air pollution
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Utilities and Joe Barton: 'Ignore the science: Pollution isn't bad for you!'
Do you believe doctors, EPA scientists, and peer-reviewed studies when it comes to the danger of pollution? Or heavily polluting utilities and Joe Barton?
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Eliminating soot would save 2.5 million lives a year, slow climate change
“Black carbon," the product of incomplete combustion of everything from wood to diesel fuel, isn’t just something you put on Mary Poppins chimney sweeps to make them look picturesque. It also contributes to climate change, and it will turn your lungs into something from an anti-smoking PSA faster than you can ask for just one more spoonful of sugar. The flip side is that we could save a lot of lives with just a little cleanup.
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Cancer is now the leading cause of death in China
As China’s pollution soars, so do rates of cancer. This post was written by Janet Larsen, director of research for the Earth Policy Institute. Additional resources at www.earth-policy.org. Cancer is now the leading cause of death in China. Chinese Ministry of Health data implicate cancer in close to a quarter of all deaths countrywide. As […]
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Greener cars and fuel mean fewer deaths tied to vehicle emissions
Cars idling in traffic lead to more than 2,200 premature deaths each year, according to a new study from the Harvard School of Public Health. But lower vehicle emissions and cleaner fuels have been driving down that number for past decade, and the number of deaths will continue to decrease until about 2025, the study […]
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We spend $76.6 billion a year on health care for kids made sick by toxic chemicals and air pollution
America spends a staggering $76.6 billion every year to cover the health expenses of our children who get sick because of exposure to toxic chemicals and air pollution, according to a recent study by researchers at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. That figure includes the cost of medical care and the […]
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Don’t spray it: Ask Umbra on air fresheners
Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, According to their new ads, Air Wick air fresheners now have 100 percent natural propellants. OK, so they got rid of the solvents, but what about the other horrible chemicals that are in the product? Isn’t this greenwashing? Brozafan Wynnewood, Penn. There’s no substitute for truly natural […]
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Surprise! Times Square air cleaner now that cars are gone
Refreshing, isn’t it?Photo: Ed Yourdon Despite positive reviews from local business owners, area workers, tourists, and other human beings, New York Post columnist Steve Cuozzo won’t stop frothing at the mouth about the pedestrian plazas in New York’s Times Square, lamenting that the once car-clogged streets have become “asphalt loitering grounds,” and that the redesign […]
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The nuts were right — airplane contrails WILL kill you
Wow, Fortean Times was right about something: Airplane contrails really are dangerous. The carbon emissions from air travel are profound, but the water vapor planes emit is just as bad, or worse. And airplane-spawned water vapor is what makes up the high, thin clouds known as contrails. Michele Bachmann would surely object — water vapor […]
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Forward-looking power utilities support EPA air toxics rule
As Grist readers know, EPA recently released its proposed Air Toxics Rule, which would regulate the emission of mercury and other brain-warping, lung-destroying nasties. We’re still in the public comment period, so the PR battle is in full swing. Republicans and dirty utilities have raised Cain over the rule, screeching that it will be too […]
