News tagged with air quality

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

Record air pollution hammers Calif's ag heartland

(AP) -- This is the time of year when residents who often live with the nation's worst pollution often can draw a breath of fresh air. But this winter has not been kind to people who want to play outside ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jan 08, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (5) | comments 0

Beijing to issue new smog data after online outcry

Beijing's government on Friday bowed to a vocal online campaign for a change in the way air quality is measured in the Chinese capital, one of the world's most polluted cities.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jan 06, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

AgriLife Research adds new instrumentation to measure greenhouse gases

As greenhouse gases become more of a concern, determining the actual rates of emissions through scientific data is a growing necessity, according to a Texas AgriLife Research scientist in Amarillo.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Dec 21, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

New EPA air quality rules outweigh costs and provide major health and environmental benefits

A report by researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health provides an expanded review of six new air quality regulations proposed or recently adopted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA). ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Dec 21, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 0

Air pollution levels from Deepwater Horizon spill similar to large urban area

(PhysOrg.com) -- The amount of air pollutants in the atmospheric plume generated by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill was similar to a large city according to a new NOAA-led study published today in a special ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Dec 20, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Beijing hits 'blue sky' target despite bad air

Beijing authorities said they had met their target of "blue sky" days for 2011, amid growing public criticism that officials are underplaying the pollution problem in the Chinese capital.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Dec 18, 2011 | popularity 3 / 5 (2) | comments 5

For Midwesterners, more boxcars mean cleaner air

Shifting a fraction of truck-borne freight onto trains would have an outsized impact on air quality in the Midwest, according to researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Dec 08, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 2

China's pollution data shrouded in official fog

(AP) -- Armed with a device that looks like an old transistor radio, some Beijing residents are recording pollution levels and posting them online. It's an act that borders on subversion.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Dec 08, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (6) | comments 1

Smog sparks debate over Beijing air standards

Officially, Beijing's air quality is improving. But in recent weeks, patients with respiratory problems have flooded hospitals, highways have closed and hundreds of flights have been grounded by thick smog.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Dec 01, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | 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.
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Related topics: air pollution