Air Pollution
Madrid To Charge Polluting Cars More for Parking
To deal with its high pollution levels, which rank worse than the EU average, Madrid will implement a new parking fee system that charges more for the most polluting cars. Electric cars will park for free.
Decisive Supreme Court Win for Clean Air and Public Health
In a huge and perhaps unexpected win for the EPA, the Supreme Court on April 29 reversed an appellate court panel ruling that had rejected their attempt to regulate interstate air pollution caused by about 1,000 coal-fired power plants in 28 states.
New York City's Most Serious Pollution Continues to Plague its Residents
Imagine living high above Manhattan but unable to open your windows because of soot-laden smoke from surrounding buildings. Toxic emissions from burning dirty heating oil continues despite a 2011 law requiring conversion to a cleaner fuel.
Beyond Oil: Trains Turn to LNG Fuel and Hybrid Locomotives
According to a new EIA report, the cost advantages of liquefied natural gas make it an attractive alternative to diesel fuel for major U.S. freight railroad companies. Hybrid diesel-electric locomotives on order for 5 states will power HSR routes.
Air Pollution Kills 7 Million Annually
In September, 2011 the above title read two million. Figures from both years are based on reports from the World Health Organization, a United Nations agency. Is air quality getting worse, or are more deaths being attributed to air pollution?
France Rethinks Its Diesel Fuel Addiction
Unlike the U.S., most passenger vehicles in Europe run on diesel fuel, not gasoline, and from a public health perspective, diesel emissions can severely exacerbate particle pollution during weather inversions like the one Paris is now experiencing.
High Pollutions Levels in an Unexpected City
We've come to expect hight air pollution levels in Beijing and other Asian cities with high traffic levels and surrounded by dirty coal plants, but not in cities using emission-free nuclear energy and lots of bikes and mass transit. So why Paris?
Report: Low Income, Rural Drivers are Disproportionate Polluters
A new report points to the 10-15% of vehicles in California that cause half the smog caused by light duty vehicles. Rather than urban strategies such as transit or TOD, the authors support improving the vehicle retirement and replacement program.
Beijing's Smog is Notorious, But Delhi's is Much Worse
Chinese and Indian cities are known for having some of the most polluted air in the world. You've likely heard about Beijing's severe smog; but in Delhi, where pollution levels are regularly higher, the hazardous air gets little notice. Why?
Petroleum's Coke Problem Plagues Chicago
Petroleum coke or petcoke, similar to coal, is a nasty though salable byproduct of the oil refining process. Produced from refining tar sands crude in Indiana refineries, it is stored in huge piles in Chicago, blowing dust in the Southeast Side.
East Coasters Aim to Force Midwesterners to Clean Up Their Air
Concerned that a controversial "good neighbor rule" doesn't go far enough in keeping dirty air from wafting over the East Coast, governors of eight states are petitioning the EPA to enforce stricter pollution standards on their Midwestern neighbors.
Shanghai Halts Construction, Orders Children Inside due to Severe Smog
Off-the-chart smog levels recorded on Friday in China’s second largest city put its 30 million residents at risk and has authorities urging people to stay indoors.
Coal Plants Go Low-Tech to Meet Green Goals
Motivated in part by the E.P.A.'s proposed rules to reduce power plant emissions, Minn. Power is burning a greener variety of coal by adding wood to the fuel, helping to meet its renewable power goal and reduce conventional air pollutants and CO2.
Are These America's Most Polluted Neighborhoods?
Regulations and a natural gas boom have helped reduce America's CO2 emissions to their lowest level since 1994. But CO2, and plenty of other toxic particles, continue to pollute our urban air. Brentin Mock looks at 5 highly polluted urban areas.
Port Truckers Strike over Clean-Air Regulations
Nonunion truckers at the Port of Oakland are on a work-stoppage over both work rules and compliance with a 2008 CARB diesel regulation requiring drayage trucks to be 2007 or newer. They want a year extension and more funding to assist in compliance.
Air Pollution Identified as a Leading Cause of Cancer Deaths
For the first time, the World Health Organization has identified air pollution, in its entirety, as a cause of cancer, putting it on par with tobacco smoke, asbestos and arsenic. In 2010, 223,000 people died from lung cancer caused by air pollution.
Accidents Not the Leading Cause of Vehicle-Related Deaths
A new study by MIT researchers indicates that a greater number of premature deaths in the United States can be attributed to auto pollution than auto collisions.
Bulgaria's Bad Air Highlights European Pollution Problem
A new report by the European Environment Agency points to progress in cutting the continent's air pollution problem. However, up to 98% of Europe's urban residents are exposed to hazardous air, and in places like Bulgaria the danger is acute.
Strict Standards for Ship Emissions Cleanse Bay Area Air
Thanks to a Calif. law implemented in 2008 requiring ocean-going ships to switch from high-sulfur bunker fuel to cleaner fuels within 24 miles of the coast, Bay Area air quality significantly improved by reducing deadly particulate emissions.
New Yorkers Breathe Easier as the City's Buildings Clean Up Their Act
A Bloomberg administration effort to get New York's most polluting buildings to convert to cleaner heating fuels has provided remarkable results, a new study reports.
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