Tag Archives: health

Air Quality Improvements in NYC

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New Yorkers can breathe easy.  The city’s air quality is the cleanest it has been in fifty years.

While speaking at a Climate Week NYC event yesterday, Mayor Bloomberg announced that the city’s sulfur dioxide levels have decreased by 69% since 2008 and soot pollution has dropped 23% since 2007. This data is based on the results of a New York City Community Air Survey, which monitored air quality at one hundred locations across the five boroughs.

This impressive reduction is largely attributed to the Clean Heat Program, part of the larger PlaNYC initiative for an environmentally sound city.  The program encourages building owners to phase out the use of heavy heating oils that pollute the air.  Over the past three years, according to the mayor’s office, approximately 2,700 buildings have converted to cleaner fuels.  Following regulations established in 2011, the use of dirty heating oils in NYC will be illegal by 2030.

Since air pollution is known to aggravate cardiovascular and lung diseases, public health officials estimate that the cleaner air is preventing 800 deaths and more than 2,000 emergency room visits each year.

Hottest Decade on Record for Planet Earth: 2001-2010

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Climate scientists have noted it for years, but now it is official. The first decade of the 21st century was this planet’s hottest on record.

According to a report recently released by the World Meteorological Organization, Earth’s combined average temperature – over both land and sea surfaces – for the decade of 2001-2010 was 58.05°F.  That is 0.85°F above the long-term norm.  As hot as this period was, this new record does not come as much of a surprise.  Every year in the decade except 2008 was among the top ten warmest on record.

Analyzing data from 139 countries, the report showed that the decade was also marked by extreme weather around the globe. Floods were the most frequent type of event, but droughts impacted the largest number of people worldwide.  Massive hurricanes and scorching heat waves also caused serious problems.  While improved early warning systems for storms and floods helped save countless lives, heat related deaths increased dramatically from the previous decade. In total, extreme weather events during this ten-year period claimed the lives of more than 370,000 people.

Weather and Health: Sun Exposure

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Summer is a season when many people spend time outdoors in the sun.  Overexposure to its UV rays, however, can cause a number of health problems, including sunburn, eye damage, and even skin cancer  This is why public health officials recommend taking precautions when the UV Index climbs above three.

The UV index is a scale that measures the intensity of the sun’s ultraviolet radiation. Readings vary from place to place as local factors affect the amount of UV light that reaches the ground. These include, the thickness of the ozone layer, latitude, season, elevation, and cloud cover. Developed by the NWS and EPA in the early 1990’s, it informs the public about the daily risk of unprotected exposure to the sun.

UV_Index

Chart Data: EPA

Rip Currents

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The dog days of summer have arrived!  As millions of people head to beaches to beat the heat, it is important to remember that the ocean is a dynamic environment that can pose a number of hazards for swimmers.  Chief among these are rip currents.

Rip currents are strong, localized channels of water that move away from the shoreline. They can form on any beach with breaking waves and easily pull swimmers out to sea in a matter of seconds.  According to the U.S. Lifesaving Association, rip currents are responsible for 80% of all surf zone rescues. Nationally, they cause more than one hundred deaths every year.

While rip currents are a serious hazard for all beach goers, they are a natural part of the near-shore ocean circulation.  They develop when wind driven waves break strongly in one area and weakly in another, creating a circulation cell as the water looks for a way back out to sea.  This usually happens at a break in an underwater sandbar or along a jetty or pier. Extending seaward for hundreds of yards, rip currents typically travel at one to two feet per second.  However, they strengthen when onshore wind speeds pick up and wave height and frequency increase.

If caught in a rip current, do not try to swim against it.  Instead, swim parallel to the shoreline until you are out of the current and then make your way back to the beach.

rip-currentImage Credit: NOAA

Heat Index

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Temperature is one of the basic elements of weather.  Our perception of it, however, is often influenced by other factors.  In summer, this is usually humidity.

The heat index, developed in the late 1970’s, is a measure of the apparent or “real feel” temperature when heat and humidity are combined.  Since the human body relies on the evaporation of its perspiration to cool itself, the moisture content of the air affects comfort levels. Basically, as humidity levels increase, the rate of evaporation decreases and the body can begin to feel overheated.  For example, an air temperature of 92°F combined with a relative humidity level of 60% will produce a heat index value of 105°F.

The National Weather Service issues heat advisories when the heat index is forecast to be at least 95°F for two consecutive days or 100°F for any length of time.  Extended exposure to high heat index values can lead to serious health hazards.

Heat-IndexImage Credit: NOAA

State of the Air 2013

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Are you concerned about the quality of the air you breathe?  Air pollution, a by-product of our industrial age, is an ongoing problem in many parts of the United States.

According to the American Lung Association’s annual State of the Air Report, released yesterday, 42% of Americans live in counties with unhealthy levels of particle and ozone pollution. Particle pollution comes from a variety of sources, but chief among them are industrial emissions and vehicle exhaust.  When these emissions react with the U.V. light of the sun, they form ground level ozone. In addition to contributing to climate change, both of these pollutants are known to have serious negative impacts on human health.  They especially affect individuals suffering from respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.

In spite of these current pollution challenges, the report also highlights the success of the Clean Air Act and the fact that our nation’s air, overall, is cleaner now than it has been in the past.

Click here to see where your county’s air quality ranks.

Wind Chill

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Temperature is one of the basic elements of weather.  Our perception of it, however, is often influenced by other environmental conditions. Wind, for example, can make a cold day feel even colder.  This phenomenon is called the wind chill factor.

Wind chill is a measure of the apparent or “real feel” temperature.  It calculates the heat loss from exposed human skin through the combined effects of air temperature and wind speed. Essentially, the wind is carrying heat away from the body and allowing the skin to be exposed to cold air.  As the winds increase, heat is carried away at a faster rate and the colder the body feels.  For example, a temperature of 20°F and a wind speed of 5-mph will produce a wind chill index of 13°F.  At that same temperature, but with a wind speed of 10-mph, the wind chill index would be 9°F.

Extended exposure to low wind chill values can lead to frostbite, a serious winter health hazard.

windchillChart Credit: NOAA

Weather and Health: Air Quality

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An air quality alert is in effect for the New York City area today.  This means our local outdoor air contains elevated levels of pollutants.

Under the Clean Air Act, the EPA is responsible for monitoring air pollution across the United States.  Calculated on the Air Quality Index (AQI), a standardized indicator, the agency’s daily reports focus on the health effects people may suffer as a result of breathing polluted air. Its scale runs from 0-500 with values above 100 considered to be unhealthy.  Increasing AQI values correlate to higher levels of pollution and an escalating risk to public health.

The five major air pollutants measured on the AQI are, ground level ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide. These pollutants often build to unsafe concentrations when local weather patterns allow air to become stagnant from a lack of wind.

The AQI value in New York City today is 105, which references a spike in ground level ozone.  This degree of pollution will mainly impact people with pre-existing respiratory conditions.

Chart Credit: NOAA

Weather and Health: Extreme Heat

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An oppressive heat wave is currently scorching the central region of the United States and is forecast to expand eastward this weekend.  As temperatures soar, it is important to remember that intense heat can cause serious health problems.

According to the CDC, extreme heat – temperatures that are significantly hotter than the average local summertime high – is one of the leading causes of weather related deaths in this country.   Claiming hundreds of lives every year, excessive heat kills more people across the U.S. than hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, and earthquakes combined.

Extreme heat is deadly, because it forces the human body beyond its capacity to cool itself. Linked to overheating and dehydration, heat related illnesses range in severity from mild to life threatening.  Symptoms for each stage include:

Heat Cramps:  painful muscle spasms in the legs and/or abdomen

Heat Exhaustion:  fatigue, weakness, clammy skin, and nausea

Heat Stroke:  rapid pulse, hot and dry skin, no sweating, victim could possibly be
unconscious;  a medical emergency

To beat the heat, the American Red Cross suggests:

  • Avoid strenuous activity
  • Dress lightly
  • Eat lightly
  • Drink plenty of water
  • Replenish salts and minerals lost to perspiration
  • Limit caffeine and alcohol
  • Stay out of the sun
  • Cool off in an air-conditioned building, when possible

U.V. Index in Hawai’i

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Since returning from Hawai’i, everyone has been asking me, “Why aren’t you more tan?”  My response is, “SPF 70 and a hat.”  The UV index in Hawai’i ranges from high to extreme, so sun protection is necessary to avoid serious sunburn and other long-term skin problems.

The UV index is a scale that measures the intensity of the sun’s ultraviolet radiation reaching the Earth’s surface. Readings vary from place to place as local factors affect the amount of UV light that reaches the ground. These include, the thickness of the ozone layer, latitude, season, elevation, and cloud cover. Developed in the early 1990’s by the NWS and EPA to warn the public about the risk of overexposure to the sun, it is calculated on a daily basis for every city in the U.S.

Hawai’i is located in the tropics at approximately 20°N latitude.  As a result, the sun sits higher in the sky as compared to the mainland.  When the sun’s rays are more directly overhead, they filter through less of the atmosphere and are therefore more intense when they reach the ground. Consequently, the UV index in Hawai’i is higher than any other location in the U.S.  It averages around 7 in the winter and 11+ in the summer.

Chart Source: EPA