Soot = PM2.5
The symbol PM2.5 refers to particulate
matter that is 2.5 microns in diameter or smaller. (This is commonly
called "soot.")
The federal standard for PM2.5 measured over a 24-hour period is
currently 65 micrograms per cubic meter of air. This standard will
soon be reduced to 35 µg/m3. The standard over
an annual average basis is 15 µg/m3.
Selected Air Pollutants That Affect Respiratory Function
•
Small particulates (soot)
• Sulfur
dioxide (SO2)
• Ozone (O3)
•Nitrogen dioxide (NO2)
•
Carbon monoxide (CO)
• Lead (Pb)
•
Pollen • Radon
Health Impacts of Air Pollution
http://EduGreen.teri.res.in/explore/air/health.htm
The Energy and Resources Institute in New Delhi, India offers a primer on the
health impacts of air pollution on its EduGreen site.
Health and Clean Air Newsletter
http://healthandcleanair.org/
I encourage you to read this superb newsletter. The homepage describes
best: "Each
year air pollution claims upwards of 50,000 lives in the United States alone,
but this and other information too often fails to make its way out of the pages
of scientific journals and into the hands and minds of ordinary citizens to
whom it is vitally important. The Health and Clean Air Newsletter is
our attempt to make this information available to readers ranging from the
heads of parent-teacher
associations to reporters, without sacrificing accuracy."
Rachel's Democracy & Health
News
#95 – Urgent Action Alert: EPA Setting Deadly Air Standards
http://www.rachel.org/bulletin/index.cfm?issue_ID=1050
#131 Fine Particles – Part 1: The Dangers of Incineration
http://www.rachel.org/bulletin/index.cfm?issue_ID=1014
#132 Fine Particles – Part 2: Incineration's Tiny Byproducts
Aggravate Asthma, Bronchitis
http://www.rachel.org/bulletin/index.cfm?issue_ID=1013
#134 Fine Particles – Part 3: Federal Standards Allow Disease
http://www.rachel.org/bulletin/index.cfm?issue_ID=1006
#136 Fine Particles – Part 4: Harm To Humans: Solid Evidence
http://www.rachel.org/bulletin/index.cfm?issue_ID=1003
#373 Invisible Killers: Fine Particles
http://www.rachel.org/bulletin/index.cfm?issue_ID=755
#374 Asthma: Prevention May Be the Only Cure
http://www.rachel.org/bulletin/index.cfm?issue_ID=754
#774 – The Revolution, Part 3: Ultrafines
http://www.rachel.org/bulletin/index.cfm?issue_ID=2371
I am a long-time reader of Rachel's Democracy & Health News, formerly
called Rachel's Environment & Health News. Some of Peter Montague's
Rachel's columns – going back to the 1980s and 1990s – still
rank among the most compelling content on the health impact of airborne fine
particles (soot). Dr. Montague explains key concepts, summarizes scientific
papers, and offers detailed references. When you tell people that "The
federal standard for particulate matter is not adequate to protect children," or
that "air pollution is killing roughly 60,000 Americans each year," you'll
be equipped to inform them that the sources are Brigham Young and Harvard University
researchers.
Health and Economic Impacts of Air Pollution
http://www.airimpacts.org/
http://www.airimpacts.org/index.asp?page=publications
http://www.airimpacts.org/documents/local/aqbook.pdf (100
pages; 800KB .pdf)
This site features publications from many countries on the health and economic
impacts of air pollution.
Clean Air Trust
http://www.cleanairtrust.org/
This site has not been current for a few years, but it's still
a font of good information on the Clean Air Act.
National Library of Medicine
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/airpollution.html
On the day that I write this column, the "Latest News" reads
as follows:
• Polluted Air Might Increase Stroke Risk
• Years of Breathing Dirty Air Ups Women's DeathRisk
• Air Pollution Linked to Lung Cancer
•
Air Pollution Harms Healthy Kids' Lung Function
• Study Suggests New Link Between Air Pollution and Infant Deaths
I doubt the news about air pollution is going to be any better any time soon.
The question is what are we doing to ensure healthful air for our citizens?
EPA Cuts Soot Level Allowable Daily in Air: Industry
and Activists Criticize New Rules
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/21/AR2006092101616.html
EPA Ignores Advice for Annual Limits on Tiny
Soot:
Science Panel Had Urged Tighter Rules, Citing Health Effects
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/09/22/MNGJBLABRM1.DTL
"Both Sides"
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-roberts/both-sides_b_30039.html
In September, the EPA announced it would lower the daily allowable
limit of 24-hour soot exposure. That sounds like good news, but scientists
at EPA also
recommended lowering the annual soot limit – and that recommendation
was ignored. Note how the same EPA ruling is headlined quite differently in
two major papers! While The Washington
Post
headline makes the reader think it is basically good news, the San
Francisco Chronicle headline
tells the important story that the Environmental Protection Agency's own science
panel was ignored
in determining the EPA air quality ruling. The Post story
gives the final quote to a Georgia County Commissioner concerned about the "detrimental
impact on economic development." He says of soot, "I don't think
it's affecting health in my community." David Roberts writes on
The Huffington Post blog about The Washington
Post coverage, noting that reporting "both
sides" actually can bias the truth.
Court Rejects Bush Administration Plan to Gut Key Clean Air Act Safeguard
http://www.nrdc.org/media/pressreleases/060317b.asp
The Court's Ruling
http://pacer.cadc.uscourts.gov/docs/common/opinions/200603/03-1380a.pdf (163KB)
States Sue Federal Government to Protect Clean Air Act
http://www.ago.state.ma.us/sp.cfm?pageid=986&id=1112
We need to be ever-vigilant of efforts to roll back health protections.
In March of this year, a circuit court struck down administration regulations
that would have exempted many power plants from using the highest quality pollution
control equipment. Looking back on the press release issued three years earlier
by the dozen states bringing the lawsuit, I'm struck by the words of
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal. He said: "This rollback
is a presidential pardon for polluters who have defied the law year after year.
Our court challenge will stop this illegal effort to repeal the Clean Air Act
by dictatorial edict. The rollback is probably the single worst environmental
policy decision by any administration ever. It leaves the administration without
a fig leaf of credibility on environmental issues." Along similar lines,
Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly said, "This new rule is an
unjustified assault on citizens' rights to breathe clean air. We are
not going to sit by quietly and allow the energy interests in this country
to receive special treatment while so many of our children and elderly are
needlessly suffering from respiratory problems that are, in essence, brought
on by bad environmental policy." The Attorney Generals involved in this
winning suit are our national leaders in maintaining health-protecting environmental
law.
The Ehrlich-tric Power Grid
http://www.mdlcv.org/ehrlichtric/ (Jan.
2007: Complete link no longer works.)
My state – Maryland – passed the Healthy Air Act this year. There
were all sorts of political shenanigans: electric company lobbyists were ghostwriting
legislative recommendations signed by environmental officials, and the Governor
even locked his office on the last day of the session so the legislation couldn't
be submitted on time. The Baltimore Sun exposed this, and I suppose the Governor
was embarrassed into signing the bill. A local illustrator captured how the
regulatory agencies are "wired to give utility companies what they want." Through
lots of hard work, the advocates for cleaner air won passage. The law mandates
power plant reductions in emissions of SO2, NOx, Mercury, and carbon dioxide.
Clean Air Act Issues in the 109th Congress
http://ncseonline.org/NLE/CRSreports/06jun/IB10137.pdf (94
KB)
http://ncseonline.org/NLE/crs/abstract.cfm?NLEid=1487
The Congressional Research Service does a marvel-ous job of summarizing
the issues facing Congress. If you have trouble understanding some
of the finer
points in this 18-page report on Clean Air Act issues, go ahead and ask questions
of the clean air advocacy groups. If, in your conversation, you hear people
mention "Knocks and Socks" note that they are actually referring
to oxides of Nitrogen (NOx) and Sulfur (SOx).
American Lung Association – State
of the Air: 2006
http://lungaction.org/reports/stateoftheair2006.html
Of all the mainstream health organizations, I find the American Lung
Association to be one of the most progressive. They do good work. I
entered my zip code
in their "How's your air" lookup, and I'm not surprised
that my area (in Baltimore, Maryland) gets a failing grade in both annual and
24-hour particle pollution.
Airhead
http://airhead.cnt.org/
http://airhead.cnt.org/AirPollution/primer_laws.php
http://airhead.cnt.org/Calculator/
Two great resources on this site include the Air
Pollution Primer on Laws and the Emissions
Calculator.
Air Quality Index – Local Forecasts & Conditions
http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=airnow.local
Air Quality Index (AQI) – A Guide to Air
Quality and Your Health
http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=static.aqi
Frequently Asked Questions
http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=airnow.faq
AirData Report
http://www.epa.gov/air/data/geosel.html
Smog: Who Does It Hurt?
http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=health2.index
I encourage all health providers to check out this content. You can
learn how the Air Quality Index (AQI) is determined, and you can find
out the AQI for
your city or one closest to you. You can create maps of "Non-attainment" areas.
The map-making resource is slow, so patience is rewarded.
California Asthma Public
Health Initiative – Home
Environmental Assessment Tools
http://www.dhs.ca.gov/ps/cdic/caphi/ea_tools.htm
This page offers helpful tools for parents and practitioners to monitor
exposures to pets, pests, mold, dust mites, and smoke. Of course, what's
always missing from all these home assessments is a page for assessing
levels of air
pollution determined by public policy. What are the maximum levels allowed?
And how many days was the neighborhood out of compliance for these standards?
Perhaps if our checklists included these questions, it would remind people
to get active in cleaning up air policy.
National Center for Environmental Health
http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/
Air Pollution and Respiratory Health
http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/airpollution/
The National Network Implementation Plan (NNIP)
http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/tracking/pdfs/nnip.pdf (71
pages; 1.26MB .pdf)
The CDC's National Environmental Health Tracking Program:
The Centers for Disease Control's (CDC) National Center for Environmental
health works with a wide variety of audiences, including some providers, to
address the environmental causes of disease.
The Environmental Impacts of the World Trade Center Attacks
http://www.nrdc.org/air/pollution/wtc/wtcinx.asp
Environmental Impact of 911 Attacks
http://www.complete911timeline.org/project.jsp?project=Enviromental_impact_911_attacks
After the fall of the World Trade Center towers, workers and tenants
were assured by the EPA administrator that Manhattan's air was
safe. Actually, the air was full of soot and other toxic contaminants,
as fires continued to burn
for months.
Toxic Trailers: Tests Reveal High Formaldehyde Levels in FEMA Trailers
http://www.sierraclub.org/gulfcoast/downloads/formaldehyde_test.pdf (456
KB .pdf)
http://gentillygirl.com/2006/05/18/environmental-group-says-some-fema-trailers-unsafe/
When hurricane victims were given FEMA trailers last year in the wake of the
hurricanes, a number of the trailer dwellers fell ill. The trailers were tested
for formaldehyde, and more than 90% of them had levels deemed unsafe by the
EPA.
Area's Immediate Reading (AIR)
http://www.pm-air.net/
PigeonBlog
http://www.pigeonblog.mapyourcity.net/test_flight.php
http://01sj.org/content/view/159/49/
http://plentymag.com/features/2006/07/pigeons_write_a_smog_blog_you.php
Consider outfitting yourself with a portable device to measure ambient pollution.
In New York, humans carry these devices. In California, carrier pigeons do!
As the birds fly, they create a map of air pollution around them.
Marjorie Roswell
3443 Guilford Terrace
Baltimore, Maryland 21218 USA
410-467-3727
mroswell@gmail.com
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