Estimating the cost of air pollution from road transport in Italy

In this paper we provide an estimate of air pollution costs in Italy. Specifically we are concerned with the cost of increased premature mortality from exposure to total suspended particulates (TSP). First we estimate the number of people who would die if exposed to a given annual TSP concentration level. Then the total number of deaths is multiplied by the statistical value of life to obtain the overall monetary cost. Next, using the CORINAIR emission estimates, we calculate the cost of PM10 emissions (a component of TSP) in urban areas according to the size of the city, the vehicle type and per vehicle-km.