Air

What are the Issues?

The air we breathe day in and day out has a significant impact on our health, especially for those with asthma and other types of lung or heart disease.1 And while air quality in many cities in North America and Europe has improved significantly over the last two decades, many cities in both developed and emerging economies continue to have air pollution problems from the effects of burning fossil fuels.2 As economies and urban center populations continue to grow, the air quality challenge will grow as well.

The combustion of fossil fuels for power generation and transport has been a significant contributor to urban air pollution, acid rain and smog; burning fossil fuels emits sulfur dioxide (SO₂) and nitrogen oxides (NO_x), unless these are "scrubbed out" of stack gas. That’s changing for the better in many places: in transportation, reductions in emissions of pollutants can be achieved through the use of low sulfur fuels and other clean fuels; in electricity generation, gas-fired power plants and coal gasification are approaches that produce less air pollution than conventional coal plants.3 While switching to renewable energy often sounds like a solution to air pollution challenges, there are significant scientific and commercial challenges that will need to be resolved through the work of a broad array of business, government, and other stakeholders to make alternatives a viable choice for large scale deployment.4 Meanwhile, technology, regulation, and consumer choices can all play a role in reducing the impact of our energy use on the air we breathe.

What are the Solutions?

Air quality regulations such as the federal Clean Air Act in the United States have led to significant progress over the last twenty years. Additionally, new industrial facilities and power plants are being designed with innovative technology that creates substantially fewer pollutants than facilities with older technology. Further progress is also being made with the spread of low sulfur fuels as energy inputs, which are less polluting.5

Multi-stakeholder initiatives are bringing together donors, government agencies, and businesses to work on solutions for urban air pollution in mega-cities. Such partnerships include the Clean Air Initiative for Asian Cities (CAI-Asia), which was launched by the Asian Development Bank together with the World Bank and the US Agency for International Development as well as the Clean Air Institute which manages the Clean Air Initiative for Latin American Cities.6

Technology, regulation, and consumer choices can all play a role in reducing the impact of energy use on the air we breathe. Like many other environmental issues related to energy, air pollution can be reduced through energy efficiency and conservation improvements, both at the consumer and industry level.

1. 1 "Air," Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry. http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/general/theair.html#como
2. 2 "Tomorrow's Markets: Global trends and their implications for business," World Resources Institute, p.26. http://www.wri.org/publication/tomorrows-markets-global-trends-and-their-implications-business#
3. 3 International Energy Outlook, EIA, June 2008, http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/ieo/world.html
4. 4 Kammen, Daniel. "The Rise of Renewable Energy," Scientific American, Volume 295 Number 3, September 2006.
5. 5 "British Bus Operator Moves to Ultra-Low-Sulfur Fuel," American Public Transportation Association. http://www.apta.com/services/intnatl/intfocus/lowsulfur.cfm
6. 6 Clean Air Initiative for Asian Cities. http://www.cleanairnet.org/caiasia/1412/channel.html