What impact does wildfire smoke and heat have on urban environments? This is what a recent study published in npj Climate and Atmospheric Science hopes to address as a team of researchers investigated how climate change impacts like wildfires and aerosols are negatively impacting air quality. This study has the potential to help scientists and the public understand the health impacts of climate change and the steps that can be taken to mitigate them.
For the study, the researchers used a combination of scientific measurements and machine learning models to analyze urban aerosol pollution within New York City in 2023. The goal of the study was to ascertain the sources of aerosol pollution and the impacts they have on air quality. In the end, the researchers found that regional wildfire smoke, urban heatwaves, and chemical products contributed approximately 15 percent of aerosol pollution, which they noted is double the amount that is caused by traffic.
“We found that restaurants do have a big impact on their own local neighborhoods, but their associated aerosols are only a minor component of the total average load across the region,” said Dr. Delphine Farmer, who is a professor of chemistry at Colorado State University and a co-author on the study. “Still, any worsening of those conditions from the arrival of wildfire smoke –– for example –– could lead to environmental health inequality for those areas that health policy makers will need to consider.”
This study comes as climate change continues to ravage the planet with increased wildfires and more extreme weather like hurricanes and heat waves. Therefore, studies like this can help scientists and the public better understand the threats of climate change and what steps can be taken to mitigate them.
What new discoveries about the health impacts of climate change will researchers make in the coming years and decades? Only time will tell, and this is why we science!
As always, keep doing science & keep looking up!
Sources: npj Climate and Atmospheric Science, EurekAlert!
Featured Image: Tower modified for air sampling that was used in the study. (Credit: Emily Franklin/Colorado State University)
