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As the family lawyers at Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrahâs inquest, we join her mother and the coroner in calling for changes to the environment bill
Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah died in 2013. Her death certificate is the first to recognise air pollution as a cause of death. Photograph: Family Handout/PA
Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah died in 2013. Her death certificate is the first to recognise air pollution as a cause of death. Photograph: Family Handout/PA
Mon 26 Apr 2021 07.30 EDT
Last modified on Mon 26 Apr 2021 08.25 EDT
The inquest last December into the death of nine-year-old Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah made waves around the world. The photograph of Ella, which was displayed in the coronerâs court and which the coroner described as showing Ella with a smile âas wide as the photographâ, beamed out from screens and newspapers internationally. As the familyâs lawyers, we watched the evidence unfold over nine days. The culmination of years of tireless campaigning by Ellaâs
“Ella died of asthma contributed to by exposure to excessive air pollution,” said the coroner on Wednesday.
He said that during Ella’s life, nitrogen dioxide emissions in Lewisham, where she lived, exceeded legal limits, both EU and national levels. Particulate matter levels were above the WHO guidelines, he said.
“The whole of Ella’s life was lived in close proximity to highly polluting roads. I have no difficulty in concluding that her personal exposure to nitrogen dioxide and PM was very high.”
The coroner said the health effects of air pollution had been known for many years, and children and those with asthma were particularly at risk.