Health Effects
Research has linked regulated air pollutants such as ozone and particulate matter (PM) to lung and heart disease and other health problems. More investigation is needed to further understand the role poor air quality plays on health and disease and support development of more sustainable and integrated air quality management strategies. The research goals include:
Understand the link between health effects and exposure to individual pollutants and multipollutants.
Develop models and methods to characterize multipollutant exposures.
Understand emissions, exposures and health effects to air pollutant mixtures from near sources such as highways, industry, railyards and ports and provide solutions to reduce impacts of multipollutants on local air quality.
Identify at-risk populations that are disproportionately impacted by air pollution.
Identify toxicity pathways and biological processes that lead to health effects from exposure to air pollutants and examine potential biomarkers of exposure and susceptibility to mixtures of pollutants.
Results from these investigations are used to support the nation's air quality standards under the Clean Air Act and contribute to improvements in public health