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Living in areas of the United States with higher levels of air pollution is associated with an increased risk of Parkinson's disease, according to a study. The study looked at fine particulate matter, PM2.5, which is less than 2.5 microns in diameter. Fine particles come from motor vehicle exhaust, the burning of fuels by power plants and other industries and forest and grass fires. People in the highest exposure group had an average annual exposure of 19 micrograms per cubic meter (µg/m3) of fine particulate matter. People in the lowest exposure group had an average annual exposure of 5 µg/m3....

During his first two days “unifying” the nation, President Joseph R. Biden delivered for the most radical environmental interests of the Democrat coalition that nominated and elected him. After all, that is what he promised to do. Killing the Keystone Pipeline and rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement is just the start of his “unifying” environmental agenda.Over the last month, the White House and federal agencies go through the same ritual of preparing accomplishment reports. And they should. My office prepared one. The secretary’s office prepared one. After all, we are proud of delivering for the American people.The Council on Environmental...

This month, the Indian government announced its annual budget, an event that interests 1.3 billion people. The budget once again makes it clear that the government is pro-fossil fuels. India will continue making historic investments in the natural gas sector and prioritizing key measures to strengthen domestic gas supply for households. What many in the developed world do not know is that firewood used for household cooking is India’s biggest cause of indoor air pollution and associated deaths. In India, mortality and morbidity from household cooking have been a major public health issue. Only in the last three decades have...

By: Hassan.Mahmoudi On Sunday, January 3, 2021, for the fifth consecutive day, the air quality in Tehran was reported to be very unhealthy. The regime's meteorological organization also announced severe air pollution in seven major cities, including Tehran, Tabriz, Mashhad, Isfahan, Arak, Qom, and Karaj, until next Thursday. The air pollution index in some parts of Tehran on Saturday, January 2 exceeded 200, which means very unhealthy, in other areas it reached more than 186, and the Tehran Health Emergency Department is on high alert all days of next week. Alireza Raessi, Deputy Minister of Health said, “33,000 people die...

You've probably heard statistics about how our diet affects the health of the planet. Like how a beef hamburger takes considerably more water and land to produce than a veggie burger or that around a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions stem from food production. In fact, there are websites that can calculate the carbon footprint of specific foods. But you may not have considered how the food we eat contributes to the quality of the air we breathe. Air pollution is the largest environmental health risk factor in the United States, and agriculture contributes in a number of ways....

The air pollution in Paris is so bad that visiting the city for a long weekend means you have as good as smoked two cigarettes and those living in the city smoke the equivalent of 183 a year, a new study reveals. […] “When air pollution is bad, we are told to avoid eating or exercising outside,” Transport & Environment’s Jens Müller said. “But walking around cities and eating on restaurant terraces is what city breaks are all about. Right now, tourists, including kids, are more or less forced to smoke, in terms of the health impacts.” However, the French...

In a bizarre irony, the German daily newspaper Die Welt has proclaimed U.S. President Donald Trump “the most successful climate protector in the world” after a new global climate report revealed that U.S. carbon dioxide emissions dropped dramatically during Trump’s first year in office.... The United States led the small pack of countries that managed to lower greenhouse gas emissions, accompanied by UK, Japan, and Mexico. According to IEA figures, the United States managed to reduce CO2 emissions in 2017 by 0.5 percent, or 25 million tons, to 4810 million tons. ... Mr. Wetzel doffed his hat to President Trump,...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Eight northeastern states said on Tuesday they sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to force it to impose more stringent controls on a group of mostly Midwestern states whose air pollution they claim is being blown in their direction. In the latest development of a legal saga that began during Barack Obama's presidency, the lawsuit by New York and seven other states challenges a Trump administration decision to allow nine upwind states to escape tighter smog pollution controls. "Millions of New Yorkers are breathing unhealthy air as smog pollution continues to pour in from other states,"...

Hot stock tip: invest in companies producing anti-smog surgical masks. That is, if you buy into Chris Cuomo’s environmental alarmism. On CNN this morning, the panel discussed the Trump admin’s announcement yesterday that it plans to roll back some of the Obama-era EPA regs viewed as overly restrictive on the coal industry. Cuomo claimed that the Obama regs are “seen as key to keeping the United States from looking like Shanghai in terms of blowing all kinds of black smoke into the air.” View the video here.

Millions of Californians live in places with dirty air, according to an annual report card issued Wednesday that ranks two major urban areas in the state as the nation’s most polluted. Bakersfield tops the list for having the most unhealthy days from airborne particles spewed by highway traffic, diesel trucks, farm equipment and fireplaces, the American Lung Association’s State of the Air 2016 report says. Los Angeles remains the nation’s leader in harmful ozone pollution from car tailpipes emitting smog, the report says. Air pollution can trigger asthma attacks, heart attacks, lead to lung cancer and cause premature death. […]...

First, let me say that I drive a Volvo XC70 - a 300 HP, 5000 pound, gas guzzler that gets about 9,000 miles per ticket -- and have never owned, or wanted, either a Volkswagen or an Audi. It's unfair to hold today's Volkswagen AG accountable for the sins of its founders, but I have never understood how leftist anti-war protestors and peaceniks could commute to their riots in cars and vans whose design Ferdinand Porsche largely stole from Tata at Hitler's orders -- but then, I don't understand how adoring posters of mass murderers like Mao and Che...

Breathing polluted air every day may change a person's brain in ways that end up leading to cognitive impairment, according to a new study. In the study, researchers examined 943 healthy adults who were at least 60 years old and lived the New England region. The investigators used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to look at the participants' brain structures, and compared the images with the air pollution levels in the places where the participants lived. The researchers found that an increase of 2 micrograms per cubic meter in fine-particle pollution — a range that can be observed across an average...

In late 2014, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed a rule that would further ratchet down national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for ground level ozone from the current level of 75 parts per billion (ppb) to a range of 65 to 70 ppb. Notably, the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) declared the proposal to be the most expensive regulation ever imposed on the country. A study recently conducted by NERA Economic Consulting and commissioned by NAM confirms NAM’s earlier statement. Specifically, the study reveals that reducing the current ozone standard to 65 ppb would reduce U.S. gross...

Usually when the Obama administration is discussing doctors and health issues, Obamacare is on the table. Thursday, however, the White House threw a curve by linking health to climate change. In a new blog post, the White House declares that "7 out of 10 Doctors [say] Climate Change Is Already Harming Patients’ Health." While often the White House has been a source of upbeat reports on recent health improvements attributed in part to the Affordable Care Act, the language of this post stands in sharp contrast. For example: "Already, 1 in 10 children in the U.S. suffers from asthma. Heat-related...

Unable to clean air completely for APEC, China resorts to blocking data By Simon Denyer and Xu Yangjingjing November 10 BEIJING – China has made a gargantuan effort to clear Beijing’s smoggy air for an important regional summit this week, closing hundreds of factories and forcing cars off the road, but its efforts have only been partially successful. On Monday afternoon, the U.S. Embassy air quality monitor reported a reading of 157, a measurement classified as “unhealthy”. Red-faced, the Chinese government has come up with an innovative solution – block the data from being displayed on local smart phone apps...

IRWINDALE >> Sriracha’s spicy relationship with the City Council cooled off a bit Wednesday after officials unanimously dismissed a lawsuit and public nuisance declaration against manufacturer Huy Fong Foods. The standoff between the city and Sriracha creator David Tran began in October when the city filed a lawsuit against his iconic company. The battle sparked fears among Sriracha fans there would be a global shortage of the popular condiment and its bottle with the tell-tale green cap. An informal meeting Tuesday between Tran and city officials, accompanied by a written statement from Tran, provided the council the assurance it needed...

(CNN) -- A key part of the Obama administration's green policies received surprisingly strong Supreme Court support on Tuesday over efforts to curb air pollution. A 6-2 majority of justices issued a decision upholding federal agency rules to control coal-fired power plant emissions from 28 states. Obama takes on coal industry It was a rare environmental victory in a conservative majority court that has in recent years generally sided against the federal government's nationwide clean air policies. The issue was complex -- whether an "upwind" state that is polluting a "downwind" state is free of any obligations under the so-called...

The Supreme Court on Tuesday revived an Environmental Protection Agency regulation that limited power-plant emissions blowing across state lines—a victory for the Obama administration. The court's 6-2 ruling breathes new life into a 2011 EPA regulation known as the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule, which requires 28 states to reduce power-plant emissions that hurt the air-quality in states located downwind. The regulation stands to affect about 1,000 power plants in the eastern half of the U.S that may have to adopt new pollution controls or reduce operations. The court's decision in EPA v. EME Homer City Generation, written by Justice Ruth...

Because of the United States outsourcing manufacturing to China, the eastern United States saw a decrease in sulfate pollution, but an increase was seen in the western part of the nation. Average sulfate, carbon monoxide and black carbon concentrations went down by 0.3% to 0.9% when looking at population-weighted averages. But this all comes at a cost: In the western United States and populous Chinese regions, air quality went down. Over the last decade, China has seen a huge increase in the use of coal-burning power plants, Wuebbles said. Coal use for generating electricity is a big part of why...

Beijing’s skyscrapers receded into a dense gray smog Thursday as the capital saw the season’s first wave of extremely dangerous pollution, with the concentration of toxic small particles registering more than two dozen times the level considered safe. The air took on an acrid odor, and many of the city’s commuters wore industrial strength face masks as they hurried to work. The city’s air quality is often poor, especially in winter when stagnant weather patterns combine with an increase in coal-burning to exacerbate other forms of pollution and create days-long periods of heavy smog. But the readings early Thursday for...