Black carbon (BC) emissions have important impacts on public health, the environment, and the Earth’s climate. BC is a significant component of particle pollution, which has been linked to adverse health and environmental impacts through decades of scientific research. Recent work indicates that BC also plays an important role in climate change, although there is more uncertainty about its effects on climate than for greenhouse gases (GHG), such as carbon dioxide and methane. BC has been linked to a range of climate impacts, including increased temperatures, accelerated ice and snow melt, and disruptions to precipitation patterns. Importantly, reducing current emissions of BC may help slow the near-term rate of climate change, particularly in sensitive regions such as the Arctic. However, BC reductions cannot substitute for reductions in long-lived GHGs, which are necessary for mitigating climate change in the long run.
