New findings from the
Imperial College London
estimate that PM2.5
particulate air pollution
causes heart attacks,
strokes, and lung disease
that kills over 30,000
Americans each year.
I imagine the actual number
could be a lot less,
or a lot more, than 30,000.
More important than
a precise number
is that PM2.5 is
REAL air pollution.
That makes PM2.5
completely unlike
the staff of life, CO2,
falsely declared
to be "carbon pollution"
by leftist climate alarmists,
who are very determined
to scare people, into wanting
a very powerful socialist
government, to "save the
planet for the children".
After over 325 years of global
warming, with the last 78 years
accompanied by rising CO2
levels, it's obvious to sane people
that PAST global warming has
been beneficial ( harmless, if
you prefer to ignore the 'greening'
of our planet ), and there's no
logical reason to claim FUTURE
global warming will be different.
Rising CO2 levels should be celebrated !
But real pollution should be reduced.
The July 2019 study, published
in the journal PLOS Medicine,
found a connection between
cardio-respiratory and
excess particulate matter
pollution, known as PM2.5
( particles about 30 times
smaller than the width
of a human hair ).
PM2.5 mainly comes
from automotive engines,
power generation,
and industrial engines.
Americans inhale PM2.5 daily.
It builds up in
small blood vessels
in the lungs.
Over a long period of time,
it can cause lung disease.
These particles
are also absorbed
into the bloodstream,
increasing the risk
of heart disease.
PM2.5 levels have dropped
in the last two decades,
but some areas remain high.
Los Angeles remained
one of the worst cities
for PM2.5 along with
several regions
in Arkansas, Oklahoma,
and Alabama, that you
would not expect:
Residents in low income
"Inner cities" tend to have
higher levels of PM2.5.
They are also more vulnerable
to the effects of PM2.5
because of higher rates
of preexisting medical conditions.
"I think the big conclusion
is that lowering the limits
of air pollution could delay
in the US, all together,
tens of thousands
of deaths each year,"
said Majid Ezzati,
the study's lead author,
and professor of global
environmental health,
to CNN.
Air quality data between
1999 and 2015 at over
750 monitoring stations
across the US were
cross-referenced
with death records
for cardiovascular-related
diseases to determine
the dangers of PM2.5.
The government's acceptable
PM2.5 level is 12 micrograms
per cubic meter of air (ug/m3).
In 1999, for one example,
Fresno County, California,
recorded 22.1 ug/m3/
By 2015, the level
was down to 13.2 ug/m3
for Tulare County,
a region 20 miles
from Fresno.
