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Modest reductions in allowable levels of ground-level ozone and fine particulate pollution would yield a host of health benefits, including nearly 10,000 deaths prevented each year, according to a report issued by the American Thoracic Society.
In a modeling study performed by researchers from the ATS and the Marron Institute of Urban Management at New York University, setting the 8-hour ozone standard at 0.060 parts per million and a limit of 11 mcg/m3 for 2.5-micron particulate matter (PM2.5) annual average levels would save 9,320 lives annually and prevent 21,400 "serious health events" including hospital admissions and emergency department visits.
Current standards set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency are 0.070 ppm for 8-hour ozone and 12 mcg/m3 for PM2.5.
The stricter standards evaluated in the new study would also prevent a total of 19.3 million "adverse impact days," when individuals are unable to go to work or school or must restrict their activities because of poor air quality, the researchers wrote in Annals of the American Thoracic Society.
The report identified areas that would benefit the most from stricter pollution limits. Topping the list was the Los Angeles metro region, followed by Riverside, Calif.; the New York City area; Phoenix; Pittsburgh; California's Central Valley; Houston; Cleveland; and Cincinnati.
Data for the study came from the EPA and previous studies linking health impacts from ground-level ozone and PM2.5, and the researchers -- led by Kevin Cromar, PhD, of the Marron Institute -- used the EPA's analytical models for determining pollution impacts.
"While there is information available about counties in the United States that exceed EPA air pollution standards, there has not been a similar source of information about how that air pollution actually affects the health of people living in those areas," said Cromar in an ATS press release.
The researchers promised to update the analysis regularly with fresh data on pollution and population.
Disclosures
The study was funded by the Marron Institute at NYU and the Turner Foundation.
Primary Source
Annals of the American Thoracic Society
Source Reference: Cromar K, et al "American Thoracic Society and Marron Institute report: Estimated excess morbidity and mortality caused by air pollution above American Thoracic Society-recommended standards, 2011-2013" Ann Amer Thorac Soc 2016; DOI: 10.1513/AnnalsATS.201602-103AR.