Cars' Air Pollution Impact In La: A Clear And Present Danger

Cars, trucks, and buses are major contributors to air pollution. In the United States, transportation is the largest source of heat-trapping emissions, with cars, trucks, and buses powered by fossil fuels emitting more than half of the nitrogen oxides in the air. In Los Angeles, studies have shown that VOC and particle levels inside vehicles and along the roadside are generally much higher than pollutant levels measured at the nearest ambient monitoring station. However, as passenger cars have gotten cleaner, they've become a relatively smaller source of pollution.

Cars are a major source of air pollution in LA

While passenger cars have gotten cleaner, they've become a relatively smaller source of pollution. Heavy-duty transportation, such as trucks and buses, now accounts for the largest source of nitrogen oxides, which form ozone, in the area. Major ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach handle more than 30% of the nation's shipping container traffic, requiring a vast network of ships, trucks and trains coming in and out of the region.

Cars produce air pollution throughout their life cycle, including pollution emitted during vehicle operation and fuel production. Studies have linked pollutants from vehicle exhaust to adverse impacts on nearly every organ system in the body. The exposure to pollution is inequitable, with the harms falling disproportionately on Latinos, Blacks, and lower-income households.

In 1997, the California Air Resources Board funded one of the first comprehensive studies of pollutant concentrations inside cars. Investigators outfitted cars with a variety of air monitors and measured pollutant levels while driving on freeways and arterial roadways during rush-hour and non-rush-hour periods in Los Angeles and Sacramento. They found that VOC and particle levels inside vehicles and along the roadside were generally much higher than pollutant levels measured at the nearest ambient monitoring station.

Trucks and buses are the largest source of nitrogen oxides in LA

Cars, trucks and buses are major contributors to air pollution in LA. As passenger cars have gotten cleaner, they've become a relatively smaller source of pollution. Heavy-duty transportation, such as trucks and buses, now accounts for the largest source of nitrogen oxides, which form ozone, in the area. Major ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach handle more than 30% of the nation's shipping container traffic, requiring a vast network of ships, trucks and trains coming in and out of the region.

Transportation emits more than half of nitrogen oxides in our air, and is a major source of heat-trapping emissions in the US. Studies have linked pollutants from vehicle exhaust to adverse impacts on nearly every organ system in the body. The exposure to pollution is inequitable, with the harms falling disproportionately on Latinos, Blacks, and lower-income households.

In 1997, the California Air Resources Board funded one of the first comprehensive studies of pollutant concentrations inside cars. Investigators outfitted cars with a variety of air monitors and measured pollutant levels while driving on freeways and arterial roadways during rush-hour and non-rush-hour periods in Los Angeles and Sacramento. They found that VOC and particle levels inside vehicles and along the roadside were generally much higher than pollutant levels measured at the nearest ambient monitoring station.

Cars, trucks and buses produce air pollution throughout their life cycle, including pollution emitted during vehicle operation and fuel production.

Exposure to pollution is inequitable, disproportionately affecting Latinos, Blacks, and lower-income households

Cars, trucks and buses are major contributors to air pollution, especially in Los Angeles, where the major ports in the city handle more than 30% of the nation's shipping container traffic. This requires a vast network of ships, trucks and trains, which emit more than half of the nitrogen oxides in the air.

Exposure to this pollution is inequitable, and the harms fall disproportionately on Latinos, Blacks and lower-income households. Studies have linked pollutants from vehicle exhaust to adverse impacts on nearly every organ system in the body.

In 1997, the California Air Resources Board funded one of the first comprehensive studies of pollutant concentrations inside cars. They found that VOC and particle levels inside vehicles and along the roadside were generally much higher than pollutant levels measured at the nearest ambient monitoring station.

However, as cars have gotten cleaner, they have become a relatively smaller source of pollution. Heavy-duty transportation, such as trucks and buses, now accounts for the largest source of nitrogen oxides, which form ozone, in the area.

Clean vehicle and fuel technologies can significantly reduce emissions

Cars, trucks and buses are major contributors to air pollution, especially in large cities like Los Angeles. In fact, transportation emits more than half of the nitrogen oxides in our air. However, as cars have gotten cleaner, they've become a relatively smaller source of pollution.

Standards for greenhouse gas emissions and fuel economy have also induced innovation in clean car technologies, especially those for electric and hydrogen vehicles. Governments around the world rely on two types of policy to reduce emissions from road transport: fuel taxes, which affect driving behaviour, and standards that regulate either average fuel economy or average emissions directly, which affect technology adoption.

Ecodriving is another method of driving that improves fuel economy and reduces vehicle emissions. It includes maintaining a steady speed, shifting earlier to a higher gear, and keeping tires properly inflated.

Pollutant levels inside vehicles are generally much higher than those measured at ambient monitoring stations

Cars, trucks and buses powered by fossil fuels are major contributors to air pollution. In fact, transportation emits more than half of nitrogen oxides in the air and is a major source of heat-trapping emissions in the US. In 1997, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) funded a study of pollutant concentrations inside cars. They found that VOC and particle levels inside vehicles and along the roadsides were generally much higher than the pollutant levels measured at the nearest ambient monitoring station.

However, as passenger cars have gotten cleaner, they have become a relatively smaller source of pollution. Heavy-duty transportation, such as trucks and buses, now accounts for the largest source of nitrogen oxides, which form ozone, in the area. Major ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach handle more than 30% of the nation's shipping container traffic, requiring a vast network of ships, trucks and trains coming in and out of the region.

There is also a growing consensus that, as cars have become less important, household chemicals are dominating the source of organics in the atmosphere and, therefore, dominating the source of aerosols.

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