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Study finds global emissions of several banned ozone-destroying CFCs are increasing

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New analysis has found increasing emissions of several ozone-depleting chemicals despite their production being banned for most uses under the Montreal Protocol—and a loophole in the rules is likely responsible. According to the researchers, emissions from these CFCs currently do not significantly threaten ozone recovery.

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

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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. The problem is being created by the change in chemistry between NO x and O 3. Drysdale, W.

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California adopts comprehensive strategy to meet federal ozone standard over next 15 years

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The California Air Resources Board today approved a statewide plan for attaining the federal health-based standard for ozone, typically experienced as smog. The 2022 State Implementation Plan Strategy identifies the state’s control strategy for meeting the federal 70 parts per billion, 8-hour ozone standard over the next 15 years.

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UB study finds link between ambient ozone exposure, artery wall thickness

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Long-term exposure to ambient ozone appears to accelerate arterial conditions that progress into cardiovascular disease and stroke, according to a new University at Buffalo study. The study found that chronic exposure to ozone was associated with a progression of thickening of the main artery that supplies blood to the head and neck.

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Severe drought influences ozone pollution

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Drought conditions can have complicated effects on ozone air quality, so to better understand the process, researchers have analyzed data from two ozone-polluted cities before, during and after the California drought. However, plants also decrease air ozone levels by taking the gas up through pores in their leaves.

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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.

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Studies find global COVID-19 lockdowns have significantly reduced PM2.5 and NO2 pollution, but ozone up

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Levels of two major air pollutants have been reduced significantly since lockdowns began in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but a secondary pollutant—ground-level ozone—has increased in China, according to new research. Ozone is harmful to humans at ground-level, causing pulmonary and heart disease. —Guy Brasseur.

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