Population Aging Driven Slowdown in the Reduction of Economic Cost-Attributed to PM 2.5 Pollution after 2013 in China.

Since seniors are more susceptible to ambient fine particulate matter (PM), the high economic cost to protect the aged population from PM exposure is expected. Significant efforts have been made in China to mitigate PM since 2013 under the Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action (APPCA) Plan, which remarkably reduced PM contamination and its associated economic and health burdens. However, to what extent population aging could influence the economic benefits from the APPCA Plan is unclear. Here, we estimate five driving factors contributing to the economic cost of mortality attributable to PM pollution. The results show that the economic cost attributed to PM pollution increased from 1980 to 2013 and decreased from 2013 to 2019 in China, benefiting from the APPCA Plan. Since 2013, population aging becomes the most significant positive driver that almost offsets declining economic cost from significantly declining PM. Rapid aging has become an enormous burden to PM-associated health and economic loss. Our findings suggest that we should further improve air quality and enhance health care for the elderly population.