This year was supposed to be a milestone for environmentalists worldwide: the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. 'It’s a shame,' Ned Mulcahy, the staff attorney for the nonprofit Group Against Smog & Pollution (GASP), told ABC News. 'Part of celebrating the environment is being out in the
This year was supposed to be a milestone for environmentalists worldwide: the 50th anniversary of Earth Day.
"We’re seeing in some places the best air quality in decades," Bill Magavern, the policy director for the Coalition for Clean Air, told ABC News."It is very good for our lung health that air pollution is down during this time of crisis." "Power plants, automobiles and the trucks, those are the things that are big NO2 emitters," Lefer told ABC News.
Mulcahy noted that SO2 and other pollutants have been linked to higher rates of asthma, heart disease and other chronic diseases. A Harvard University study released earlier this month found that areas with increased air pollution could have higher rates of coronavirus infections. In some cases, such as in China, India and the mountainous regions of the U.S., people have been able to see their horizons clearly for the first time in years without any smog.
What to know about Coronavirus:Magavern and other environmentalists said they hope this newfound appreciation for clean air can lead to stronger policy actions by leaders. During a video news conference Thursday, former EPA administrator Gina McCarthy, who is now the chair of the Natural Resources Defense Council, said leaders needed to realize how important it is that they fight back against man-made pollutants.
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