News tagged with air quality

US launches air pollution data in Shanghai

The United States consulate in Shanghai has begun issuing its own pollution statistics, giving a much more pessimistic assessment of the city's air quality than official Chinese data.

Space & Earth / Environment

created May 15, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 1

London 2012 Olympics: New technology will be used to measure impact of extra traffic

University of Leicester researchers are set to use new technology they have developed to monitor the impact of increased traffic on pollution levels in London during the Olympics.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Apr 30, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Trees help you breathe more easily

Research by the University of Birmingham has contributed to The Woodland Trust's new Urban Air Quality report. Published in collaboration with Lancaster University, the report highlights how considered planting of trees and ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Apr 26, 2012 | popularity 4 / 5 (4) | comments 0

Air quality improving in many U.S. cities: report

(HealthDay) -- Air quality in America's most polluted cities has improved significantly over the past decade, according to a new report from the American Lung Association.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Apr 25, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 1

States keep up with ozone mandates: Study finds federal efforts most effective at cutting pollutants

States are doing an effective job of monitoring air quality, but the federal government remains the primary player in clearing the air, according to a new study by Rice University.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Mar 28, 2012 | popularity 3 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Hong Kong begins monitoring fine particle pollution

The Hong Kong government on Thursday began releasing hourly readings of the smallest, most dangerous pollution particles, as it bowed to public pressure for greater transparency about air quality.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Mar 08, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Natural levels of nitrogen in tropical forests may increase vulnerability to pollution

(PhysOrg.com) -- Waterways in remote, pristine tropical forests located in the Caribbean and Central America contain levels of nitrogen comparable to amounts found in streams and rivers flowing through polluted forests in ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Mar 06, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Two-thirds of China's cities fail on air standards

(AP) -- Two-thirds of China's cities currently fail to meet stricter air quality standards that the government wants to phase in over four years to combat notoriously smoggy skies, a senior Chinese environmental ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Mar 02, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 10

China orders more accurate air-quality measure

China's cabinet ordered on Wednesday new air-quality standards to measure the most dangerous form of particulate matter, following a public outcry over worsening air pollution.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Feb 29, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 1

India's air the worst, says annual study

India has the worst air quality in the world, poorer even than its neighbour China, according to an annual survey based at Yale and Columbia universities in the United States.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Feb 02, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (7) | comments 5

Beijing releases pollution data; US figures higher

(AP) -- Caving to public pressure, Beijing environmental authorities started releasing more detailed air quality data Saturday that may better reflect how bad the Chinese capital's air pollution is. But one ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jan 21, 2012 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (3) | comments 1

Hong Kong clean air targets fail to impress

Environmentalists on Wednesday expressed disappointment at new clean-air targets for Hong Kong, as research showed pollution-related illnesses killed more than 3,000 residents a year.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jan 18, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

China sets pace for smoggy Hong Kong: think-tank

Beijing's decision to come clean on its dirty air has embarrassed Hong Kong, where smog kills hundreds of people a year, hurts business and drives away talent, a think-tank has said.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jan 15, 2012 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (5) | comments 1

Bowing to pressure, Beijing begins hourly smog data

Beijing on Thursday began publishing real-time air quality data on the Internet, bowing to a vocal online campaign for greater government transparency over pollution in China's capital.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jan 12, 2012 | popularity 4 / 5 (2) | comments 0

'Off the scale' smog grounds flights in Beijing

More than 150 flights to and from Beijing were cancelled or delayed on Tuesday as a thick cloud of acrid smog shrouded the city, with US figures saying the pollution was so bad it was off the scale.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jan 10, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 0

Air Quality Index

The Air Quality Index (AQI) (also known as the Air Pollution Index (API) or Pollutant Standard Index (PSI)) is a number used by government agencies to characterize the quality of the air at a given location. As the AQI increases, an increasingly large percentage of the population is likely to experience increasingly severe adverse health effects. To compute the AQI requires an air pollutant concentration from a monitor or model. The function used to convert from air pollutant concentration to AQI varies by pollutant, and is different in different countries. Air quality index values are divided into ranges, and each range is assiged a descriptor and a color code. Standardized public health advisories are associated with each AQI range. An agency might also encourage members of the public to take public transportation or work from home when AQI levels are high.

For more information about Air Quality Index, read the full article at Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.

Related topics: air pollution , pollution