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TOAR shows present-day global ozone distribution and trends relevant to health; public database

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Ozone levels across much of North America and Europe dropped significantly between 2000 and 2014. People living in parts of southern Europe, South Korea and southern Japan and China also experienced more than 15 days a year of ozone levels above 70 ppb. Trends in daily maximum ozone levels (known as 4MDA8) at urban and non-urban sites.

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Study finds rising temperatures increase risk of unhealthy ozone levels absent sharp cuts in precursors

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Ozone pollution across the continental United States will become far more difficult to keep in check as temperatures rise, according to new work led by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). The RCPs were chosen to represent a broad range of climate outcomes, based on a literature review. Ozone formation.

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

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They found that reductions in ground ozone during this 35-year period resulted in $600 million in increased production annually by the early 2010s. Another difference is that some grains can be annually modified to withstand greater heat and even higher ozone levels in the air. An open-access paper on the work appears in Nature Food.

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EPA awards $6M in research funding to improve air quality models

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The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced $5,959,842 million in research funding to nine institutions to improve air quality models used to simulate ozone, particulate matter (PM), regional haze, air toxics, and emerging pollutants. It will also inform the development of strategies for improving air quality.

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Study finds some refrigerants less damaging to ozone layer can degrade to long-lived GHG CF4

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Some of the substitutes for ozone-damaging chemicals that being phased out worldwide under international agreements are themselves potent greenhouse gases and contribute to warming. This work was supported in part by NOAA’s Atmospheric Chemistry, Carbon Cycle, and Climate (AC4) Program and NASA’s Atmospheric Composition Program.

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New international study finds lab testing of diesel NOx emissions underestimates real-world levels by up to 50%

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in collaboration with scientists at the University of York’s Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI); University of Colorado; and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, assessed 30 studies of vehicle emissions under real-world driving conditions in 11 major vehicle markets representing 80% of new diesel vehicle sales in 2015.

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Critical review finds actual measurement data on segments of natural gas lifecycle sparse or lacking

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National and state regulators primarily use generic emission inventories to assess the climate, air quality, and health impacts of natural gas systems. Air emissions from the natural gas life cycle include greenhouse gases, ozone precursors (volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides), air toxics, and particulates. Moore et al.

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