Local pollutants go global: The impacts of intercontinental air pollution from China on air quality and morbidity in California.

China is among the greatest emitters of air pollution in the world and one concern is the effects of intercontinental air pollution traveling across the Pacific Ocean from China to the U.S. We exploit a natural experiment by observing the effects of changes in intercontinental air pollution associated with Chinese New Year, a 7-day national holiday, and sandstorms from China on air quality and morbidity in California.

Emission Standards, Public Transit, and Infant Health.

Transit buses are an integral part of urban life. They reduce externalities generated from private vehicles and increase geographic mobility. However, unlike most private vehicles in the United States, they use diesel fuel and emit higher amounts of toxic pollutants.

Climate change and fetal health: The impacts of exposure to extreme temperatures in New York City.

Background: Climate change is projected to increase the frequency, intensity, and duration of heat waves while reducing cold extremes, yet few studies have examined the relationship between temperature and fetal health.

Objectives: We estimate the impacts of extreme temperatures on birth weight and gestational age in Manhattan, a borough in New York City, and explore differences by socioeconomic status (SES).

Methods: We combine average daily temperature from 1985 to 2010 with birth certificate data in Manhattan for the same time period.

Analyzing the Relationship Between Bus Pollution Policies and Morbidity Using a Quasi-Experiment.

Transit buses are used by millions of commuters every day, but they emit toxic diesel fumes. In 1988, the U.S.

Occupational exposure to roadway emissions and inside informal settlements in sub-Saharan Africa: A pilot study in Nairobi, Kenya.

Few studies examine urban air pollution in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), yet urbanization rates there are among the highest in the world. In this study, we measured 8-hr average occupational exposure levels of fine particulate matter (PM), black carbon (BC), ultra violet active-particulate matter (UV-PM), and trace elements for individuals who worked along roadways in Nairobi, specifically bus drivers, garage workers, street vendors, and women who worked inside informal settlements. We found BC and re-suspended dust were important contributors to PM levels for all study populations, particularly among bus drivers, while PM exposure levels for garage workers, street vendors, and informal settlement residents were not statistically different from each other.