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York study: Less traffic in first UK lockdown reduced NO2 pollution but caused increase in surface ozone

Green Car Congress

Less traffic on the roads during the first COVID-19 lockdown in the UK led to a reduction in air pollution but may have caused potentially damaging surface ozone levels to rise, according to a new study led by researchers at the University of York. 20, 15743–15759 doi: 10.5194/acp-20-15743-2020. These results are a cautionary tale.

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EPA initiates new review of the Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards

Green Car Congress

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a new review of the Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). EPA established the current standards at a level of 70 parts per billion in 2015 and retained them in 2020, after concluding that there was little new information to suggest the need for revision.

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Study finds COVID-19 lockdown in China brought only slight reduction in PM2.5 and ozone

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Large improvements of air quality in China during the lockdown have been widely reported, but new research shows that two pollutants harmful to human health—fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) and ozone—were only slightly reduced. and ozone were only slightly reduced or barely affected.

Ozone 243
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Global study links daily exposure to ozone pollution to increased risk of death

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Daily exposure to ground level ozone in cities worldwide is associated with an increased risk of death, according to the largest study of its kind, published in an open-access paper in The BMJ. Ground level ozone is a highly reactive gas commonly found in urban and suburban environments, formed when pollutants react in sunlight.

Ozone 243
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EPA proposes tightening primary ozone standards to range of 65-70 ppb; final rule by October 2015

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Counties where measured ozone is above proposed range of standards, based on 2011-2013 monitoring data. Earlier this year, EPA staff had recommended the further reduction of this primary ozone standard from the current 75 ppb (parts per billion) to a revised level within the range of 70 ppb to 60 ppb—and preferably below 70 ppb.

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MECA emissions inventory & air quality modeling shows potential benefits of national cleaner trucks initiative at CARB limits

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The objective of the emission impact analysis was to respond to EPA’s request for comments as to the merits of reducing NO x emissions from heavy-duty trucks by 50 to 90% as outlined in the 6 January 2020 Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) of the CTI. Source: MECA. ppb in the west (San Bernardino, CA) and 4.9

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UCI-led study finds California’s strict air quality regulations have helped farmers

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Researchers at the University of California, Irvine and other institutions have conducted a statistical analysis of pollution exposure and yields from 1980 to 2015 on a key sector making up about 38% of the state’s total agricultural output: perennial crops such as almonds, grapes, nectarines, peaches, strawberries and walnuts.

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