Nation Jul 28 Thousands of firefighters battle Western wildfires as smoke puts millions under air quality alerts Cooler temperatures and increased humidity could help crews battle California's Park Fire, which had scorched more than 550 square miles as of Sunday morning, darkening the sky with smoke and haze and contributing to poor air quality in a large… By Nic Coury, Olga R. Rodriguez, Associated Press
Nation Jul 26 Watch 6:26 How massive wildfires in the West spread harmful particles across North America Raging wildfires are burning across parts of the western U.S. and Canada, pushing thousands of people to flee their homes and forcing Canada to call up the military to help. In addition to the physical devastation the flames are causing,… By William Brangham, Jackson Hudgins
Health Jun 08 Watch 5:22 Wildfire smoke is hazardous even hundreds of miles away. Here’s how to protect your health Smoke from wildfires hundreds of miles away is still a health threat, contributing to nearly 16,000 deaths a year, according to a recent National Bureau of Economic Research analysis. Laura Kate Bender, who leads the Healthy Air campaign for the… By John Yang, Kaisha Young
World May 16 Wildfire risk eases near Canada’s oil sands hub Canada is entering a new fire season after last year’s record number of wildfires sent choking smoke across parts of the U.S. and forced more than 235,000 Canadians to evacuate their communities. By Suman Naishadham, Rob Gillies, Associated Press
Apr 06 Watch 5:30 Why air quality is getting worse in many places and how it puts human health at risk By William Brangham, Andrew Corkery While the U.S. has made great progress improving air quality in recent decades, air pollution is still a driver of many serious health conditions both domestically and globally. According to a new report, only seven countries met the World Health… Continue watching
Feb 21 Watch 7:10 Supreme Court hears challenge to rule reducing pollution drifting between states By William Brangham, Ali Schmitz The Supreme Court heard arguments in a major environmental case over a rule that requires states to stop their air pollution from drifting over to neighboring states. Three states, led by Ohio, are claiming the rule is too costly and… Continue watching
Feb 07 The Biden administration just set tougher standards for soot pollution. It could save thousands of lives per year, the EPA says By Matthew Daly, Associated Press Environmental and public health groups say the rule finalized Wednesday is a major step in improving Americans' health. Continue reading
Nov 12 Diwali celebrations in India set a world record amid rising concerns about air quality By Biswajeet Banerjee, Associated Press Millions of Indians celebrated Diwali on Sunday with a Guinness World Record number of bright earthen oil lamps as concerns about air pollution soared in the South Asian country. Continue reading
Jul 16 Watch 8:01 As wildfire smoke spreads, millions of Americans lack access to respiratory care By John Yang, Lorna Baldwin, Andrew Corkery, Satvi Sunkara Smoke from the record-setting Canadian wildfires is again making the air hazardous to breathe this weekend across the Northern Plains and upper Midwest. As the smoke triggers breathing problems for many, it also highlights the fact that more than 5… Continue watching