More than 141 million Americans are breathing in unhealthy air every single day

More than 141 million Americans are breathing in unhealthy air every day, according to a new report.

The American Lung Association released its annual report of air quality and pollution across US counties which found that efforts to change the narrative on air cleanliness have stalled, with 43% of Americans living in areas of what’s deemed as unsafe air.

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The report, which focused on 2015 to 2017, discovered that 7 million more people than the previous report are inhaling unhealthy levels of polluted air.

The “State of the Air” report claims that climate change is one of the factors to blame for the startlingly rise. The three years covered in the study were the hottest years recorded globally, with many cities experiencing more ozone and particle pollution. These are often referred to as smog and soot, respectively.

Six of the worst cities with air pollution are in California, with areas in California being higher likely due to the western wildfires, according to the American Lung Association vice-president Paul Billings.

“We’re seeing in this year’s report the impacts of climate change on air quality in really stunning terms,” Billings said, via the Guardian.

Below are the top 10 smoggiest cities in the US, according to the American Lung Association:

1. Los Angeles/ Long Beach
2. Visalia, Calif.
3. Bakersfield, Calif.
4. Fresno/ Madera/ Hanford, Calif.
5. Sacramento/ Roseville, Calif.
6. San Diego/Chula Vista/ Carlsbad, Calif.
7. Phoenix/ Mesa, Ariz.
8. San Francisco/ Oakland/ San Jose, Calif.
9. Houston / The Woodlands, Texas
10. New York City/ Newark (New York, New Jersey, Connecticut.)

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