Pollution News and Research

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Monash University software helps tackle cancer and aircraft design

A powerful software tool designed by academics at Monash University is being used in the UK to help develop cancer treatments and improve aircraft engine design.

2 Aug 2005

West Australian study to look at whether dust has the potential to cause health problems

The West Australian Department of Health will conduct a study to look at whether dust in the town of Port Hedland has the potential to cause health problems.

2 Aug 2005

Six dead and ten hospitalised in Taiwan with soil infection, melioidosis

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), Taiwanese health authorities are examining a possible link between soil bacteria and the deaths of at least six people and the hospitalization of ten others in southern Taiwan.

1 Aug 2005

U.S. beaches getting dirtier and some are disappearing

The National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has said this week that more and more U.S. beaches are being closed due to contamination, partly because there is more pollution and partly because of better monitoring.

31 Jul 2005

Link between illness and pesticide use in or near schools causes alarm

New research linking health problems to pesticides, has set the alarm bells ringing both in the U.S. and the UK.

27 Jul 2005

17 percent of infants living near "stop and go" traffic suffer from wheezing

University of Cincinnati (UC) environmental health researchers have found that 17 percent of infants living near "stop and go" traffic suffer from wheezing.

24 Jul 2005

Maryland's poor, African-American communities suffer disproportionate cancer risk from air pollution

Maryland communities that are poor and predominantly African-American incur a disproportionate cancer risk from ambient exposure to airborne toxins, according to researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

15 Jun 2005

Adults with diabetes at higher risk for cardiovascular problems due air pollution

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health and colleagues assessed the effect of high air pollution levels, specifically emissions from coal-burning power plants and diesel vehicles, on Boston-area adults with diabetes.

8 Jun 2005

Nitrogen oxides emitted by soil could play a substantially larger role in seasonal air pollution

Nitrogen oxides produced by huge fires and fossil fuel combustion are a major component of air pollution. They are the primary ingredients in ground-level ozone, a pollutant harmful to human health and vegetation.

6 Jun 2005

Basic sanitation must reach 138 million more people every year through 2015

...close to 2 billion in total - to bring the world on track to halve the proportion of people living without safe water and basic sanitation, the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF warn in a new report.

6 Jun 2005

Childrens' mental development may be impaired by aircraft noise

A new study is suggesting that exposure to aircraft noise at schools located near major airports may affect the development of children's mental skills in an adverse way, and this applies especially to reading comprehension.

6 Jun 2005

Aircraft noise could impair the development of reading and memory in children

Exposure to high levels of aircraft noise could impair the development of reading and memory in children, suggests a study published in this week’s issue of The Lancet.

3 Jun 2005

Short term high pollution concentrations linked to dangerous heart arrhythmias

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health and colleagues from Boston area medical institutions have linked short term high pollution concentrations with an increased incidence of irregular and very dangerous heart arrhythmias among a group of cardiac patients from the greater Boston area who had implanted cardioverter defibrillators (ICD).

1 Jun 2005

Research shows smoking bans unlikely to affect business in Canada

More people reported that they would likely visit bars and restaurants if they are smoke-free than the number who would stay away because of a smoking ban. These are the results of recent public opinion research announced today by Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh.

1 Jun 2005

Diabetics more sensitive to cardiovascular effects from air pollution

People with diabetes may be at higher risk for cardiovascular problems when air pollution levels are higher, according to a new study of Boston-area residents. The ability of the blood vessels to control blood flow was impaired in adults with diabetes on days with elevated levels of particles from traffic and coal-burning power plants.

31 May 2005

Researchers find link between highways and breathing problems in kids

Children living close to a major road are significantly more likely to have asthma than children who live farther away, according to study findings presented today at the American Thoracic Society International Conference.

25 May 2005

Children living close to a major road are significantly more likely to have asthma than children who live farther away

The study found that children living within 75 meters (about 82 yards) of a major road had an almost 50 percent greater risk of having had asthma symptoms in the past year than were children who lived more than 300 meters (about 328 yards) away.

23 May 2005

Tollbooth ventilation system effective in protecting workers from traffic air pollution

Although there is the potential for tollbooth workers at the Baltimore Harbor Tunnel to be exposed to high levels of cancer-causing air toxins emitted from the thousands of vehicles that pass under their nose, researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found that the tollbooth ventilation system was effective in keeping air toxins out of the tollbooth and away from the workers.

5 May 2005

Traffic pollution may increase risk of breast cancer

Exposure to carcinogens in traffic emissions at particular lifetime points may increase the risk of developing breast cancer in women who are lifetime nonsmokers, a study by epidemiologists and geographers at the University at Buffalo has found.

1 May 2005

Isotopes for society

The nucleus of an atom contains protons and neutrons. However, some atoms of the same chemical element can have varying numbers of neutrons, giving so-called isotopes of that element.

27 Apr 2005