Re: Deaths from fossil fuel burning air pollution

[Bernard L Cohen <blc+@pitt.edu>]

On Fri, 17 Nov 2000, Otto G. Raabe wrote:

> I think that particulate matter has become an epidemiological scape goat
> for pollution effects.

	--This may be so, but it has become so only after numerous studies
of alternative indices. For example, it was once thought that sulfur
dioxide was the culprit, but rodents, primates, and even people (early
refrigeration workers) exposed to very high levels of sulfur dioxide
suffered no effects. A substantial amount of science has gone into
settling on fine particulate as the best indicator of air pollution health
effects. Most other pollutants correlate closely with it, so it serves as
a surrogate.

Bernard L. Cohen
Physics Dept.
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
Tel: (412)624-9245
Fax: (412)624-9163
e-mail: blc+@pitt.edu


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