Smog alert ahead

http://cumberlink.com/news/opinion/columnists/guest/guest-editorial-smog-alert-ahead/article_83047dce-ae8f-11e2-bd59-001a4bcf887a.html

Summer will soon be here and that can mean high levels of air pollutants in our air, specifically ozone and small particles, commonly known as smog.

Meteorologists declare “Air Quality Action” days when they project that weather conditions are conducive for unhealthy air pollution. In 2012, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) called 12 “action days” for the Susquehanna Valley.

We should heed those warnings. Recent scientific studies conclude that short-term exposure to unhealthy air pollution can have significant adverse effects on pregnant women, children, the elderly and even the general population — especially those with pre-existing conditions such as asthma.

Short-term symptoms resulting from breathing high levels of ozone and fine particulate are chest pain, coughing, nausea, throat irritation, and congestion. These pollutants also aggravate bronchitis, heart disease, emphysema, and asthma — and can increase risks of stroke.

Children, senior citizens, and those with asthma or other respiratory problems are urged to limit outdoor activities when an action day is predicted.

The quality of the air we breathe is a fundamental component of our overall health. The physiological effect of short-term ozone exposure is being unable to inhale to total lung capacity. Small particles, or PM 2.5, can be especially dangerous because they can travel deep into human tissue. Scientific studies over the last two decades have shown that exposure to high levels of PM 2.5 can raise the incidence of heart and pulmonary disease, cancer, infant mortality, low birth-weight babies, and even impaired cognitive function.

Air Quality Action days are often declared when there is little wind, and when the amount of ozone or particles in stagnant air could exceed federal health standards.

The DEP monitors local and regional air quality. Local television and radio stations alert the public to an Air Quality Action day prediction. Check your newspaper’s websites as well. The Clean Air Board of Central Pennsylvania also monitors pollution levels at its website, and posts notices when DEP declares an Air Quality Action day. Go to: cleanairboard.wordpress.com

On Air Quality Action days, the public can take simple, voluntary actions to help reduce the chances of creating even more health-impairing pollution. The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommends 10 steps:

1. Instead of driving, share a ride, take public transportation, walk or bike.

2. If you must drive, avoid excessive idling or jack-rabbit starts, and try to consolidate errands.

3. Don’t refuel your car, or only do so after 7 pm.

4. Avoid using outboard motors, off-road vehicles, or other gasoline powered recreational vehicles.

5. Wait to mow your lawn until late evening or the next day. Also, avoid using gasoline-powered garden equipment.

6. Use latex paints instead of oil-based paints, solvents, or varnishes that produce fumes.

7. If you are barbecuing, use an electric starter instead of charcoal lighter fluid.

8. Limit or postpone your household chores that will involve the use of consumer products.

9. Conserve energy to reduce energy needs.

10. Keep your car well maintained to limit excess emissions.

As more scientists and public health officials have studied air quality, more links have discovered between pollution and illness. Our local monitoring and notification systems work like other public information systems that warn of danger and possible threats to our health. They work to protect us, and it is, therefore, wise to pay attention to them.

submitted to Sentinel by Thomas Au

Clean Air Board Community Meeting, March 7, 2013, 7 pm

“Looking Forward to Clean Air”

CAB will look at new developments under the federal Clean Air Act and under state regulations.  Arleen Shulman, former air resources planning chief at the state Department of Environmental Protection will speak to the board.

This meeting will be held at the Second Presbyterian Church, 528 Garland Drive, Carlisle, PA 17013, on March 7,  at 7 pm.   Join us for a discussion of this important topic.

EPA Proposes Clean Air Standards for Harmful Particle Pollution on June 15

WASHINGTON – In response to a court order, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today proposed updates to its national air quality standards for harmful fine particle pollution, including soot (known as PM2.5). These microscopic particles can penetrate deep into the lungs and have been linked to a wide range of serious health effects, including premature death, heart attacks, and strokes, as well as acute bronchitis and aggravated asthma among children. A federal court ruling required EPA to update the standard based on best available science. Today’s proposal, which meets that requirement, builds on smart steps already taken by the EPA to slash dangerous pollution in communities across the country. Thanks to these steps, 99 percent of U.S. counties are projected to meet the proposed standard without any additional action. 

 

EPA’s proposal would strengthen the annual health standard for harmful fine particle pollution (PM2.5) to a level within a range of 13 micrograms per cubic meter to 12 micrograms per cubic meter. The current annual standard is 15 micrograms per cubic meter. The proposed changes, which are consistent with the advice from the agency’s independent science advisors, are based on an extensive body of scientific evidence that includes thousands of studies – including many large studies which show negative health impacts at lower levels than previously understood. By proposing a range, the agency will collect input from the public as well as a number of stakeholders, including industry and public health groups, to help determine the most appropriate final standard to protect public health. It is important to note that the proposal has zero effect on the existing daily standard for fine particles or the existing daily standard for coarse particles (PM10), both of which would remain unchanged.

For full news release: http://go.usa.gov/vYH

The Job-Creating Mercury Rule

New York Times – Published: February 22, 2012

After 20 years of delay and litigation by polluters, the Obama administration approved in December one of the most important rules in the history of the Clean Air Act. It will require power plants to reduce emissions of mercury and other toxic pollutants by more than 90 percent in the next five years and is expected to prevent as many as 11,000 premature deaths annually from asthma, other respiratory diseases and heart attacks.  More …

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/23/opinion/the-job-creating-mercury-rule.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

SmartWay Transport Partnership: Low-Cost EPA Loans for Emissions Reduction

SmartWay Transport Partnership is an EPA program that offers low-cost loans for truckers to buy wide tires, aerodynamic farings, diesel oxidation catalysts, diesel particulate filters and A.P.U.’s.

Basic Information

In 2004, EPA launched SmartWay^SM — an innovative brand that represents environmentally cleaner, more fuel efficient transportation options.

In its simplest form, the SmartWay brand identifies products and services that reduce transportation-related emissions.  However, the impact of the brand is much greater as the SmartWay brand signifies a partnership among government, business and consumers to protect our environment, reduce fuel consumption, and improve our air quality for future generations.

All of EPA SmartWay transportation programs result in significant, measurable air quality and/or greenhouse gas improvements while maintaining or improving current levels of other emissions and/or pollutants.

EPA believes the quality of the environment is everyone’s responsibility; therefore, SmartWay is positioned as a personal choice that can make a difference for the environment.

Find out what you can do to save fuel, money, and the environment with SmartWay:

SmartWay Vehicles

Fuel Options

SmartWay Transport Partnership

SmartWay Tractors and Trailers

SmartWay Financing Options

EPA Standards and Better Health: Tami Biddle, CAB

January 24, 2010 – EPA Standards and Better Health

By Tami Biddle, CAB Executive Board Member

Earlier this month the Environmental Protection Agency proposed regulations that would further tighten restrictions on smog. A composite of the word “smoke” and “fog,” the term smog has been used for years to describe the polluted air that often hangs over congested areas with high levels of traffic and industry. Smog contains several substances detrimental to human health. These include, in particular, ozone, nitrogen dioxide, and fine particulate matter known as PM 2.5. In recent decades our understanding of the very serious health risks of air pollution has grown more sophisticated and more detailed as scientific studies documenting these risks have been undertaken around the world.

A study by the World Health Organization, published in the summer of 2004, concluded that air pollution increased “the risk of cardiopulmonary disease and a reduction in life expectancy of a year or more for people living in European cities.” The researchers indicated that these effects could occur “at very low concentrations that were previously considered safe.” Overall, they stated that “the evidence is sufficient to strongly recommend further policy action to reduce levels of air pollutants, including particulates, nitrogen dioxide and ozone.” Recent research has continued to bear out these alarming findings.

A study just published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine (AJRCCM), for instance, found that ambient levels of nitrogen dioxide and fine particulate matter, PM 2.5, “were independently associated with pneumonia hospitalization in older adults.” Two other recent AJRCCM articles, one based on a study in the Czech Republic and one based on a study in Mexico City, found that young children were especially susceptible to air pollution-related illness.

A study published in the December 2009 issue of the journal, Chest , is of particular concern to those who have asthma. The researchers found that higher levels of certain air pollutants, in particular ozone and nitrogen dioxide, reduced the effectiveness of inhalers used by asthma patients.

In recent studies P.M. 2.5, which is small enough to embed itself deep into body tissues, has been particularly linked to heart disease. A 2009 study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, titled “The Effect of Fine and Coarse Particulate Air Pollution on Mortality: A National Analysis,” concluded that there was “an increased risk of mortality for all and specific causes associated with PM 2.5.” Findings like these are the reason why the Clean Air Board of Central PA is so concerned about PM 2.5 levels in our region.

Overall, the evidence is clear – and worrisome. In the same way that scientists warned us, over time, of the profound hazards of cigarette smoking, they are now warning us about the profound hazards of air pollution. In the face of such evidence, it is time for our regulatory agencies and legislators to act. The recent proposed tightening of smog regulations by the EPA is fully warranted, and reveals a government agency functioning as it should. The cost of implementing the new standards will be more than made up for by increases in worker productivity, and reductions in existing health care costs. The EPA’s action should be welcomed by citizens of Central Pennsylvania, where air quality is among the poorest in the nation. It is now time for Pennsylvanians to do their part, helping the EPA to bring cleaner air to our region. A failure to accept the implications of this evidence would be a failure to accept responsibility for our future, and for the health of our children and our elderly in particular.

Resources and References:

B. Neupane, et al, “Long Term Exposure to Ambient Air Pollution and Risk of Hospitalization with Community-acquired Pneumonia in Older Adults,” American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine , 181, 47-53, 2010

I. Hertz-Picciotto, et al, “Early Childhood Lower Respiratory Illness and Air Pollution,” AJRCCM , 115 (10), 1510-1518, 2007

R. Rohas-Martinez, “Lung Function Growth in Children with Long-Term Exposure to Air

Pollutants in Mexico City,” AJRCCM 176, 377-384, 2007

http://ajrccm.atsjournals.org

Environmental Health Perspectives : http :// ehp . niehs . nih . gov 07/24/02 04:21 L.

Hernandez-Cadena, F. Holguin, et al, “Increased Levels of Outdoor Air Pollutants Are Associated With Reduced Bronchodilation in Children With Asthma,” Chest , December 2009 136 : 1529 – 3

World Health Organization Report, “Health Aspects of Air Pollution,” June 2004 http://www.euro.who.int/ document/E83080.pdf

Zanobetti A, Schwartz J, “The Effect of Fine and Coarse Particulate Air Pollution on Mortality: A National Analysis ” Environmental Health Perspectives 117:898-903. 2009

“National Cost of Air Pollution” (ICAP) study released by the Canadian Medical Association, summarized by Medical News Today in an article called “Illness Cost of Air Pollution Underscores Need for Lung Health Action Plan: The Lung Association,” 14 August 2008.

http://medicalnewstoday.com