Study: Wildfire smoke reversing US clean air gains, increasing smog deaths
By
Seth Borenstein
Slow-proofed and worth the wait. Worth its weight in flour.
Summary
A new study reveals that after more than a decade of improving US air quality due to federal regulations, smoke from increasingly larger wildfires since 2015 is reversing that progress. National smog levels dropped 11% from 2003 to 2015 but have since increased by 4%. Scientists attribute much of the blame to climate change, which is driving larger and more frequent wildfires. The study warns that a dozen years of clean air progress could be wiped out in about 20 years, with smog-related deaths increasing by 318 per year since 2013, particularly affecting the Northern Rockies and Midwest regions.
Key quotes
· 3 pulledFor more than a decade, the United States dramatically reduced its national smog levels, but since 2015 smoke from increasingly larger wildfires is reversing that clean-up trend and making the air dirtier and deadlier, a new study finds.
Scientists say climate change deserves much, but not all, of the blame.
The national smog level dropped by 11% from 2003 to 2015 as strict federal regulations on power plants, cars and diesel engines kicked in.
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