air quality

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California's Falling Ash May Be Toxic

Because it's 2020 after all

(Newser) - As if a global pandemic, record-high temperatures , a raging wildfire, and news of approaching winds weren't bad enough, Los Angeles County residents are being told to stay inside to avoid exposure to potentially toxic ash. Fine ash has been raining down on the San Gabriel Valley, as well as...

Amid Lockdown, Residents Gasp at Unexpected Sight

People in India say they can see Himalayas for first time in decades

(Newser) - On a clear day you can see forever—or, suddenly, the Himalayas, if you're a resident of northern India. The world's biggest lockdown due to the coronavirus started in India at the end of March, and everyone staying home in the nation of 1.3 billion people seems...

Years-Old Tobacco Residue Can Suddenly Go Airborne
Thirdhand Smoke
Is a Big Problem
NEW STUDY
May 10, 2018 4:15 PM CDT

Thirdhand Smoke Is a Big Problem

HVAC systems carry thirdhand smoke indoors: study

(Newser) - You've heard of secondhand smoke, but thirdhand smoke needs to be on your radar, too. "Just because you're in a nonsmoking environment, it doesn't mean you aren't exposed to tobacco," says Peter DeCarlo of Drexel University, whose study was published Wednesday in Science Advances,...

This Is What the Air in India's Capital Looks Like

Air pollution hit 'severe' level on air quality index in New Delhi

(Newser) - Over the past two years, New Delhi has earned the dubious distinction of being one of the world's most polluted cities, and that reputation doesn't seem to be changing. A thick gray haze enveloped India's capital on Tuesday as air pollution hit hazardous levels, prompting local officials...

UK Unveils Big Move in Quest for Cleaner Air

It plans to ban new gas, diesel cars by 2040

(Newser) - Just weeks after France unveiled a plan to ban sales of gas and diesel cars by 2040, its neighbor to the north is following suit. Britain's government on Wednesday unveiled a nearly $4 billion plan to improve air quality that would see sales of new gas and diesel cars...

At London Bus Stops, a Smog Report

City rolls out air-quality alerts on signs at 2.5K stops

(Newser) - Londoners will soon be able to get air quality reports when they check whether their bus is about to arrive, reports the AP . Mayor Sadiq Khan has ordered that 2,500 bus stop information signs display air quality alerts on high pollution days. Some 140 dot-matrix message boards on roads...

Typical Office Air Makes You Dumber
 How Office Air 
 Makes You Dumber 
new study
Nov 2, 2015 8:00 PM CST

How Office Air Makes You Dumber

Poor ventilation is among the problems, study says

(Newser) - Yeah, that air you're breathing at the office? It's likely diminishing your brain power by more than half unless it's kept environmentally clean, according to a new study . Researchers came to this conclusion by placing 24 professionals—including engineers, designers, and architects—in a specialized office for...

Air Quality in Your Gym Might Spoil Workout

Study finds generally high levels of pollutants

(Newser) - You might want to start your next workout at the gym with a sniff test. A new study suggests that gyms have high levels of air pollutants such as formaldehyde, airborne dust, and carbon dioxide, reports the New York Times . In fact, levels for those three substances generally exceeded accepted...

Beijing's Air Quality: On Scale of 500, It's 755

Pollution index sails way past 'hazardous'

(Newser) - If experiencing Tehran's dismal air pollution is "suicidal," Beijing residents might want to dig a bunker and stay there. The Chinese capital, which wrinkled noses a couple of years ago when it managed to break the very index meant to measure its air quality, yesterday blew right...

Jerry Brown Swoops In to Cut California Gas Prices

Looks to increase supply with emergency move

(Newser) - With gas prices soaring in California—at an average of $4.655 yesterday compared to $3.814 nationally—Gov. Jerry Brown is entering the fray, aiming to bring cheaper winter-blend gasoline to the state early. He has ordered the California Air Resources Board to allow the sale and import of...

China Demands US Stop Tweeting About Its Air

They complain US standards unfair, and data may not be 'rigorous'

(Newser) - China isn't just happy censoring its own tweets anymore. China told foreign embassies today to stop publishing their own reports on air quality in the country, escalating its objections to a popular US Embassy Twitter feed that tracks pollution in smoggy Beijing. Only the Chinese government is authorized to...

China's Air Quality Data Suspiciously Sunny

Expert calls new data 'surprising'

(Newser) - The Chinese government, under fire from its citizens about its unbelievably upbeat pollution reports , has started to release more detailed data about smog in Beijing, reports the AP . For the first time, Beijing's official weather website yesterday included readings about PM2.5, or particulate matter less than 2.5...

Cynical Chinese Taking Own Smog Readings

Rail against government's 'fog' label

(Newser) - The Chinese know smog when they see it—even when the government calls it "fog." So Beijing citizens are taking their own pollution readings. "If people know what their air is like, they are more likely to take action," said a researcher at an environmental group...

President Obama Dumps New Smog Rules in Surprise Win for Businesses
 Obama Dumps 
 New Smog Rules 
Sep 2, 2011 11:28 AM CDT

Obama Dumps New Smog Rules

He says standard will change anyway in 2013

(Newser) - Barack Obama handed the business community a surprise win today by asking the Environmental Protection Agency to scrap new smog standards that would force state and local government to improve air quality or risk losing federal funds, the Washington Post reports. "Work is already underway to update … the...

Arizona Warns of Air Quality as Wildfire Spreads

Massive blaze is in New Mexico now, too

(Newser) - An eye-stinging, throat-burning haze of smoke spewing from a gigantic wildfire in eastern Arizona is beginning to stretch as far east as central New Mexico, prompting health officials to warn residents as far away as Albuquerque about potential respiratory hazards. The 672-square-mile blaze was no longer just an Arizona problem...

Huge Sandstorm Turns Beijing Sky Orange

Storms have jumped sixfold in 50 years due to deforestation

(Newser) - China's capital woke up to orange-tinted skies today as the strongest sandstorm so far this year hit the country's north, delaying some flights at Beijing's airport and prompting a dust warning for Seoul. The sky glowed and a thin dusting of sand covered Beijing, causing workers to muffle their faces...

Red Dust Blankets Sydney
 Red Dust Blankets Sydney 
Sep 22, 2009 8:36 PM CDT

Red Dust Blankets Sydney

Air quality 'dangerous' as limited visibility forces incoming flights to be diverted

(Newser) - Red dust blowing in from the Australian Outback covered Sydney today, snarling air travel and forcing locals to don masks to venture outdoors. “It’s like a nuclear winter morning,” one visitor told Bloomberg; the state government called air quality “hazardous.” Visibility was under 50 feet...

IOC, BBC Spar Over Beijing Air
 IOC, BBC Spar Over Beijing Air
Aug 7, 2008 1:50 PM CDT

IOC, BBC Spar Over Beijing Air

But pollution readings by BBC tell a different story

(Newser) - The International Olympic Committee says there is nothing wrong with the air in Beijing and praised China's "extraordinary" efforts to clean up pollution ahead of the Games' kick-off tomorrow. But the BBC disagrees, reporting its own analysis that shows Beijing's air pollution at nearly four times World Health Organization...

Bejing's Clean-Air Blitz Falls Short
 Bejing's Clean-Air Blitz
 Falls Short 
ANALYSIS
Aug 5, 2008 1:49 PM CDT

Bejing's Clean-Air Blitz Falls Short

Independent readings, photos show smog persists despite pre-Olympic crackdown

(Newser) - The Chinese government’s goal of dispersing the thick smog around Beijing is not working, Wired reports after analyzing independent data. Efforts including factory shutdowns, car bans, and cloud seeding have not improved air quality, with pollution levels still far above the World Health Organization’s standards on most days....

Beijing Becomes Obsessed With Rain

Chinese people want some, but not too much, for Olympics

(Newser) - Talking about the weather isn’t just idle conversation in Beijing these days—it’s a national obsession, the Washington Post reports. The country is so anxious for a sunny Olympics—with just enough rain to clear the smog, of course—that changes in the forecast have become front-page news....

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