"Simultaneous high levels of the two pollutants, which harm human health, are occurring with increasing frequency, researchers say."
"Dangerous levels of two air pollutants, ozone and smoke, are occurring in tandem with increasing frequency over widespread parts of the Western United States where millions of people live, researchers said Wednesday.
The two harmful pollutants are a result of worsening wildfires and extreme heat, and researchers suggest the increase is linked to climate change.
“These trends are congruent with what you would expect with a warming and drying climate,” said Dmitri A. Kalashnikov, a doctoral student at Washington State University Vancouver and the lead author of a study that analyzed summer air pollution data from 2000 to 2020. “We would expect to see more of these kinds of widespread co-occurring air pollution events in the Western U.S.”"
Henry Fountain reports for the New York Times January 5, 2022.
