(September 5, 2008)--Smog and soot in China can have far-reaching effects on global warming, even as far away as the United States, a new report says.
The federal science report says so-called shorter-term pollutants may raise summer temperatures in the American heartland by three degrees in about 50 years.
Shorter-term pollutants come mostly from burning wood and kerosene and from driving trucks and cars, and the authors of the report say they cause more localized warming than once thought.
The scientists contend there should be a greater effort to attack this type of pollution for faster results.
For decades, scientists have concentrated on carbon dioxide, the most damaging greenhouse gas because it lingers in the atmosphere for decades.
Past studies have barely paid attention to global warming pollution that stays in the air merely for days.
The new report makes a case for tackling the short-term pollutants, while acknowledging that carbon dioxide is still the chief cause of warming.
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