Plagued by Pollution — U.S. PIRG Report January 2006
Ninety-six million Americans—32% of the population—live in areas with unsafe levels of fine particle, or “soot,” pollution, according to a new report released today by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group (U.S. PIRG). The report is a comprehensive analysis of levels of fine particle pollution in the U.S. in 2004, based on a survey of state environmental agencies.
“Soot pollution is a serious health risk. Children, senior citizens, and even healthy adults suffer asthma attacks and other health problems from soot pollution,” said U.S. PIRG Clean Air Advocate Emily Figdor.
Coal-fired power plants and diesel engines are the largest sources of fine particle pollution.
Fine particle pollution is the nation’s deadliest air pollutant—and one of its most pervasive. Because of their small size, fine particles can bypass the body’s natural defenses, such as coughing and sneezing, and lodge deep within the lungs or even pass into the bloodstream, causing serious respiratory and cardiovascular problems, such as asthma attacks, heart attacks, and lung cancer. Fine particle pollution cuts short the lives of tens of thousands of Americans each year, according to EPA.
EPA estimates that particle pollution shortens the lives of its victims by an average of 14 years.
The new report, called “Plagued by Pollution”, is based on a U.S. PIRG survey of the environmental agencies in all 50 states and DC. The report looks at all of the instances in 2004 when pollution levels exceeded EPA’s two health-based air quality standards for fine particle pollution. EPA’s “annual” standard is based on how much fine particle pollution is safe to breathe on a regular, everyday basis, while EPA’s “24-hour” standard is based on how much fine particle pollution is safe to breathe on any one day. Both types of exposures are associated with illness and death.
Key findings for 2004 include the following:
• Fine particle pollution exceeded the annual and/or 24-hour health standards in 55 large, mid-sized, and small metro areas in 21 states, exposing 96 million people to this health threat.
• California, Pennsylvania, Utah, Georgia, and Ohio were the states with the worst fine particle pollution.
• Among large metro areas, the Riverside (CA), Pittsburgh, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Cleveland metro areas ranked highest nationwide for the worst chronic fine particle pollution. The top mid-sized metro areas were the Bakersfield, Salt Lake City, Visalia-Porterville (CA), Fresno, and Lancaster (PA) areas. And the top small metro areas were the Hanford-Corcoran (CA), Macon, Weirton-Steubenville (WV-OH), Rome (GA), and Hagerstown-Martinsburg (MD-WV) areas.
• The metro areas with the most dangerous spikes in fine particle pollution included the Pittsburgh, Riverside, and Los Angeles areas (large metro areas); the Salt Lake City, Provo-Orem (UT), and Bakersfield areas (mid-sized metro areas); and Logan, a small metropolitan area on the border of Utah and Idaho.
U.S. PIRG has published the report online.
