Ozone Mortality Burden Changes Driven by Population Aging and Regional Inequity in China in 2013–2050.

Air pollution exposure is closely linked to population age and socioeconomic status. Population aging and imbalance in regional economy are thus anticipated to have important implications on ozone (O3)‐related health impacts. Here we provide a driver analysis for O3 mortality burden due to respiratory disease in China over 2013–2050 driven by population aging and regional inequity. Unexpectedly, we find that population aging is estimated to result in dramatic rises in annual O3 mortality burden in China; by 56, 101–137, and 298–485 thousand over the periods 2013–2020, 2020–2030, and 2030–2050, respectively. This reflects the exponential rise in baseline mortality rates with increasing age. The aging‐induced mortality burden rise in 2030–2050 is surprisingly large, as it is comparable to the net national mortality burden due to O3 exposure in 2030 (359–399 thousand yr−1). The health impacts of O3 pollution, shown as mortality burden per capita, are inequitably distributed, with more severe effects in less developed provinces than their developed counterparts by 23.1% and 21.5% in 2019 and 2030, respectively. However, the regional inequity in O3 mortality burden is expected to be mitigated in 2050. This temporal variation reflects evolving demographic dividend characterized by a larger proportion of younger individuals in developed regions. These findings are critical for targeted improvement of healthcare services to ensure the sustainability of social development. Plain Language Summary: Air pollution exposure is closely linked to the age distribution and socioeconomic status of the population. The ongoing process of population aging and the pronounced disparities in regional economic growth across China are thus anticipated to have substantial implications for the health effects stemming from ozone (O3) exposure. Our finding reveals that population aging is projected to lead to a significant upsurge in annual O3 mortality burden; the health impacts of O3 pollution, measured in terms of mortality burden per capita, exhibit significant disparities, with more severe effects in less developed provinces than their developed counterparts. These results hold critical implications for the targeted improvement of healthcare services, ensuring the sustainable development of society in China over the coming decades. Key Points: Ozone‐related mortality burden are increasing in the future except for the SSP1 scenarioThe mortality burden increases were mainly driven by the population aging in ChinaThe O3 mortality burden per capita, are inequitably distributed, with more severe effects in developed regions [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]