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Tag: air pollution

Published on Leave a comment on Some States Restrict Air Monitoring
Smokestacks Credit: Wikipedia

If you live in Louisiana, Ohio, or Kentucky (and soon West Virginia), you may be exposed to more air pollution than you know because air monitoring is restricted. Additionally, data from air monitoring done by local communities (using air sensors that are readily available and inexpensive) is not allowed to be used as evidence of air pollution.

And why is that? The chemical industry has been able to get laws passed in those 3 states that restrict the air monitoring. And they want more states to pass similar laws.

Unfortunately, the EPA has cut back its air monitoring program - not only by reducing the number of sites monitored, but also what chemicals are being looked for in the air. It's so bad that nearly six in 10 US counties have no public air monitor at all, according to a 2025 study. The study found that more than half of US counties are air quality monitoring deserts, without even a single monitoring station. Which is why inexpensive air monitors that residents and towns can easily buy are so important in detecting what is in the air.

This means that even if residents or town employees collect data or evidence that there is an air pollution problem in a town (e.g., from a nearby company) regulators are not allowed to act on it. Only expensive EPA approved equipment (costing tens of thousands of dollars) at official monitoring sites is allowed. However, the official monitoring may not be looking for the chemicals that are actually being released by companies or the monitors may be miles away from the most polluting companies.

The bottom line is: If no one is monitoring the air in all these places, can problems ever be found? If you don't measure what is in the air, then you don't know. And even if residents suspect or know there is a problem, what can be done if the data they collect is "not good enough"?

Is all this surprising? Eh... not these days.

Excerpts frrom The Guardian: Chemical industry backed laws in three US states to restrict use of air pollution data

As public air monitors disappear, federal rollbacks and state laws are making it harder than ever to know what’s in the air.

As the US’s network for monitoring air pollution deteriorates, a Floodlight investigation has found that the chemical industry is going state-to-state to restrict one of the few options citizens have left for holding polluters accountable: low-cost air sensors. ...continue reading "Some States Restrict Air Monitoring"

Published on Leave a comment on After Embassy Air Pollution Monitors Were Dismantled, Air Pollution Increased

It shouldn't be a surprise, but after the US stopped air pollution monitoring at its embassy sites around the world in early 2025 - air pollution in those areas jumped.

Researchers reported a 24 to 33% jump in air pollution within months, according to satellite measurements.

The program measuring air quality was started in 2008, when  the US government installed air pollution monitors at more than 80 embassies and consulates worldwide. Air quality results were made public. Research found that this led to a significant improvement in air quality at those sites. This was especially important for poor and middle-income countries that had limited resources for air quality monitoring.

Many studies find many health benefits (especially for the heart, lungs, and brain) when people breathe cleaner air, and increased early death rates when air quality is poor.

If there is no information about the air pollution in an area, then there is no problem. After all, it costs industries money to have pollution controls. Pollute away! As we all know, ignorance is bliss.

From NPR - Air pollution spiked after the Trump administration stopped embassy monitoring

Growing up in Shanghai in the early 1990s, Eric Zou remembers the air. "I lived a couple of miles next to a chemical plant and it was just really bad, really foggy," he says. "It's the middle of the day, but you can't see the sun."

Intensive industrial activity blanketed many cities in China during the 1990s and 2000s with extremely hazardous air. But Zou, now an environmental economist at the University of Michigan, says that many people didn't really understand this smog as air pollution, or something that could harm them.

"When you have a big smog event, people often talk about that as fog, they think it was just like bad weather," says Zou. One big key to changing that sentiment, he says, was information initially provided by the United States. ...continue reading "After Embassy Air Pollution Monitors Were Dismantled, Air Pollution Increased"

Published on Leave a comment on Scented Cleaning Products, Nanoparticles, and Your Lungs
Human lungs Credit: Wikipedia

It has long been known that fragrances or scents in products used indoors (e.g.,  in cleaning products, air fresheners, personal care products) are a source of indoor air pollution due to the chemicals in the fragrances. But it turns out that there is another reason to avoid scented cleaning products - they produce nanoparticles that are inhaled deep into the lungs.

A small study found that fragrances in scented cleaning products (both conventional and essential oil or botanical cleaning products) emit small ultrafine particles called nanoparticles that travel deep into a person's lungs within minutes.  This is because chemicals in the scented cleaning products quickly react with ozone indoors. The inhaled particle dose can sometimes be equivalent to or greater than standing near heavy traffic! This is invisible air pollution - we can not see the nanoparticles, but they get deep into the lungs.

Bottom line: Choose unscented cleaning products. Also, use exhaust fans when cleaning, and open windows for a short while to improve ventilation.

From Science Daily: That fresh cleaning smell could be filling your home with nanoparticles

A room that smells like citrus, pine, or flowers is often associated with cleanliness. Those familiar scents, however, can signal chemical reactions taking place in the air. ...continue reading "Scented Cleaning Products, Nanoparticles, and Your Lungs"

Published on Leave a comment on Air Pollution and Male Fertility
Human sperm Credit: Wikipedia

Studies find that male fertility is diminishing, with sperm counts decreasing globally every year in the past few decades. Scientists have been searching why this is occurring, suggesting a number of possible causes (e.g., environmental pollutants, pesticides, microplastics, endocrine disruptors, lifestyle habits.).

Recent studies are suggesting that pollution, especially air pollution, may be also be contributing to the problem of reduced male fertility. Researchers are finding regional differences in sperm count and quality.

Two recent studies presented similar findings at the recent European Study of Human Reproduction this past week, with both finding that where you live could have a bigger effect on sperm count, sperm quality, and fertility than lifestyle habits. In other words, the pollution in the area you live (air pollution or other environmental contaminant) has an effect on fertility - that is, sperm count and quality. [Studies show that lifestyle habits are also important.]

From Medical Xpress: Men living in different regions show marked differences in sperm quality despite similar lifestyles, novel study finds

A new study has found substantial regional differences in sperm quality, with men in the highest-performing region recording almost double the total motile sperm count of those in the lowest-performing region. ...continue reading "Air Pollution and Male Fertility"

Published on Leave a comment on Tires Are A Source Of Microplastics In Urban Air

There is much concern over the amounts of microplastics and nanoplastics in the environment, especially since they are turning up wherever we look. Including inside human bodies (e.g., the brain, blood, lungs, our bones), with mainly unknown health effects. A recent study found that an important source of microplastics and nanoplastics in urban air (in heavy traffic areas) comes from vehicle tires.

This occurs from tire abrasion - tires get worn down when vehicles are driven and also when braking occurs, and the tire abrasion particles get released into the air. In this study, they accounted for about 65% of the total plastic particles in the air in a heavy traffic area in Leipzig, Germany. Microplastics are smaller than 5 mm, and nanoparticles are even smaller (smaller than 1 micrometer).

According to the researchers, residents spending 24 hours a day in the high traffic area would inhale approximately 2.1 micrograms of plastic particulates per day, which is about 0.7 milligrams per year. So far it other studies find that this can result in oxidative stress and chronic inflammatory reactions in the lungs.

From Phys.org: Microplastics and nanoplastics in urban air originate mainly from tire abrasion, research reveals

Although plastic particles in the air are increasingly coming into focus, knowledge about their distribution and effects is still limited. Chemical analyses from Leipzig now provide details from Germany for the first time: Around 4% of the particulate matter consists of plastic. Around two-thirds of this comes from tire abrasion. ...continue reading "Tires Are A Source Of Microplastics In Urban Air"

Published on Leave a comment on The EPA Now Values Human Life At Zero Dollars

Very depressing news. The EPA plans to NOT take into account of the value of human life any more when making rules and setting policy regarding air pollutants (e.g., fine particulate matter and ozone). Meaning that the value of a human life is zero dollars. Instead, the only thing that will be considered is the cost to businesses of pollution regulations.

In other words, no more estimates of the dollar value of lives saved in the cost-benefit analyses for new pollution rules. People dying will just be a side-effect of business - eh, move on, nothing to see here.

This means that the cost to society (of human suffering and deaths) from pollutants just doesn't matter. Businesses obviously do not/will not want regulations that cost money.  Yes, this will mean dirtier air and the environment going forward. Very depressing...

Excerpts from NY Times: Trump’s E.P.A. Has Put a Value on Human Life: Zero Dollars

Government officials have long grappled with a question that seems like the purview of philosophers: What is the value of a human life?

Under both Democratic and Republican administrations, the answer has been in the millions of dollars. The higher the value, the more the government has required businesses to spend on their operations to prevent a single death.

But for the first time ever, at the Environmental Protection Agency the answer is effectively zero dollars. ...continue reading "The EPA Now Values Human Life At Zero Dollars"

Published on Leave a comment on Our Pets Are Early Warning Systems For Pollutants

The NY Times recently published a nice article on how our pets are sensitive to the same pollutants in the environment as humans, and can act as early warning systems or sentinels. This is because they respond faster and are more sensitive than humans to many pollutants - whether in the air (air pollution), in household dust, water, or on the ground and lawns.

Since they live shorter lives than us, negative effects, such as cancers, show up faster in pets than in humans. For example, they get the same cancers as us from lawn pesticides us, but years faster. A recent study found that on days with an increase in air pollution (from fine particulate matter) pet dogs and cats significantly increase veterinary visits.

Do go read the whole article. Excerpts from NY Times: In a Toxic World, Pets Could Be Vital Health Watchdogs

On a frigid February night in 2023, a freight train carrying toxic chemicals derailed in East Palestine, Ohio. For days, the train’s hazardous contents spilled into the surrounding soil, water and air. It was an environmental and public health catastrophe, and efforts are underway to monitor the long-term health effects on the people of East Palestine.

But one team of scientists is focused on a different group of local residents: the dogs. After the derailment, the researchers recruited dog owners in and around East Palestine, asking them to attach chemical-absorbing silicone tags to their pets’ collars. ...continue reading "Our Pets Are Early Warning Systems For Pollutants"

Published on Leave a comment on Eczema Associated With Air Pollution
Eczema Credit: Wikipedia

Eczema is on the rise globally. At the same time, industrialization has increased, which has resulted in increases in air pollution (industrial practices generate air pollution). A recent study found an association of air pollution and eczema - the more air pollution rises, the greater the incidence of eczema.

Researchers specifically looked at fine particulate matter of diameter ≤ 2.5μm (PM2.5) throughout the US. They found that individuals with eczema (12,695 persons) lived in areas with significantly higher PM2.5 concentrations than did persons without eczema (274,127 persons). And that the odds of having eczema increased as the fine particulate matter in the air increased.

The researchers point out that several other studies done in different parts of the globe had similar findings.

From Medical Xpress: Air pollution exposure may be associated with eczema, study finds

People living in areas with higher levels of air pollution are more likely to have eczema, according to a new study published November 13, 2024 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Dr. Jeffrey Cohen of Yale School of Medicine, U.S. ...continue reading "Eczema Associated With Air Pollution"

Published on Leave a comment on Warehouses Increase Air Pollution In Nearby Communities
Warehouse loading dock Credit: Wikipedia

Something that makes sense, but developers will probably deny: The air in communities by large warehouses is more polluted than elsewhere, and this pollution can even be detected from satellites in space (satellite data)!

Researchers examined nitrogen dioxide levels around 149,075 warehouses in the U.S. They found that communities with warehouses were exposed to an average of 17.9% more nitrogen dioxide than other communities. Of course, other chemicals are also released from diesel truck engines, but the other chemicals were not looked at.

Of course, people living near these huge warehouses already know that the presence of warehouses have an impact on air quality and therefore health. Think of all the truck traffic that goes along with the warehouses. Some big health effects: increase in asthma, other respiratory diseases, and even premature death.

One big way air pollution around warehouses can be reduced is the use of electric vehicles and trucks (instead of polluting diesel engines), and to have monitoring of gases and chemicals released from the buildings. (Right now there is very little oversight).

Several sources for this story (including the original from Milken Institute School of Public Health) are below:

Yahoo News: Experts raise concerns over new findings from NASA-backed study on Earth's atmosphere: 'Our findings are ... significant'

People living in communities with warehouses can breathe in 17.9% more toxic nitrogen dioxide on average than those not near them, according to a recent study. ...continue reading "Warehouses Increase Air Pollution In Nearby Communities"

Published on Leave a comment on Personal Care Products Are A Source of Indoor Air Pollution
Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Ever notice that deodorants, lotion, body spray, shampoo, and other personal care products can be smelled in the air long after they have been used? Well... this is because they leave behind a mixture (cocktail) of all sorts of chemicals in the air. Researchers found that a mixture of over 200 volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are released into the air when these personal care products are used.

These chemicals lower air quality - so they are causing indoor air pollution. New harmful chemicals and particles can even be formed. And yes, these chemicals are then breathed in by us - so they get into our lungs and our bloodstream. They are not healthy for us, but we don't know the full range of long-term effects from constantly breathing in polluted air.

Some examples of the many chemicals released into the air (VOCs) by personal care products are monoterpenes (from added fragrances), acetaldehyde, alcohols, glycols, siloxanes, and alkanes. Monoterpenes are known to be damaging to lung when inhaled.

Bottom line: Open windows, ventilate indoor spaces as much as possible, use air cleaners or purifiers, and use unscented personal care products as much as possible. Also, try to use fewer personal care products.

From phys.org (a science and technology site): How personal care products affect indoor air quality

The personal care products we use on a daily basis significantly affect indoor air quality, according to new research by a team at EPFL. When used indoors, these products release a cocktail of more than 200 volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into the air, and when those VOCs come into contact with ozone, the chemical reactions that follow can produce new compounds and particles that may penetrate deep into our lungs. Scientists don't yet know how inhaling these particles on a daily basis affects our respiratory health. ...continue reading "Personal Care Products Are A Source of Indoor Air Pollution"