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HONOLULU (AP) — Researchers with the University of Hawaii are trying to put price tag on the impacts of vog, or volcanic gas emissions.
Hawaii News Now reports (http://bit.ly/1zIunji ) that a trio of researchers at the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization has found that on days where emissions are high, emergency room admissions for pulmonary reasons spike.
They say the total increase in health care costs since 2008, when activity on the Big Island's Kilauea volcano spiked, has been almost $6.3 million statewide.
Vog is the term for the pollution formed from acidic gases and particles released by active volcanoes.
People in Hawaii have reported symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, sore throats and headaches because of vog downwind Kilauea.
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Information from: KGMB-TV, http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/
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