How did Natural Resources Defense Council come up with its mortality estimates?
Table California: Particulate Air Pollution Attributable Mortality Point estimates are derived from the risk ratio reported in the ACS study. Ranges are derived from 95-percent confidence intervals around the risk ratio in the ACS study. Metropolitan Statistical Areas are as defined by the Office of Management and Budget for 1980, except for New England, where areas are New England County Metropolitan Areas. Table 1 identifies Metropolitan Statistical Areas in the state of California. For each MSA, the table shows PM-10 concentration and NRDC’s estimate of air pollution attributable deaths. The table shows the average annual mean PM-10 concentration in each MSA over the five-year period, 1990 through 1994. The higher the PM-10 concentration, the greater the risk of premature mortality from heart and lung disease For each MSA, we present point and range estimates of the annual adult cardiopulmonary deaths attributable to air pollution The estimates are derived by applying a risk factor
