Ethanol is widely touted as an eco-friendly, clean-burning fuel. But if every vehicle in the United States ran on fuel made primarily from ethanol instead of pure gasoline, the number of respiratory-related deaths and hospitalizations would likely increase, according to a new study by Stanford University atmospheric scientist Mark Z. Jacobson.

A national workplace ban on smoking in Ireland resulted in an 83 percent reduction in air pollution in pubs, an 80 percent decrease in airborne carcinogens for patrons and staff, and an improvement in the respiratory health of bar workers, according to a one-year follow-up study.

CO2 capture and storage can make a major contribution to CO2 reduction in the Netherlands. By the mid-21st century 80 to 110 million tonnes of CO2 per year could be avoided in the sectors energy, industry and transport. This is half of the current CO2 emission. Moreover, this can be realised against acceptable costs concludes Dutch researcher Kay Damen.

Cleaner engines, cleaner air and more uses for local farm products were the focus of a just-completed study of biodiesel as an alternative fuel source on selected Ontario farms. This province-wide initiative is the only one of its kind in Canada. It involved six farms to evaluate the effectiveness of using biodiesel in agriculture.

Four faculty members from The University of Arizona in Tucson were part of an amicus curiae brief supporting the plaintiff in today's historic U.S. Supreme Court decision on carbon dioxide emissions and climate change.

In addition to nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides, many volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in air contribute to smog and high ozone levels, as well as potentially damaging human health. Clean-air laws are thus rightly continuing to become stricter. Most modern air-purification systems are based on photocatalysts, adsorbents such as activated charcoal, or ozonolysis.