Southeast Asian countries consider ways to boost ‘green financing’ as region chokes on smog

LUANG PRABANG, Laos — Senior finance and central bank officials from Southeast Asia and major economies met Thursday in the scenic Laotian city of Luang Prabang to discuss ways to help the region build resilience against shocks like the COVID-19 pandemic and natural disasters brought on by climate change. The need for faster progress was … Read more

Choking smog lands Sarajevo at top of Swiss index of most polluted cities for 2nd straight day

SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina — SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) — The Bosnian capital of Sarajevo has been intermittently engulfed in a toxic haze since the start of December, with air quality so bad it was placed first on a list of the world’s most polluted cities for a second straight day Wednesday. The Swiss air quality technology company … Read more

Coal power, traffic, waste burning a toxic smog cocktail in Indonesia’s Jakarta

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Against the backdrop of smokestacks from a nearby coal power plant, the sky above Edy Suryana’s village stays grey for months at a time, while ashes and the stench of smoke hang in the air. Suryana has spent more than three decades living in the shadow of the power plant in northern … Read more

Delhi Plans to Unleash Cloud Seeding in Its Battle Against Deadly Smog

India’s capital, New Delhi, is preparing a new weapon in the fight against deadly air pollution: cloud seeding. The experiment, which could take place as early as next week, would introduce chemicals like silver iodide into a cloudy sky to create rain and, it’s hoped, wash away the fine particulate matter hovering over one of … Read more

Dusting and Mopping Better Than Air Purifiers for Cleaning Indoor Air After a Wildfire

Even after smoke from a wildfire has visibly cleared, lingering toxins indoors can tank air quality and threaten our health. Harmful chemicals stick around on surfaces and release into the air—and, new research found, air filters won’t get rid of them. In a study published this month in Science Advances, scientists documented how smoke leaves … Read more