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ON THE E NVIRONMENT

Pollution Around the World: A Matter of Choices

DEC. 30, 2014

Michael Greenstone

A few weeks ago, I wrote about China and Indias challenges with high particulate
matter pollution widely believed to be the most harmful form of air pollution. A
chart comparing air pollution levels caught many eyes because it showed the
severity of the problem in China, and even more in India.
It also showed that Europe is slightly more polluted than the United States.
With the European Unions climate leadership, including a cap-and-trade
program for greenhouse gases, some might find this surprising.
The World Health Organization considers fine particulate matter pollution
levels higher than 10 micrograms per cubic meter to be unsafe. The majority of
American cities are in the safe zone, with the average pollution level at 9.6.
Thirty-three percent of cities are above the W.H.O. standard. Those cities tend to
be geographically dispersed throughout the United States, but are predictably
cities with heavy industry and driving, like Cleveland, Chicago, Los Angeles and
Philadelphia. Outside of the W.H.O., the United States has its own particulate
matter standard of 12 micrograms per cubic meter. The pollution in 13 percent of
American cities is higher than that.
Europe is a different story. The average European city has pollution levels

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that are double what the W.H.O. considers safe, at 21.7 micrograms per cubic
meter. In total, 93 percent of Europes cities have unsafe levels of pollution when
measured against the W.H.O.'s standards. The E.U.'s standard, against which
member countries base their regulations, is much more lax than both the W.H.O.
and the American standards, at 25 micrograms per cubic meter. Only a quarter of
the E.U.'s cities fail to meet that standard. In the United States, only Fresno,
Calif., would.
Another defining characteristic about Europes pollution is that it is relatively
confined to certain areas. In fact, while the overall pollution is worse than in the
United States, northern Europe (Scandinavia and the Baltic States) has the same
average pollution level as our nation. Western Europe (Germany and west) jumps
up to about 16, and the eastern and Mediterranean regions are around 26
micrograms per cubic meter. Turkey has particularly high pollution levels and
relatively low levels of income by European standards. With Turkey taken out of
the picture, Europes average drops to 18.7.
Why do the United States and European maps look different? Part of the
answer may just be a question of timing, but the differences also reflect choices. It
wasnt that long ago when many American cities were heavily polluted; Los
Angeles was known as the smog capital of the world, and white-collar workers in
Gary, Ind., would bring two shirts to work to ensure they always had a clean white
one to get them through the day. But from 1970, when the Clean Air Act was
passed, to today, there has been a substantial improvement in air quality, with
much of it because of state and federal regulations. That change didnt happen
overnight or by accident.
When one compares pollution readings from around the globe, it is evident
that lower-income countries tend to have higher pollution. However, this is not a
law of nature. Pollution reflects societal choices about incurring costs in exchange
for health and other benefits that are embodied in policies like the Clean Air Act.
Since its passage almost 45 year ago, we have learned much about the health
benefits of cleaner air and ways to clean the air inexpensively.
In the coming years, China and India have an opportunity to take advantage
of these lessons in the name of improving their citizens health. Because their
actions to reduce particulates air pollution can lead to cuts in greenhouse gas
emissions, it may also reduce the risk of disruptive climate change for the world.
Michael Greenstone, the Milton Friedman professor of economics at the University
of Chicago, runs the Energy Policy Institute there.

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