Nearly half of children in the US are breathing dangerously polluted air – a direct consequence of Trump’s environmental policies.

Nearly half of children in the United States breathe air with dangerous levels of pollution, according to a report by the American Lung Association (ALA). Experts warn that the widespread easing of environmental regulations under Donald Trump will worsen the situation, writes The Guardian.

The ALA's 27th annual Air Quality Report, released on April 22, assesses ground-level ozone (smog) levels, as well as short-term and year-round spikes in fine particulate matter (soot). The report uses verified data from 2022 to 2024.

According to the report, 33,5 million children in the United States—46% of all those under 18—live in areas that scored poorly on at least one measure of air pollution.

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It has been estimated that 7 million children, or 10% of all children in the United States, live in areas where all three air quality criteria are not met.

Children's lungs are still developing, said Will Barrett, associate vice president of national clean air policy at the ALA.

"Given their body size, children breathe in more air. They also play outdoors more often and are more active, so they breathe in more outdoor air. Exposure to air pollution in childhood can lead to long-term lung developmental problems, new cases of asthma, an increased risk of respiratory diseases, and other health problems," he noted.

The report found that racial and ethnic minorities are disproportionately exposed to air pollution. As a result, they are more likely to live with chronic conditions that increase vulnerability to pollution, such as asthma, diabetes, and heart disease.

Although racial and ethnic minorities make up 42,1% of the US population, they account for 54,2% of residents in counties that scored poorly on at least one pollution indicator. Furthermore, racial and ethnic minorities are 2,42 times more likely than whites to live in a neighborhood that failed all three pollution indicators.

Smog remains the most common pollutant affecting public health in the United States. Between 2022 and 2024, 38% of the country's population (approximately 129,1 million people) were exposed to ozone levels hazardous to health. This is the highest level in six years of monitoring and an increase of 3,9 million people compared to the previous period.

Among the reasons for the increase in pollution are extreme heat, drought and wildfires, which increase the number of people exposed to harmful ozone.

The hardest-hit regions were the southwestern states from California to Texas, as well as much of the Midwest. This is due to the drift of smoke from wildfires in Canada in 2023, as well as high temperatures and ozone-promoting weather conditions in 2023 and 2024, particularly in the southern states.

The report notes that climate change is increasing ozone pollution by altering atmospheric conditions, such as high temperatures and low winds, which allow pollutants to accumulate and form ozone.

The report specifically highlights data centers as a growing source of air pollution. In recent years, they consumed approximately 4,4% of all electricity in the US, a figure that could rise to 12% over the next decade.

Their impact is primarily due to the use of regional power grids, where a significant portion of generation still relies on fossil fuels such as methane and coal. Furthermore, many data centers use dozens of large diesel backup generators, which emit carcinogenic particles.

"As demand for data centers grows, the focus must be on carbon-free and renewable energy that complements the grid rather than adds to it," Barrett said.

He pointed to a series of weakening environmental policies by the Environment Agency and warned that this was worsening air quality.

Barrett mentioned the rollback of transportation standards, the abandonment of the agency's responsibility to protect the public from climate pollution, and the increase in permissible emissions from the oil and gas industry. He also touched on mercury, a toxic pollutant emitted by coal-fired power plants.

"We are watching the federal Environmental Protection Agency roll back health protections," he concluded.

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The Trump administration has initiated at least 70 steps to weaken environmental and climate regulations. These include relaxing requirements for power plants to control mercury emissions and other hazardous air pollutants.

Other measures include lifting restrictions on major air polluters, disbanding the EPA's air quality advisory committees, and ending the practice of estimating the monetary value of lives saved by reducing fine particulate matter and ozone while also accounting for costs to businesses.

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