State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

air pollution8

  • Bad Ozone Days in Western U.S. Linked to Pacific Weather

    Bad Ozone Days in Western U.S. Linked to Pacific Weather

    A new study shows that ozone pollution in the western United States can be increased by La Niña, a natural weather cycle at the surface of the Pacific Ocean. The finding is the first to show that the La Nina-El Nino cycles directly affects pollution.

  • The Greening of China

    The Greening of China

    China became the world’s largest carbon polluter in 2006, surpassing the U.S. But it is also rapidly going green through cutting coal use, investing heavily in renewable energy and launching the world’s largest carbon trading system.

  • Cohen: China’s Pollution Problems Mirroring U.S. Experience

    Cohen: China’s Pollution Problems Mirroring U.S. Experience

    China’s problems with air pollution mirror what the United States went through during the rapid economic growth following World War II, and the solutions will likely be the same, Earth Institute Executive Director Steven Cohen said Saturday on an English-language news program on China Central Television.

  • The Energy to Fight Injustice

    The Energy to Fight Injustice

    The enormity of these anti-nuclear policy decisions is difficult to exaggerate. Energy consumption is an inescapable requirement of development, and renewable energy sources alone cannot satisfy the energy demands of China and other developing nations. They now have no choice but to burn massive amounts of coal if they wish to raise their living standards.

  • The Fracking Facts

    The Fracking Facts

    Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, the controversial method for extracting natural gas, has become a hot button issue across the U.S. But let’s try to look objectively at its benefits and risks.

  • Getting a Whiff of Climate Change

    Getting a Whiff of Climate Change

    Monday was the day when millions of people in New York and New Jersey learned what climate change smells like, or at least what one of its aromas is.

  • The State and Future of Congestion Pricing in China

    The State and Future of Congestion Pricing in China

    To combat urban air pollution and traffic problems, some propose congestion pricing as a cost-effective policy to reduce pollution and improve productivity through improved travel speeds. Cities in China could implement this policy and ameliorate some of the negative effects of congestion-caused pollution. So why is congestion pricing dead on arrival in China?

  • Asthma Hot Spots Linked to Trucks, Low-Grade Heating Oil

    New York Children Suffer Block by Block Depending on Soot Levels

  • Bottom Up or Top Down? Another Way to Look at an Air Quality Problem

    Bottom Up or Top Down? Another Way to Look at an Air Quality Problem

    While not all countries have the financial wherewithal and capacity to deploy ground-based instruments for air-quality monitoring, and for some countries monitoring information is not available to the public, for example, through health advisories, another way exists to assess air pollution levels: through satellites.

  • Bad Ozone Days in Western U.S. Linked to Pacific Weather

    Bad Ozone Days in Western U.S. Linked to Pacific Weather

    A new study shows that ozone pollution in the western United States can be increased by La Niña, a natural weather cycle at the surface of the Pacific Ocean. The finding is the first to show that the La Nina-El Nino cycles directly affects pollution.

  • The Greening of China

    The Greening of China

    China became the world’s largest carbon polluter in 2006, surpassing the U.S. But it is also rapidly going green through cutting coal use, investing heavily in renewable energy and launching the world’s largest carbon trading system.

  • Cohen: China’s Pollution Problems Mirroring U.S. Experience

    Cohen: China’s Pollution Problems Mirroring U.S. Experience

    China’s problems with air pollution mirror what the United States went through during the rapid economic growth following World War II, and the solutions will likely be the same, Earth Institute Executive Director Steven Cohen said Saturday on an English-language news program on China Central Television.

  • The Energy to Fight Injustice

    The Energy to Fight Injustice

    The enormity of these anti-nuclear policy decisions is difficult to exaggerate. Energy consumption is an inescapable requirement of development, and renewable energy sources alone cannot satisfy the energy demands of China and other developing nations. They now have no choice but to burn massive amounts of coal if they wish to raise their living standards.

  • The Fracking Facts

    The Fracking Facts

    Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, the controversial method for extracting natural gas, has become a hot button issue across the U.S. But let’s try to look objectively at its benefits and risks.

  • Getting a Whiff of Climate Change

    Getting a Whiff of Climate Change

    Monday was the day when millions of people in New York and New Jersey learned what climate change smells like, or at least what one of its aromas is.

  • The State and Future of Congestion Pricing in China

    The State and Future of Congestion Pricing in China

    To combat urban air pollution and traffic problems, some propose congestion pricing as a cost-effective policy to reduce pollution and improve productivity through improved travel speeds. Cities in China could implement this policy and ameliorate some of the negative effects of congestion-caused pollution. So why is congestion pricing dead on arrival in China?

  • Asthma Hot Spots Linked to Trucks, Low-Grade Heating Oil

    New York Children Suffer Block by Block Depending on Soot Levels

  • Bottom Up or Top Down? Another Way to Look at an Air Quality Problem

    Bottom Up or Top Down? Another Way to Look at an Air Quality Problem

    While not all countries have the financial wherewithal and capacity to deploy ground-based instruments for air-quality monitoring, and for some countries monitoring information is not available to the public, for example, through health advisories, another way exists to assess air pollution levels: through satellites.