Unmasking the Global Sandstorm Crisis: Who’s Really Paying the Price?

The United Nations has sounded alarms over a creeping environmental crisis impacting more than 330 million people across 150 countries: sand and dust storms. According to the U.N. World Meteorological Organization, these storms annually unleash around two billion tons of airborne dust—equivalent to about 300 Great Pyramids of Giza. But as this natural hazard grows in intensity, who is truly bearing the cost? Is Washington Doing Enough to Shield America? More than 80% of this dust originates from deserts in North Africa and the Middle East. Yet its reach extends far beyond those regions, with particles traveling thousands of miles,...