The Daily Briefing

THAT OCEAN BREEZE IS KILLING YOU

Miles ClementsTue. April 08
 

ABC News reports on a new study that claims that the briny sea air you’re currently sucking up might be fostering nitryl chloride, a chemical that encourages the formation of ozone:

The highest levels of nitryl chloride occurred at night, when nitrogen oxides – from ship exhaust plumes and industrial pollution – mixed with chlorine from sea salt spray. During the day the action of sunlight on nitryl chloride breaks it down into chlorine atoms and nitrogen dioxide.

These reactive chlorine atoms play a key role in encouraging ozone to form. In the lower atmosphere ozone is a major pollutant, causing respiratory problems and increasing human mortality rates.

Scientists of course can’t be sure how widespread the pollution is yet, but they suggest that Southern California (and surely all of Long Beach’s port-adjacent air) is at high risk.

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