Latest Air quality News
Chemical smoke spewing from a Georgia factory is projected to spread toward Atlanta as winds shift
MARIETTA, Ga. (AP) — Heavy smoke was causing low visibility Wednesday along Interstate 20 east of Atlanta as chemicals continued spewing from a beleaguered chlorine facility, and emergency officials warn that smoke from the disaster scene is projected to move toward Georgia's capital city after...
New Jersey offshore wind farm clears big federal hurdle amid environmental concerns
SEA GIRT, N.J. (AP) — The federal government gave a key approval Tuesday to an offshore wind farm in New Jersey, even as residents in the town where its power cable would come ashore worry it could go through underground toxic waste that's still being cleaned up. The U.S. Bureau...
Shelter-in-place order for more than 90,000 Georgia residents is lifted after chemical fire
Authorities on Monday night ended a shelter-in-place order for more than 90,000 people east of Atlanta following a weekend chemical plant fire that sent a massive plume of dark smoke into the Georgia sky and led to complaints about a strong chemical smell and haze. The smell had...
Evacuation order remains in effect for Ohio town where dangerous chemical leak occurred
WHITEWATER TOWNSHIP, Ohio (AP) — An evacuation order remained in effect Wednesday for residents in an Ohio community as crews continued to work at the scene of a dangerous chemical leak. Styrene, a toxic and flammable chemical that is used to make plastic and rubber, began leaking...
Residents in Kyiv told to stay indoors as air pollution blankets the Ukrainian capital
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Authorities in Ukraine advised residents in the capital Kyiv to stay indoors Friday as air pollution, partly caused by fires in the region, blanketed the city. Ukraine’s Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources said the pollution was a...
As fire raged nearby, a tiny town's zoo animals were driven to safety
BIG BEAR, Calif. (AP) — With a major wildfire burning near his mountain town east of Los Angeles, Cowboy the barn owl was unaware of the danger and instead having the adventure of a lifetime. Perched in the front seat of a truck, Cowboy — along with nearly 50 other animals —...
Drought is making Sao Paulo's river emerald green while smoke turns its skies grey
SAO PAULO (AP) — A major river in the Brazilian metropolis of Sao Paulo is suddenly emerald green and clear skies this week turned from blue to grey. In the late afternoon, the sun's rays filtering through the smoky haze exhibit the color of deep orange. This isn't a fantasy world:...
During Brazil's worst drought, wildfires rage and the Amazon River falls to a record low
BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) — Brazil is enduring its worst drought since nationwide measurements began over seven decades ago, with 59% of the country under stress — an area roughly half the size of the U.S. Major Amazon basin rivers are registering historic lows, and uncontrolled...
Tiny Kuwait, in grip of desert summer heat, announces power cuts after fuel disruption
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Tiny, oil-rich Kuwait on Sunday instituted rolling blackouts in several residential neighborhoods despite high summertime temperatures in the desert emirate. The state-run KUNA news agency blamed “a fuel supply disruption” for the blackouts,...
Wildfires are growing under climate change, and their smoke threatens farmworkers, study says
LOS ANGELES (AP) — As wildfires scorched swaths of land in the wine country of Sonoma County in 2020, sending ash flying and choking the air with smoke, Maria Salinas harvested grapes. Her saliva turned black from inhaling the toxins, until one day she had so much trouble breathing...
