It's commonly known that transitioning to zero-emission vehicles is good for the planet. But it could also actually save lives.
A new study published in Frontiers of Earth Science has concluded that phasing out gas-powered trucks and buses could lead to dramatically improved air quality and better public health in the greater Chicago area — and presumably anywhere those changes are made.
As reported by Northwestern University, the study was inspired by California's Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) policy, which is accelerating the transition to electric vehicles in the transportation sector.
Researchers modeled what would happen if a similar policy was implemented in the Greater Chicago region, and the results were dramatic — it would reduce enough harmful gas pollution to prevent 500 premature deaths and 600 cases of childhood asthma a year. Not only that, but it also had the most significant effect on communities of color, which are disproportionately affected by pollution.
"As a mom who personally has asthma, I was struck by these results," said Northwestern's Victoria Lang, who led the study. "Avoiding 600 new pediatric cases of asthma per year is sparing 25 classrooms of students from a chronic lung disease."
There have been 1,330 premature deaths and 1,580 new cases of childhood asthma annually linked to nitrogen dioxide pollution in the region, and medium-sized and heavy-duty vehicles are responsible for generating about 22% of that, according to the study.
In addition to preventing premature deaths and cases of childhood asthma, the study found there were great potential economic benefits; it was estimated that Illinois could save $731 million per year in healthcare and climate damage costs.
In the face of dreary climate outlooks, this is exciting news that could play a major role in the decision of the Illinois Pollution Control Board, which is considering adopting a similar policy to ACT. People in the community are also urging the board to adopt something like ACT, and news of how positive it would be for the community's health could earn more support.
"Ultimately, it's up to individual states to adopt the ACT standard," said Daniel Horton, the study's senior author. "This is an opportunity for Illinois to lead — by adopting a policy that is good for both Illinois residents' health and for global climate."
"Kids should not have to suffer from a life-long illness just because of where they live or the location of their school," said Lang.
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