Two New Studies Link Smog to Premature Death, November 14, 2004
A Statement from John L. Kirkwood, President & CEO, American Lung Association
November 16, 2004
New York, NY - Today the Journal of the American Medical Association published a landmark new study linking exposure to the most common pollutant in the United States—ozone, or smog—to a significant increase in premature death in cities across the nation. This large and well-designed study examined respiratory and cardiovascular deaths in 95 U.S. cities between 1987 and 2000 and found that increasing levels of ozone air pollution could be linked to thousands of premature deaths annually. This study follows on the heels of a large European study that found similar effects in 19 of 23 European cities published yesterday in the American Thoracic Society’s peer-reviewed American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
This research shows that ozone may indeed kill people. The researchers estimated that the annual death toll in the 95 cities would be 3,767, including 319 annually in New York City. The researchers note that these numbers probably underestimate the full impact, since they only include short-term exposure to ozone. Early death would join the long litany of harmful effects of ozone exposure: shortness of breath, chest pain, wheezing and coughing and greatly increased risk of respiratory infections, asthma episodes, pulmonary inflammation, and the need for medical treatment and hospitalization for asthma. More may come as new studies are raising the possibility that ozone may cause asthma to develop in children.
These studies also show that thirty years after passage of the Clean Air Act, the air in major cities around the nation may be deadly to breathe. Ozone levels remain too high, despite decades of work. Unfortunately, the US Environmental Protection Agency has not done enough to reduce ozone pollution. In April, EPA issued guidance that gave the states and local governments far too much leeway in meeting the current health-based air pollution standards. Earlier this year EPA proposed weak, drawn out measures to clean up coal-fired power plants that contribute significantly to the ozone and particle pollution problems in the eastern United States. In light of these new studies, the American Lung Association again urges EPA to strengthen the Clean Air Interstate Rule, accelerate the critical clean up of these polluters and issue the final version this year.
This study comes at a critical time in the fight against air pollution. Some in Congress and the Administration have expressed the desire to ease the “burden” on polluters by rolling back key provisions of the Clean Air Act and weakening its requirements. This study confirms that the true burdens of air pollution are borne by the millions of Americans who breathe air that not only makes them sick, but may shorten their lives as well. We must do more to protect their lives and their health.
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Bell MI, McDermott A. Zeger SL, Samet JM, Dominici F. Ozone and Short-term Mortality in 95 US Urban Communities, 1987 to 2000. Journal of the American Medical Association 2004. 292: 2372-2378.
Gryparis A, Forsberg B, Katsouyanni, K et al. Acute Effects of Ozone on Mortality from the “Air Pollution and Health: A European Approach” Project. American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. 2004. 170: 1080-1087
