Clean Air
Clean Air
Clean air is essential for our health, our climate, and all living things.
Why is clean air important?
Public health researchers estimate that seven million people across the planet die prematurely every year due to air pollution from coal, oil, and gas. From asthma and bronchitis to heart disease and strokes, the health impacts of polluted air can be severe.
Redlining, racist zoning practices, and other factors have disproportionately put people of color and low-income neighborhoods near or downwind from the sources of air pollution. Cleaning up our air is critical for reducing health disparities and improving the quality of life for all our communities.
Clean air and clean water are among the most bipartisan issues in the country, with more than 80% of Americans supporting them.
4,500
5,700
new asthma cases prevented per year
Exposure to soot pollution increases the risk of asthma, heart attacks, stroke, cancer, and premature death
EPA released updated National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for particulate matter (PM2.5), or soot, taking a positive and long-awaited step toward addressing a dangerous and deadly air pollutant responsible for over 100,000 deaths in the United States every year.
Victory!
In 2024, the EPA strengthened National Ambient Air Quality Standards for soot, saving thousands of lives and billions of dollars! These protections save an estimated 4,500 lives and prevent 5,700 new cases of asthma each year. Sierra Club continues to fight the Trump administration’s attempts to rollback environmental quality standards and protect the health and well being of communities nationwide.
What We Are Doing
The Sierra Club works in communities across the country fighting pollution that’s harming our health, heating up our climate, and degrading our environment. From advocating for stronger regulations on soot, methane, and mercury to reducing pollution from cars, trucks, and home appliances, there’s a lot we can do to clean up our air.
Make your home a clean air zone:
One of the best ways to get the fumes out of your home? Using an affordable portable induction cooktop or replacing your gas stove entirely, which uses methane and spews harmful air pollutants, is a great upgrade you can make to your living space.
Drive less, breathe easier:
Transportation is one of the largest sources of air pollution in the United States. Walking, biking, carpooling, taking public transit, or switching to an electric vehicle when possible can cut down on harmful emissions that contribute to soot and smog in your community.
Support community-led solutions:
Communities on the frontlines of pollution, often low-income neighborhoods and communities of color, are leading the fight for cleaner air through local air monitoring programs, clean energy campaigns, and holding industry accountable to its pollution. Joining or supporting local initiatives through one of Sierra Club’s chapters helps build the people-powered pressure necessary for lasting change.
What You Can Do
Tell Congress: Make the EPA do its job to protect our environment!
The EPA has one job – to protect the environment and public health. Now Donald Trump is stripping the Environmental Protection Agency of its authority to fight climate change by repealing the Endangerment Finding.
This is illegal and it will cost lives. People will get sicker, people’s energy bills will go up, and it will allow fossil fuel companies to unleash even more climate pollution.
Demand Congress make the agency accountable and uphold its responsibility to our communities, our environment, and our climate.
Writing a personal message makes your action far more effective. Don't forget to share a brief note on why climate protections matter to you!
95% complete
Send My Message