Air and Water Quality

About

Clean air and safe water are prerequisites for health. Poor air or water quality can be particularly detrimental to vulnerable populations such as the very young, the elderly, and those with chronic health conditions.

Why Are Air and Water Quality Important to Health?

Clean air and water support healthy brain and body function, growth, and development. Air pollutants such as fine particulate matter, ground-level ozone, sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and greenhouse gases can harm our health and the environment1. Excess nitrogen and phosphorus run-off, medicines, chemicals, lead, and pesticides in water also pose threats to well-being and quality of life2.

In 2016, 43 million people—more than 1 in 8 Americans—had been diagnosed with asthma3. Air pollution is associated with increased asthma rates and can aggravate asthma, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and other lung diseases, damage airways and lungs, and increase the risk of premature death from heart or lung disease. Using 2009 data, the CDC’s Tracking Network calculates that a 10% reduction in fine particulate matter could prevent over 13,000 deaths per year in the US4. 

While drinking water safety is improving, a 2012 study estimates that contaminants in drinking water sicken up to 1.1 million people per year5. Improper medicine disposal, chemical, pesticide, and microbiological contaminants in water can lead to poisoning, gastro-intestinal illnesses, eye infections, increased cancer risk, and many other health problems2. 

Poor surface water quality can also make lakes unsafe for swimming and wild fish unsafe for consumption. Nitrogen pollution and harmful algae blooms create toxins in water, which can lead to rashes, stomach or liver illness, respiratory problems, and neurological effects when people ingest or come into contact with polluted water. Water pollution also threatens wildlife habitats2.

Communities can adopt and implement various strategies to improve and protect the quality of their air and water, supporting healthy people and environments.

References

1 Environmental Protection Agency. Learn about air. November 7, 2016. Accessed October 31, 2022.  
2 Environmental Protection Agency. Learn about water. November 7, 2016. Accessed October 31, 2022.
3 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Asthma: 2016 National Health Interview Survey. May 18, 2018. Accessed March 14, 2019.
4 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Outdoor Air: Health Impacts of Fine Particles in Air. August 2, 2018. Accessed March 14, 2019.
5 Lambertini E, Borchardt MA, Kieke BA, Spence SK, Loge FJ. Risk of Viral Acute Gastrointestinal Illness from Nondisinfected Drinking Water Distribution Systems. Environmental Science & Technology. 2012; 46(17):9299–9307.