Higher levels of exposure to fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) during early childhood have been linked to reduced economic earnings later in life, according to new research. This relationship is especially significant in the Midwest and South regions of the United States.
A recent study from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and the European University of Rome found that increased exposure to fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) during infancy correlates with diminished economic earnings in later adulthood. This effect was particularly noticeable in the Midwest and Southern parts of the U.S.
Francesca Dominici, the study’s leading author and a professor at Harvard Chan School, stated, “This research significantly advances our understanding of the important link between environmental influences and long-term economic results. The findings indicate that the repercussions of air pollution extend beyond health implications and differ among various regions and groups.”
The paper is set to be published on September 9 in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The current study expands on earlier research regarding the connection between PM2.5 exposure and economic opportunity, employing more detailed data and advanced causal inference methods to account for socioeconomic and demographic factors. The researchers examined PM2.5 exposure and economic earnings data from 86% of U.S. census tracts—small subdivisions within a county—covering the years 1980 to 2010. They specifically analyzed individuals born between 1978 and 1983 and evaluated their average earnings from 2014 to 2015, when they were between 31 and 37 years old. To assess economic mobility, they used a measure called absolute upward mobility (AUM), which represents the average income rank in adulthood of children who came from families in the 25th percentile of the national income distribution.
The results revealed that greater PM2.5 exposure during infancy corresponded with lower earnings in adulthood. On a national scale, a rise in PM2.5 exposure by one microgram per cubic meter (μg/m3) in 1982 was associated with a 1.146% reduction in AUM by 2015. Furthermore, the study noted that PM2.5 exposure had a greater impact on AUM in certain regions of the U.S., particularly in the Midwest and South.
Co-lead author Luca Merlo, a researcher at the European University of Rome, remarked, “Our results highlight the urgent need for strict national air quality regulations. They also emphasize the importance of localized measures to decrease air pollution and policies that tackle both environmental and economic inequalities.”
Sophie-An Kingsbury Lee, a student at Harvard’s engineering school, contributed as a co-lead author.
The research received funding from the National Institutes of Health (grants R01MD012769, R01ES028033, 5R01AG060232, R01ES030616, R01AG066793, 1R01ES029950, RF1AG07437201A1, R01MD016054, R01ES034373, RF1AG080948, RF1AG071024, R01ES34021, 1U24ES035309, P30ES000002) and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation (grant G-2020-13946).
