Tag Archives: forest fire

Forest fires linked to tens of thousands of avoidable deaths

Setting fire to forest and agricultural land in Southeast Asia to prepare it for cultivation or grazing contributes to an estimated 59,000 premature deaths a year, say scientists. Their analysis reveals that the greatest health impact from the burning, which … Continue reading

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Smoke Across North America

While plumes of wildfire smoke from western North America have passed over the northeastern U.S. and Canada multiple times each summer in recent years, they often go unnoticed. That is because smoke that spreads far from its source typically moves … Continue reading

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Surkhet air pollution puts residents at risk

On Tuesday, Amrita Sunar from Barahatal Rural Municipality Ward No. 5 took her 21-month-old infant to Madhya Paschim Child Clinic in Birendranagar following complaints of breathing difficulty, itchy eyes and common cold. “My son has been unwell for the past … Continue reading

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Exposure to pollution has long-term effect on multiple generations

When severe forest fires last year blanketed Oregon and California with a thick layer of smoke, the high concentrations of fine particulate matter spewed into the air created one of the worst air pollution events in recent history. A large … Continue reading

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Recent Australian wildfires led to record atmospheric pollution

The 2019–20 wildfires in Australia injected huge amounts of smoke into the stratosphere, which has led to record aerosol levels over the southern hemisphere. Ilan Koren at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel and Eitan Hirsch at the Israel … Continue reading

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Air pollution kills thousands in megacities despite lockdowns

– Air pollution is the largest environmental risk to human health globally. – Tens of thousands of people died from related deaths last year, despite an economic slow down caused by coronavirus. – In the five most-populated cities air pollution … Continue reading

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Chiang Mai air pollution hits dire levels

Chiang Mai province was hit by unprecedented levels of air pollution on Wednesday as intensifying forest fires sent PM2.5 levels in some areas up to 592 microgrammes per cubic metre (ug/m3) of air, almost 12 times above safe levels. The … Continue reading

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Northern Thailand chokes under shroud of smog

Chiang Mai may have fallen to third in the race for world’s worst air quality today, but northern Thailand is still choking under a blanket of toxic haze, and the Thai Meteorological Department has forecast “hot to very hot conditions” … Continue reading

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