In a groundbreaking decision on Wednesday, a UK court ruled that polluted air was a contributing factor to the 9-year-old Ella Kissi-Debrah’s untimely, tragic passing in 2013. She is the first person in the world to have a death certificate that lists air pollution as a cause of death. The declaration could reverberate around the world as countries both rich and poor try to clean up deadly pollution.
At the Southwark Coroner’s Court on Wednesday, inner south London coroner Philip Barlow said air pollution, principally from nearby car traffic, was a “significant contributory factor to both the induction and exacerbation of her asthma.”
He said that during Kissi-Debrah’s short life, emissions of nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter in her hometown of Lewisham exceeded legal limits set by England and the European Union as well as safe limits outlined by the World Health Organization.
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The World's First Death Attributed to Air Pollution Could Spark Change#
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In a groundbreaking decision, a UK court ruled that polluted air was a contributing factor to the 9-year-old Ella Kissi-Debrah’s tragic passing in 2013. She is the first person in the world to have a death certificate that lists air pollution as the cause.
