air pollution

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Beijing Forces Half of Drivers Off the Road

Move to clear noxious air in countdown to Olympics

(Newser) - Half of Beijing's drivers left their cars at home today and took public transportation on the first workday under new restrictions meant to clear the city's notoriously polluted skies before the Olympics. Under the plan that kicked in yesterday, half of the capital's 3.3 million cars will be removed...

US Athletes Weigh Wearing Masks in Beijing

Specially designed masks would blunt smog—and irk hosts

(Newser) - To protect its athletes from Beijing’s polluted air, the US Olympic Committee has secretly developed a mask for them to wear during next month’s Games, the Wall Street Journal reports. But if the 600-plus American Olympians decide to wear the high-tech filter, they risk insulting their Chinese hosts—...

Calif. Mulls Pay-as-You-Drive Insurance to Cut Costs, Miles

Option available in 34 states seen to help costs, environment; invasiveness an issue

(Newser) - An alliance of insurance companies and environmentalists are pushing to bring  pay-as-you-drive auto-insurance, available from a handful of companies in other states, to California in a big way, the Los Angeles Times reports. The system, which charges premiums based on mileage, as recorded by a GPS tracking device, gives drivers...

Global Warming Caused by ... Cleaner Skies: Study

Pollution crackdown has let more sunlight in, making Europe toastier, scientists say

(Newser) - Reducing aerosols and other pollutants has been a major part of Europe’s campaign to reduce global warming, but a new study turns conventional thinking on its head, New Scientist reports. "The decrease in aerosols probably accounts for at least half of the warming over Europe in the last...

China Falls Behind on Olympic Promises

Despite vows, not much change on air quality, political freedom

(Newser) - With exactly a month to go before the Olympics, China has not delivered on promises to improve Beijing’s air quality or allow foreign journalists open access, the BBC reports. The government vowed to bring Beijing’s air up to WHO standards when bidding for the Games, but a BBC...

EU Will Make Airlines Pay to Pollute

Deal to cap and trade carbon emissions could drive fares up

(Newser) - The European Union struck a landmark deal yesterday to regulate carbon emissions from airplanes, requiring carriers to buy pollution credits for all flights entering or leaving airports in the EU. The agreement, which should go into effect in 2012, marks the first time that airlines will have to pay to...

The New Generational Shift: Suburban Flight

After 50 years of sprawl, suburbanites gravitate toward cities

(Newser) - Changes in lifestyles, economic conditions, and demographics are leading to a reversal in urban flight, The Wall Street Journal reports. Four-dollar-a-gallon gasoline and the subprime crisis have driven many to cities from suburbs, where commutes are longer and houses have lost the most value. Boomers are simplifying their lives with...

Calif. Smog Kills 24K Each Year
 Calif. Smog Kills 24K Each Year 
May 22, 2008 11:39 AM CDT

Calif. Smog Kills 24K Each Year

Pollution deaths three times higher than earlier estimates

(Newser) - Air pollution is responsible for the deaths of 24,000 people in California annually—three times higher than previous estimates, according to new research. Rates of heart attacks, strokes, and other serious disease increase exponentially after even minimal exposure to particles of metal, dust, or other pollution from vehicles and...

Clean-Air Changes 'Imperil Parks'

Rules make allow power plants nearby

(Newser) - Clean air rules likely to be changed this summer are causing serious concerns about future pollution at some of America's most spectacular national parks, reports the Washington Post. The changes will pave the way for 28 new coal-fired power plants near ten parks, according to a report supported by some...

Pittsburgh Joins LA as US' Most Polluted

Steel City is first outside California to top Lung Association's annual list

(Newser) - Pittsburgh has gone Hollywood—but not in a good way, Reuters reports. For the first time, a city outside California has topped one of three most-polluted lists in an annual “State of the Air” report, Pittsburgh ranked as the US city with the worst short-term particle pollution; Los Angeles...

Ewww! What Stinks? London
 Ewww! What Stinks? London  
Apr 19, 2008 1:37 PM CDT

Ewww! What Stinks? London

And it's not the French, despite what the tabs say

(Newser) - London was engulfed yesterday by a smell so foul that Brits worried some giant sewer had overflowed, ABC News reports. But not to worry—the smell came from Europe, officials insisted. The Daily Mail quuickly blamed the French for "le stink," but it appeared to be caused by...

IOC: Beijing Air Risky for Athletes

Competitors in endurance events

(Newser) - The air quality in Beijing poses a “possible risk” to athletes in endurance events, the International Olympic Committee announced today. After analyzing data collected in Beijing in August, the IOC’s medical commission concluded that most competitors won't be affected by the smog, but it will monitor air quality...

SoCal Bans Wood Burning on Bad Air Days

But fireplace lovers need not fret: only 24 days per year

(Newser) - Officials in charge of air quality in Los Angeles and surrounding counties have banned the use of wood-burning fireplaces during certain high-pollution days. The fines would only be levied on about two dozen winter days, and wouldn't affect gas fireplaces, wood-burning ovens in restaurants, or homes above 3,000 feet,...

Clean Air Rules Squeezing Berry Farmers

Strawberry growers rip EPA pesticide limits as 'too much, too soon'

(Newser) - California strawberry farmers fear that EPA efforts to curb pesticide pollution could kill most of this year's crops, the AP reports. Ventura County growers, who produce 25% of the nation's berries, say the pesticides are needed to increase crop output. Requirements that fumigants be cut as much as half could...

Texas Tops US in CO2 Emissions
Texas Tops US
in CO2 Emissions
Feb 29, 2008 3:35 PM CST

Texas Tops US in CO2 Emissions

Activists fight to clean things up

(Newser) - Texas—the land of big oil, big agriculture, pickup trucks, wide-open spaces, and little mass transit—not only is the biggest emitter of CO2 among states, it ranks eighth in the world, a new study says. It’s also one of the few states without any climate plan in the...

Olympians Prepare Strategies for Beijing Smog

China promises clean air for Games, but teams are taking precautions

(Newser) - With the Summer Olympics set to begin Aug. 8 in one of the world’s smoggiest cities, competitors are looking for a Beijing edge. US athletes have been asking if they should train near busy highways to simulate Beijing’s noxious air, the New York Times reports, but trainers are...

Pollution Fight Gains Star Power
Pollution Fight Gains Star Power
Dec 11, 2007 7:45 PM CST

Pollution Fight Gains Star Power

Ex-lawmaker consults on eco-friendly marketing for Amtrak, LA Metro

(Newser) - It's a push for green living, but with a uniquely Hollywood twist. The powerful William Morris talent agency has joined forces with stodgy government entities such as Amtrak and LA's public transportation system to push the eco-friendly benefits of mass transit. Advertising Age profiles the work in Hollywood of Kevin...

Gassy Kudzu Choking South
Gassy Kudzu Choking South
Dec 4, 2007 8:10 PM CST

Gassy Kudzu Choking South

Quick-spreading vine emitting greenhouse gas

(Newser) - It's nicknamed "the vine that ate the South," but experts now warn that the fast-spreading invasive plant is choking more than just power lines, reports the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Scientists have found that the plant emits ozone, making smog worse, leading to health problems—and speeding up climate change.

Site Ranks Power-Plant Polluters
Site Ranks Power-Plant Polluters
Nov 15, 2007 11:30 AM CST

Site Ranks Power-Plant Polluters

Australia tops per capita, America absolute lists

(Newser) - A study of power-plant emissions names Australia as the lead polluter per capita in a field crowded with competition, Mother Jones reports. Aussie power plants produce 11 tons of carbon dioxide per person annually; American plants generate nine. The US produces the most cumulative emissions, though developing giants China and...

Air Pollution High in Fire's Wake
Air Pollution High in Fire's Wake
Oct 27, 2007 2:16 PM CDT

Air Pollution High in Fire's Wake

Breathing carefully, residents return to face gas, water shortages, power outages

(Newser) - Evacuees trickling home in fire-ravaged Southern California find themselves largely without power, natural gas or potable water. Perhaps worse, the barely breathable air is laden with soot and dust, raising health concerns, the AP reports. Satellite pictures show thick smoke throughout the region. “We're all at risk of the...

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