It’s not looking great in Delaware County as far as air pollution goes.  Officials believe Delaware County, along with Camden County, N.J., will fail to meet new air quality standards from the EPA, writes Sophia Schmidt for WHYY.

On the other hand, with the federal government cracking down on one dangerous form of air pollution, parts of the Philadelphia area could be seeing better air down the road.

“I want to emphasize how good this is,” said Kabindra Shakya, a professor at Villanova University who studies air pollution. “This [will help] us — and not only us but future generations — to breathe better air. … This is one of the great incentives for us to … leave them with a better environment.”

The EPA has announced stricter standards for soot, lowering the concentration of allowable particulate matter pollution in the air by 25 percent. The change could prevent thousands of premature deaths.

Compliance would have to be proven by 2032.

Particulate matter comes from things like car tires, tailpipes, wildfires, junkyard fires, and industrial facilities like trash incinerators or power plants.

The matter lodges in the lungs and bloodstream, causing asthma attacks, heart attacks, and cancer.

Read more about Delaware County air quality and what would need to happen to meet these new air quality standards at WHYY.