The World Health Organization has assessed the health impact
of PM for 25 countries in the European Union and estimated
that exposure to airborne pollution particles causes approximately 348,000 premature deaths per year, reducing average
life expectancy by 8.6 months (Who, 2006). Worldwide, PM is
estimated to cause about 9% of lung cancer deaths, 5% of cardiopulmonary deaths, and about 1% of respiratory infection deaths