air

Click here to view and here to listen to Dr. Roy Cordato discussing this Spotlight report. RALEIGH — North Carolina has recorded in 2010 its second-lowest number of…

Click here to view and here to listen to Dr. Roy Cordato discussing this Spotlight report. RALEIGH — North Carolina’s centerpiece air-quality regulation is expected to cost electric…

In 2002 the State of North Carolina passed what was officially titled “Improve Air Quality/Electric Utilities,” which became better known as the Clean Smokestacks Bill (CSB). When the CSB was passed in 2002, it was estimated to cost $2.3 billion.

RALEIGH — North Carolina could tally in 2009 the lowest number of high-ozone days of any year on record if current trends continue. That’s a key finding in a new…

In 2008 the EPA dramatically tightened its standards for defining a high ozone day. Even under EPA’s more stringent new standard, North Carolina — both as a whole and within its major regions — has experienced significant reductions in the number of high ozone days.

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) operates 11 coal-fired power plants in the southeastern United States. These plants emit nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulfur dioxide (SO2), which contribute to particulate matter (PM) and ozone in the eastern U.S., including North Carolina.

RALEIGH – Forcing the Tennessee Valley Authority to reduce emissions from its coal-fired power plants would create far more costs than benefits, according to a new John Locke Foundation…

RALEIGH – Air in the Research Triangle has been almost completely free from harmful impacts of ozone this summer. That’s according to a new analysis of state data from the…

RALEIGH — As the American Lung Association prepares to release its annual State of the Air report, including county rankings that often receive significant media attention, a new study from…

Summary: During debates about air pollution in North Carolina, supporters of more regulation have asserted that high rates of childhood asthma are related to increasing exposure to ground-level ozone. Not only has there been no such increase, but a new study shows there is, if anything, an inverse correlation — the higher the ozone level, the lower the asthma rate. Next time, lawmakers and the media should check the facts before repeating unfounded and politically motivated allegations.