Canadian Wildfire Smoke Hits US; NYC Has World’s Worst Air Pollution
News outlets cover the pall of wildfire smoke that's drifting south from Canada and affecting air quality in the U.S., potentially hitting the health of vulnerable people. Also in environmental health news: PFAS and "forever chemical" pollution.
The New York Times:
Wildfire Smoke: Skies Darken As Air Alerts Are Issued Across Northern U.S.
Smoke from the hundreds of wildfires blazing in eastern Canada has drifted south, casting a hazy pall over New York City and triggering air alerts from Minnesota to Massachusetts. (6/6)
Bloomberg:
New York Has World’s Worst Air Pollution As Canada Wildfires Rage
New York was the most polluted major city in the world on Tuesday night, as smoke from Canadian wildfires blanketed the city in haze, according to the IQAir website. Pollution levels in the city were deemed to be in the “unhealthy” range, and were higher than those in the Indian capital Delhi and Baghdad at 1:25 a.m. New York time, according to the Swiss air quality company. (Katanuma, 6/7)
NBC News:
How Poor Air Quality Hurts Your Health
Many of the health issues people see from poor air quality, in general, can overlap with health issues people see from wildfire smoke, said Dr. Wynne Armand, a physician at Massachusetts General Hospital and associate director of the MGH Center for the Environment and Health. Air pollution from wildfire smoke can make breathing difficult for anyone, but especially for young children, older adults, pregnant women, and people with asthma or other pre-existing respiratory conditions, she said. (Lovelace Jr., 6/6)
In other environmental health news —
Minnesota Public Radio:
Report: Removing PFAS From Minnesota Wastewater Would Cost Billions
A new report published by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency found it would cost $14 billion to $28 billion over the next two decades to clean up so-called “forever chemicals” from wastewater streams across the state. The report was funded by the Legislature as part of the state's efforts to fully understand what it will take to remove and destroy PFAS chemicals from water systems. (Richert and Marohn, 6/6)
The Washington Post:
How Can I Avoid Eating Food With ‘Forever’ Chemicals?
Cindy Luppi, the national field director for Clean Water Action, said “it’s very hard” for people to avoid products with PFAS. “For the average consumer, there’s no way to avoid it,” said Graham Peaslee, a physics professor at the University of Notre Dame. “But, you can do some smart things.” (Anmenabar, 6/6)
