(Press-News.org) (Syracuse, NY – May 27, 2014) Setting strong standards for climate-changing carbon emissions from power plants would provide an added bonus – reductions in other air pollutants that can make people sick; damage forests, crops, and lakes; and harm fish and wildlife. This, according to a first-of-its-kind study released today by scientists at Syracuse University and Harvard who mapped the potential environmental and human health benefits of power plant carbon standards.
The authors of the new study, Co-benefits of Carbon Standards: Air Pollution Changes under Different 111d Options for Existing Power Plants, use three policy options for the forthcoming EPA rule as a guide to model changes in power plant emissions of four other harmful air pollutants: fine particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and mercury. The scientists compared the model results with a business-as-usual reference case for the year 2020.
Of the three scenarios simulated, the top-performing option decreased sulfur dioxide and mercury emissions by 27% and nitrogen oxide emissions by 22% by 2020 compared to the reference case. This option reduced carbon dioxide emissions from the power sector by 35% from 2005 levels by 2020. The scientists state that the resulting air quality improvements are likely to lead to significant gains in public and environmental health.
"When power plants limit carbon dioxide emissions, they can also release less sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and other pollutants," said Dr. Charles Driscoll of Syracuse University. "One of the policy options we analyzed cut emissions of these non-carbon pollutants by approximately 75,000 tons per year by 2020," Driscoll said.
"We know that these other pollutants contribute to increased risk of premature death and heart attacks, as well as increased incidence and severity of asthma and other health effects. They also contribute to acid rain, ozone damage to trees and crops, and the accumulation of toxic mercury in fish," added Driscoll. "This new analysis shows that there is a real opportunity to help reverse decades of environmental damage from power plant emissions and to improve human health," he said.
In addition to summarizing changes in emissions, the study quantifies the resulting improvements in air quality. It features detailed maps illustrating the benefits of decreased emissions from roughly 2,400 power plants for every 12x12km area of the continental United States. With a strong carbon standard, improvements are widespread and every state receives some benefit. The maps show that the greatest benefits occur in the eastern U.S., particularly in states in and around the Ohio River Valley, as well as the Rocky Mountain region.
States that are projected to benefit from the largest average decreases in fine particle pollution (PM2.5) and summer ozone pollution detrimental to human health include: Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Indiana, Arkansas, Colorado, and Alabama (based on the top 6 states for each pollutant).
States that are projected to benefit from the largest average decreases in sulfur and nitrogen pollution detrimental to ecosystems include: Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Maryland, Kentucky, Delaware, Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri (based on the top 6 states for each pollutant).
Most other states see improvements in both air quality and atmospheric deposition of pollutants which vary state to state.
The findings also show that different policy options yield different outcomes. The detailed air quality modeling makes it clear that a modest rule limited to making power plant improvements "inside the fence," similar to what some industry groups have proposed, would bring little if any air quality benefits for states.
"Our analysis demonstrates that strong carbon standards could also have widespread benefits to air quality and public health," said Dr. Jonathan Buonocore, of the Harvard School of Public Health at Harvard University. "With a mix of stringency and flexibility, the new EPA rules have the potential to substantially reduce emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides from power plants, which contribute to local and regional air pollution. This is an opportunity to both mitigate climate change and protect public health."
The U.S. EPA is expected to release its proposed rules for carbon pollution from existing power plants June 2.
INFORMATION:
The new Syracuse and Harvard study and maps can be downloaded at:
eng- cs.syr.edu/carboncobenefits.
Rules to cut carbon emissions also reduce air pollution harmful to people, environment
New study by Syracuse and Harvard universities shows potential for reductions of more than 750 thousand tons of other harmful air pollutants across continental US
2014-05-27
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Skin grafts from genetically modified pigs may offer alternative for burn treatment
2014-05-27
A specially-bred strain of miniature swine lacking the molecule responsible for the rapid rejection of pig-to-primate organ transplants may provide a new source of skin grafts to treat seriously burned patients. A team of investigators from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) report that skin grafts from pigs lacking the Gal sugar molecule were as effective in covering burn-like injuries on the backs of baboons as skin taken from other baboons, a finding that could double the length of time burns can be protected while healing. The report in the journal Transplantation ...
EuroPCR 2014 session defines future horizons for renal denervation
2014-05-27
23 May 2014, Paris, France: During EuroPCR 2014, Felix Mahfoud, University Hospital in Homburg, Germany, and Konstantinos Tsioufis, University of Athens, Greece, reflected on the potential future role of modulation of the sympathetic nervous system in patients with difficult-to-control hypertension.
In the context of the SYMPLICITY-HTN-3 clinical trial results, questions were raised about the extent of the procedure's efficacy although the randomised, controlled trial confirmed the safety of renal denervation.
"In terms of efficacy, some studies have shown that renal ...
New biodiversity study throws out controversial scientific theory
2014-05-27
Researchers have today released ground-breaking findings that dismiss the 'Neutral Theory of Biodiversity'. The theory has dominated biodiversity research for the past decade, and been advocated as a tool for conservation and management efforts.
Professor Sean Connolly from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies (Coral CoE) at James Cook University (JCU) is the lead author of the international study, which he says overturns the long-used theory by employing a novel mathematical method. It is the largest study of its kind, covering a broad range of marine ...
Does apolipoprotein E mimetic peptide reduce neuronal apoptosis induced by DBI?
2014-05-27
Because the majority of patients with diffuse brain injury are not suitable candidates for surgery, neuroprotective agents are of great importance. Apolipoprotein E exerts a neuroprotective effect against brain injury, but synthetic apolipoprotein E cannot cross the blood-brain barrier, thus limiting its application.It has been reported that apolipoprotein E (138) mimetic peptide can cross the blood-brain barrier in both normal and injured brain. However, its impact on neurological function following diffuse brain injury is still unclear. Prof. Jianmin Li and team from ...
A novel disease-preventing antioxidant pathway
2014-05-27
Interested in antioxidants? They protect us against aging and cancer. It's one of the reasons we like our green tea and even our broccoli. But there is a new kid on the antioxidant block - uric acid. But wait, you're thinking, doesn't uric acid cause gout? A team in Singapore has recently showed that uric acid is a major intracellular antioxidant, possibly even more important than the antioxidants we try to eat. They also discovered how uric acid helps to prevent aging and disease and how it helps in the treatment of cancer.
Traditionally, uric acid has a bad reputation ...
Immunologists discover immune system precursor cells that fight infection
2014-05-27
The innate immune system recognizes infectious agents such as viruses and bacteria. A group of lymphocytes known as "innate lymphoid cells" or ILCs plays a central role in the defense of the human body against infective agents. Professor Andreas Diefenbach of the Research Center Immunology at the Mainz University Medical Center, working in collaboration with scientists at the University of Freiburg, has discovered previously unidentified ILCs that are able to protect epithelial surfaces, such as those of the intestinal mucosa, against infection. The results provide important ...
Using thoughts to control airplanes
2014-05-27
The pilot is wearing a white cap with myriad attached cables. His gaze is concentrated on the runway ahead of him. All of a sudden the control stick starts to move, as if by magic. The airplane banks and then approaches straight on towards the runway. The position of the plane is corrected time and again until the landing gear gently touches down. During the entire maneuver the pilot touches neither pedals nor controls.
This is not a scene from a science fiction movie, but rather the rendition of a test at the Institute for Flight System Dynamics of the Technische Universität ...
Melatonin makes old bones stronger
2014-05-27
Faleh Tamimi, a professor in McGill's School of Dentistry, is the leader of a research team that has just discovered that melatonin supplements make bones stronger in elderly rats and therefore, potentially, in elderly humans too. "Old rats are tedious to work with because they get sick a lot and that means they also cost a lot more. But if you're interested in diseases like osteoporosis, they're an essential part of the process."
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones – sleep and bone regulation
The process of bone breakdown and buildup is affected by our circadian ...
Intermediaries increase corruption
2014-05-27
This news release is available in Spanish.
In reality, an intermediary participates in many, if not most, cases of corruption. However there has been very scarce empirical evidence that illuminates their role in these situations. This is what a researcher at UC3M has analyzed in collaboration with scientists from Florida State University and Southern Methodist University, in Texas (both in the United States). The results of their study, recently published in Experimental Economics, confirm their suspicions: "Our work showed that the number of persons involved in cases ...
Outgrowing emotional egocentricity
2014-05-27
This news release is available in German. Children are more egocentric than adults. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig have demonstrated for the first time that children are also worse at putting themselves in other people's emotional shoes. According to the researchers, the supramarginal gyrus region of the brain must be sufficiently developed in children for them to be able to overcome their egocentric take on the world.
When little Philip rejoices at winning the prize in a game, it is almost impossible for ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Study tracks chromium chemistry in irradiated molten salts
Scientists: the beautiful game is a silver bullet for global health
Being physically active, even just a couple of days a week, may be key to better health
High-fat diet promote breast cancer metastasis in animal models
A router for photons
Nurses and AI collaborate to save lives, reduce hospital stays
Multi-resistance in bacteria predicted by AI model
Tinker Tots: A citizen science project to explore ethical dilemmas in embryo selection
Sensing sickness
Cost to build multifamily housing in California more than twice as high as in Texas
Program takes aim at drinking, unsafe sex, and sexual assault on college campuses
Inability to pay for healthcare reaches record high in U.S.
Science ‘storytelling’ urgently needed amid climate and biodiversity crisis
KAIST Develops Retinal Therapy to Restore Lost Vision
Adipocyte-hepatocyte signaling mechanism uncovered in endoplasmic reticulum stress response
Mammals were adapting from life in the trees to living on the ground before dinosaur-killing asteroid
Low LDL cholesterol levels linked to reduced risk of dementia
Thickening of the eye’s retina associated with greater risk and severity of postoperative delirium in older patients
Almost one in ten people surveyed report having been harmed by the NHS in the last three years
Enhancing light control with complex frequency excitations
New research finds novel drug target for acute myeloid leukemia, bringing hope for cancer patients
New insight into factors associated with a common disease among dogs and humans
Illuminating single atoms for sustainable propylene production
New study finds Rocky Mountain snow contamination
Study examines lactation in critically ill patients
UVA Engineering Dean Jennifer West earns AIMBE’s 2025 Pierre Galletti Award
Doubling down on metasurfaces
New Cedars-Sinai study shows how specialized diet can improve gut disorders
Making moves and hitting the breaks: Owl journeys surprise researchers in western Montana
PKU Scientists simulate the origin and evolution of the North Atlantic Oscillation
[Press-News.org] Rules to cut carbon emissions also reduce air pollution harmful to people, environmentNew study by Syracuse and Harvard universities shows potential for reductions of more than 750 thousand tons of other harmful air pollutants across continental US