Some Americans are breathing dirtier air than they were a decade ago, says a new study from researchers at the American Lung Association. For the study the ALA researchers studied the levels of pollution in air in 1,000 U.S. cities between 2009 and 2011.
Of the 25 most polluted cities half were found to have improved in the last ten years while the other have fell backwards. In total, 254 counties were found to have unhealthy levels of ozone and pollution in their air:
"The long-term trend is positive and headed to much cleaner air," said report author Janice Nolen, assistant vice president of national policy and advocacy for the American Lung Association. "[However], there is an uptick in some areas that are a concern and some areas where the problem remains very, very serious."
Some of the worst offenders were California cities as well as Houston, Dallas, Oklahoma City, Cincinnati, New York City and Washington, D.C.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.