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Climate Change and Human Health Literature Portal On the causal link between carbon dioxide and air pollution mortality

Climate Change and Human Health Literature Portal

Jacobson MZ
2008
Geophysical Research Letters. 35 (3)

Greenhouse gases and particle soot have been linked to enhanced sea-level, snowmelt, disease, heat stress, severe weather, and ocean acidification, but the effect of carbon dioxide (CO2) on air pollution mortality has not been examined or quantified. Here, it is shown that increased water vapor and temperatures from higher CO2 separately increase ozone more with higher ozone; thus, global warming may exacerbate ozone the most in already-polluted areas. A high-resolution global-regional model then found that CO2 may increase U.S. annual air pollution deaths by about 1000 (350-1800) and cancers by 20-30 per 1 K rise in CO2-induced temperature. About 40% of the additional deaths may be due to ozone and the rest, to particles, which increase due to CO2-enhanced stability, humidity, and biogenic particle mass. An extrapolation by population could render 21,600 (7400-39,000) excess CO2-caused annual pollution deaths worldwide, more than those from CO2-enhanced storminess. Copyright 2008 by the American Geophysical Union.

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Resource Description

    Air Pollution
    • Air Pollution: Ground-Level Ozone
    General Geographic Feature
    United States
    Cancer, Morbidity/Mortality, Respiratory Impact
    • Cancer, Morbidity/Mortality, Respiratory Impact: Asthma
    Outcome Change Prediction
    Research Article
    Mitigation , Sociodemographic Vulnerability
    • Mitigation , Sociodemographic Vulnerability: Adaptation Co-Benefit/Co-Harm
    • Mitigation , Sociodemographic Vulnerability: Mitigation Co-Benefit/Co-Harm
    Other Climate Change Scenario, Specify
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