Climate change and air quality are closely related – in two important ways.
- The sources of air pollution - motor vehicles, industry, etc - are among the main sources of greenhouse gas emissions which lead to climate change.
- Hotter temperatures resulting from climate change can reduce our air quality by creating good conditions for particle pollution and ground level ozone.
Click to enlarge
Average temperatures in Australia rose 0.9°C between 1910 and 2004 and the CSIRO predicts temperatures will further increase over the next 30 years. Climate modelling shows the risk of fire increasing across southeast Australia as a result of climate change.
In NSW, severe drought conditions during the past few years have meant more bushfires and dust storms, which has generated a great deal of particle pollution. With climate change, the drought is likely to persist - and so will this pollution. Less rainfall also means there’s not as much opportunity for the particles to be removed from the air.
Climate change can increase ground level ozone as the warmer it gets, the better the conditions for ozone formation.
What all this means is that the more we do to address air quality, the more we’re doing to address climate change, and vice-versa.
Climate change and air quality are closely related – in two important ways.
- The sources of air pollution - motor vehicles, industry, etc - are among the main sources of greenhouse gas emissions which lead to climate change.
- Hotter temperatures resulting from climate change can reduce our air quality by creating good conditions for particle pollution and ground level ozone.
Click to enlarge
Average temperatures in Australia rose 0.9°C between 1910 and 2004 and the CSIRO predicts temperatures will further increase over the next 30 years. Climate modelling shows the risk of fire increasing across southeast Australia as a result of climate change.
In NSW, severe drought conditions during the past few years have meant more bushfires and dust storms, which has generated a great deal of particle pollution. With climate change, the drought is likely to persist - and so will this pollution. Less rainfall also means there’s not as much opportunity for the particles to be removed from the air.
Climate change can increase ground level ozone as the warmer it gets, the better the conditions for ozone formation.
What all this means is that the more we do to address air quality, the more we’re doing to address climate change, and vice-versa.