I wish we could announce something like NYC just did! (Pittsburgh: how much, school)

[gg]

Bloomberg: NYC air quality cleanest in decades - Yahoo Finance

We only announce we have some of the worst air in the country. Ah well, can't have everything. I wonder how they translate that to hospital visits and such? If NYC saved that many with their air quality, one has to wonder how many visits we have considering we have some of the worst air in the US?

[WhoIsStanwix?]

I think you should change the title of this thread to include something about "improving air quality"...

Here's a study I came across discussing the air quality of Pittsburgh and the link to health issues:

http://www.heinz.org/UserFiles/Libra...AirQuality.pdf

On page 18 of the report, they note that:

Outdoor air quality for the Pittsburgh area has improved substantially over the past half-century, and air pollution emergencies such as the November 1975 episode discussed in the 1976 study by Stebbings et al., fortunately no longer occur.

I think if you read that quote in conjunction with what Mayor Bloomberg is saying, which undoubtedly has a political twist on it, the same could be said about Pittsburgh as is said about NYC that "air quality is cleanest in decades".

However, we still have a ways to go:

But current air pollution levels in Pittsburgh still exceed national air quality standards and pose public health concerns.

Outdoor smoking bans and increased reliance on public transit and other alternative means of transportation (like bicycle), as well as an increase in the acceptance of more workers working from home, possibly with coordination among larger employers to reduce traffic density in a more systematic manner, could help further improve our air quality.

[RyanR]

Yea, well at least we have fatty foods, supersized drinks, hydrogenated oils, salt, guns and elevators.

Screw Bloomberg.

[SorryIMovedBack]

Keep talkin' 'bout the President won't stop air pollution
Put your hand on your mouth when you cough, that'll help the solution.

The Staples Singers, early '70s song Respect Yourself

Pittsburgh air isn't bad at all. Quit whining. Enough industry has been driven out already. Do you/they think China's pollution doesn't fall out over the USA??

[gortonator]

Originally Posted by SorryIMovedBack

The Staples Singers, early '70s song Respect Yourself

Pittsburgh air isn't bad at all. Quit whining. Enough industry has been driven out already. Do you/they think China's pollution doesn't fall out over the USA??

How much of this is climate/geography related? We used to get horrid stagnant air in Eastern WA in winter when low cloud set in with no wind. It could last for a week or more sometimes before another weather system came in. And that was just a smallish town. Upside was it was beautiful sunny skiing in the mountains above the clouds.

The air seems decent to me, but not all those particulates are visible. I assume it's more than just car/population driven pollution?

[gg]

Originally Posted by SorryIMovedBack

Pittsburgh air isn't bad at all. Quit whining. Enough industry has been driven out already. Do you/they think China's pollution doesn't fall out over the USA??

This is about as dumb of a post I have read in a while. Thanks for the laugh. Pittsburgh is one of the worst places to live for those that worry about pollution. "Quit whining"? BS. I will whine about it a lot, because it is horrible and needs much improved upon. China. It is like talking to some school kid that says, but Billy stole a candy bar, so I wanted to. Goodness, grow up.

[grep]

Originally Posted by RyanR

Yea, well at least we have fatty foods, supersized drinks, hydrogenated oils, salt, guns and elevators.

Don't forget sitting.