The Clean Air Act of 1970 and Adult Mortality
Michael Greenstone
Abstract
Previous research has established an association between air pollution and adult mortality. However, studies
utilizing short-term fluctuations in pollution may detect mortality changes among the already ill or dying, while
prospective cohort studies, which utilize geographic differences in long-run pollution levels, may suffer from
severe omitted variables bias. This study utilizes the long-run reduction in total suspended particulates (TSPs)
pollution induced by the Clean Air Act of 1970, which mandated aggressive regulation of local polluters in heavily
polluted counties. We find that regulatory status is associated with large reductions in TSPs pollution but has little
association with reductions in either adult or elderly mortality. These findings are interpreted with caution due to
several caveats.
|
