With the movement towards green cars partly spurred by the need to eliminate harmful emissions and air pollution, it’s interesting to note that there is arguably even more reason to cut them out.
That’s because a new study by researchers in the US and Israel suggests increases in air pollution and other particulate matter can strongly affect cloud development and reduce precipitation in cool and dry regions; while increasing rain and the intensity of storms in warm and moist regions.
Published in a recent issue of Nature Geoscience, the research looks at how aerosols can affect the weather and the climate. It suggests that aerosols can alter cloud density and the radiative balance of the atmosphere – and this leads to changes in cloud microphysics and atmospheric stability.
The findings may have massive policy implications going forward, particularly in developing regions that are prone to drought and flood. It is thought that increases in manufacturing and the building of power plants and other industrial developments, which naturally increase pollution, could have an adverse impact on the weather and the climate – something that could undercut economic gains.
