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Olympic air worse than reported

Tuesday, 23rd June 2009 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)

Air quality at the 2008 Olympics was worse than previously reported, according to new research compiled jointly by U.S. and Chinese universities.

Particulate air pollution during the games exceeded excessive levels as defined by the World Health Organization, and was 30 percent worse than Chinese environmental experts have said, according to a report published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology. The research was conducted by scientists from Oregon State University and Peking University, and funded by the National Science Foundation in the United States and the National Science Foundation of China.

Nature's own cleaning agents may have done more to clear the air than the well-reported man-made efforts employed last year by Beijing, says Staci Simonich, an OSU associate professor of environmental and molecular toxicology: "It was some evening rains and favorable shifts in the winds that provided the most relief from the pollution."

View the complete study here A photographic account of pollution during the games, from the Oregon State researchers, is available on Flickr.

Tags: 2008 Olympics, Beijing Olympics, pollution