Juliet Jacob 
ABUJA, Nigeria – Amnesty International has declared that the world is facing a “silent public health pandemic” caused by fossil fuel pollution, exposing billions to deadly air and water toxins.
In a new report, Extraction Extinction, the group says two billion people — one in four globally — live within five kilometres of oil, gas, or coal sites. It identified 18,300 active projects worldwide, with 3,500 more planned, putting millions at risk.
“These are not just numbers,” said Amnesty’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard. “Families are breathing poison daily. Governments have chosen greed over humanity.”
The study links exposure to fossil fuel sites with cancer, heart disease, respiratory illness, and premature deaths, warning that pollution is “rewriting the genetic and health future” of entire populations.
More than 463 million people, including 124 million children, live within one kilometre of fossil fuel facilities. Many of these are in Indigenous or marginalised communities, labelled “sacrifice zones” in the report.
At the ongoing COP30 Summit in Belém, Brazil, Amnesty urged a “fast, fair, and funded” transition to clean energy.
“The age of fossil fuels must end now — for the planet’s survival,” Callamard said.
About the Author
Korede Abdullah 
Chukwu Obinna 
Oluwatobi Adu 
Otamere Gladness