Central Appalachian coal miners including those in Virginia are over eight times more likely than the general population to die from respiratory diseases.
The soot, known as PM 2.5, has been linked to cardiac arrest, asthma attacks and “premature deaths” from a range of cardiovascular and breathing disorders.
As winter sets in, residents of Kathmandu are bracing for worsening air pollution levels that can exceed by a hundredfold the safe limit prescribed by the WHO.
Once known as the “City of Smoke,” Pittsburgh has come a long way since the days when filthy air turned downtown streets dark at mid-day. But in struggling communities near the remaining steel plants, high levels of air pollution persist.
