It's an ill wind that spawned this air pollution report

Pioneer Press ^ | 7-14-15 | Joe Soucheray

[TurboZamboni]

Canadian forest fires, which delivered unto us a Fourth of July weekend pall, seem to have inspired the release of a new report from the Minnesota Department of Health and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. We are being told that air pollution is killing about 2,000 people a year, a figure so preposterously guessed at it that they might as well have made it 175,000 people a year if it's alarm they are trying to sound. The following words were used: likely, estimates and roughly. Air pollution likely contributes to thousands of deaths each year, a state study estimates. The roughly 2,000 deaths included pre-existing health conditions exacerbated by particles suspended in the air, chunks of soot, likely contained in, say, smoke from a distant fire. Not only is that 2,000 figure pulled from somebody's behind, it isn't even our behind. Researchers measured air pollution levels in the metro area. OK. Then they looked at existing studies from around the country that modeled the health effects of those pollutants. Then they plugged pollution levels -- ours, I suppose -- into those models to produce an estimate of about 2,000 deaths, 400 hospitalizations and 600 emergency rooms visits linked to pollution. In other words, it seems the fate of our health is just as dependent on the air quality in Cincinnati or Detroit as it is here, or, more accurately, the ability of the people in Cincinnati and Detroit to withstand air pollution.

[TurboZamboni]

The report also suggested that people of color and people in poverty are more susceptible to death by air pollution, presumably because of what the report determined to be poorer access to health care and thus higher rates of heart and lung conditions to begin with. If you are going to tell me that a person with poor access to health care is more susceptible to death by a foreign agent, then you might as well tell me that a poor person or a person of color with a possibly weakened immune system is more susceptible to dying from getting beaned by a foul ball at a Twins game.

I don't know, with the way the word gets thrown around these days, maybe air pollution is racist.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

I miss hearing Joe on KSTP...

[mplsconservative]

You can hear him here:

http://www.1500espn.com/shows/garagelogic

[minnesota_bound]

I am from Minnesota. The air is always clear unlike Los Angeles area where I am now. Most of the pollution comes from China.