Trump Ends Global Air Quality Monitoring Initiative

The U.S. State Department has decided to terminate its long-running air quality monitoring program, which has provided publicly accessible data for over ten years. This initiative, operational in 80 embassies and consulates worldwide, played a crucial role in tracking air pollution levels.

Beyond serving as a research tool, the collected data assisted foreign service personnel in determining whether outdoor conditions were safe for their families. Additionally, it influenced air quality improvements in several countries, notably China.

The State Department informed The New York Times that the decision to suspend the program was due to “budget constraints.”

Although monitoring devices at embassies will remain functional for the time being, real-time air quality data will no longer be transmitted to a department-operated app or other platforms. According to officials, this suspension will continue “until funding for the underlying network is resolved.”

Public health experts and environmental specialists expressed concern to The Times, warning that the move could negatively impact Americans overseas, especially those employed by the U.S. government.

“Embassies are situated sometimes in very difficult air quality circumstances,” said Gina McCarthy, former head of the Environmental Protection Agency under the Obama administration.

During her tenure, McCarthy collaborated with then-Secretary of State John Kerry to expand the program beyond China, extending its reach globally.

“You can’t send people in risky areas without information,” McCarthy told The Times.

“We generally think of risky areas as war zones or something like that. But it’s equally important to look at whether their health is deteriorating because they are in a place with such poor air quality,” she emphasized.

The initiative began in 2008 when U.S. officials in Beijing installed air quality sensors atop the American embassy, providing hourly updates on PM 2.5 levels—tiny, hazardous particles linked to respiratory diseases, heart complications, and other severe health issues.

The data released by the U.S. exposed a stark contrast between actual pollution levels and what Chinese authorities were publicly reporting.

“All hell broke loose,” McCarthy recalled in her interview with The Times.

Beijing attempted to pressure the embassy into halting the publication of pollution readings, insisting that the data release was unauthorized and questioning the credibility of the science behind it. However, their efforts to suppress the information were unsuccessful, The Times reported.

Instead of blocking the initiative, the Chinese government eventually launched its own air quality monitoring program, increased its budget for pollution control, and initiated collaborative efforts with the U.S. to combat environmental hazards.

By 2015, McCarthy and Kerry had broadened the program’s scope, deploying air quality sensors to additional U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide. They argued that, like climate change, air pollution required a global approach supported by extensive data collection.

A 2022 study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that U.S. diplomatic missions sharing local air quality data prompted host nations to implement new pollution regulations. Since the inception of the program in 2008, air pollution levels in monitored areas had declined, reducing the risk of premature death for over 300 million people.