Cleaner air in West Midlands could prevent 2,000 deaths a year, study finds

‘Still a significant problem’: particles from sources hundreds of kilometres away can be found Birmingham’s air Photograph: Anthony Devlin/Getty Images

A study has revealed that cleaning up the air in the West Midlands could prevent the early deaths of about 2,000 people a year.

If the region were to meet World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for air pollution, it could also avoid 2,000 new asthma cases, 770 new cases of heart disease, 170 new lung cancers and 650 strokes annually, the study found.