Photo: Sahara desert
When global temperatures increase by 4 degrees Celsius, harmful plant emissions and dust will also increase by as much as 14%. This doesn’t account for a simultaneous increase in human-made sources of air pollution. About two-thirds of the future pollution is predicted to come from plants producing chemicals called biogenic volatile organic compounds. When they react with oxygen, they produce organic aerosols. Inhaled, these can cause infant mortality, childhood asthma, heart disease, and lung cancer in adults. The second-largest contributor to future air pollution is likely to be dust from the Saharan desert.
news.ucr.edu/articles/2023/02/28/breathing-going-get-tougher