northwest China.
Taalas stressed WMO’s commitment to help countries improve dust storm forecasting skills and early warning services. He said more are needed to be done in the face of continuing environmental degradation and fast-advancing climate change. UN News