Researchers at the University of York have figured out why, in certain growing countries, lowering particle pollution leads to an increase in surface ozone pollution, which has detrimental effects on human health, ecosystems, and agriculture.
The researchers claimed that the findings, which were published in Nature Geoscience, cast doubt on tried-and-true strategies for combating air pollution.
The primary component of "smog," surface ozone, is produced by chemical interactions between nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic molecules (VOC).
When sunlight is present, pollutants released from factories, power plants, industrial boilers, refineries, and other sources react.
Particle pollution increases photochemical smog
SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP via Getty Images
The scientific community was shocked to find an increase in ozone pollution during the previous decade when nations like China improved air quality by lowering particle pollution, which is released through the burning of coal, steel production, cars, and fires, as per ScienceDaily.
The study has now provided fresh insight into the connection between these two contaminants.
The researchers have demonstrated that in some places, ozone and particles are tightly related, despite the fact that historically, policymakers have treated them as different issues.
Peroxy radicals, which are short-lived ozone-making components, adhere to particle pollution and stop it from continuing to produce ozone.
The peroxy radicals become available for reactions as the number of particles falls, and ozone production rises.
New approaches that take into consideration this interaction between contaminants are being demanded by the researchers.
Targeting reductions in a wider variety of pollutants, especially (VOCs) from chemicals and fuels and NOx from combustion, will help solve the issue.
Professor Mathew Evans, the co-lead author of the study and professor of chemistry at the University of York, said policymakers throughout the world have traditionally treated particle pollution and ozone pollution as distinct problems, but our analysis emphasizes the need to approach them together.
For 40 years, we believed that ozone was only dependent on nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds.
Only now are we fitting the pieces of the jigsaw together and recognizing the connection to particle pollution.
The WHO estimates that exposure to outdoor air pollution causes 4.2 million premature deaths per year. Developing nations like India, China, and Africa are among those most severely impacted.
According to the modeling study, considerable reductions in particle pollution in these locations would necessitate drastic cuts in NOx and VOC emissions of up to 50% in order to maintain a healthy level of ozone contamination.
Professor Alastair Lewis, the co-lead author of the study and director of the National Centre for Atmospheric Science, said that it demonstrates the dangers of concentrating too intently on a single pollutant.
Particle pollution in China has significantly decreased in recent years, although focusing solely on particles.
Depending on the level, particle pollution can be quite hazardous to breathe.
The hazards of breathing in particle pollution risks that are surfacing in recent studies that support prior research include the potential for sickness, hospitalization, and early death, as per American Lung Association.
Researchers who track the decline in particle pollution levels year-round are reporting excellent news as a result of actions made to minimize particle pollution.
Between 2000 and 2007, researchers examined air quality in 545 counties in the U.S.
They discovered that on average, people's life expectancies increased by around four months as a result of cleaner air.
The majority of the benefits went to women and residents of metropolitan and densely populated regions.
More proof of the advantages was provided by second lengthy research that followed individuals in six American cities from 1974 to 2009.
The results imply that reducing particle pollution has nearly immediate positive health effects.
According to the researchers, if the U.S. could reduce yearly particle pollution levels by 1 g/m3, the country might avert almost 34,000 premature deaths per year.
