Last week marked the 40th anniversary of the federal Clean Air Act, providing an appropriate occasion to revisit the effects of sprawl and smart growth on air quality.
As noted in a report on public health and smart growth prepared by Lawrence Frank, Sarah Kavage and Todd Litman, the increased automobile trips and miles driven under sprawling land use patterns are "associated with higher levels of several air pollutants that have adverse respiratory health impacts. These harmful pollutants include fine particulates, toxins, carbon monoxide, NOx [nitrogen oxides] and VOCs [volatile organic compounds." (NOx and VOCs are precursors to ozone smog.)
continued at Daily Kos....
