Poisoned Air, Shortened Lives: PM2.5 Exposure and Premature Mortality in Southern European Cities

Elena Cottini (), Lorena Popescu, Luca Salmasi and Gilberto Turati
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Elena Cottini: Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore
Luca Salmasi: Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore
Gilberto Turati: Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore

No def143, DISCE - Working Papers del Dipartimento di Economia e Finanza from Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Dipartimenti e Istituti di Scienze Economiche (DISCE)

Abstract: This study examines the causal impact of PM2.5 air pollution exposure on premature mortality in Southern European cities from 2010 to 2018. To address endogeneity, we leverage local variations in rainfall as a source of random variation in PM2.5 exposure. Using the Two-Sample Two-Stage Least Squares (TS2SLS) estimator to reconcile monitoring station-level and city-level data, our findings reveal a statistically significant increase in premature mortality caused by PM2.5. According to our preferred specification, a 1% increase in PM2.5 causes a 1.13% rise in the under-65 mortality rate and a 1.41% rise in the infant mortality rate. The results are robust to alternative specifications. The most affected populations are those residing in urban areas (relative to suburban areas) and individuals living in cities located in richer regions (as opposed to poorer ones).

Keywords: air pollution; PM2.5; cities; premature mortality; TS2SLS. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I18 Q53 Q58 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 49
Date: 2025-07
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ene, nep-env and nep-hea
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