2024 State of the Air: Record Highs in US Particle Pollution, with Dr. John Balmes

Episode Highlights 0:16 Intro 2:17 What caused the particle pollution spike? 6:28 The health effects of fine particle pollution exposure 10:23 The new EPA particle pollution standard 14:27 Improvements to ozone pollution and the Clean Air Act 18:46 How to advocate for improvement 20:23 Air quality inequity 24:03 Reflecting on 25 years, and looking ahead 25:52 Outro Dr. John Balmes, a renowned environmental health sciences expert from the University of California, San Francisco, join Lungcast for a deep dive into the American Lung Association’s newly released 2024 “State of the Air” report. Balmes specifically provides context behind several concerning trends, notably a spike in deadly particle pollution—the highest levels in the past 25 years largely due to wildfires. The eye-opening conversation also impresses upon the importance of clean transportation and power generation to help mitigate population-wide risk. Want more Lungcast? Visit us at HCPLive.com/podcasts/lungcast or www.lung.org/professional-education/lungcast