Acid rain cut in northern hemisphere

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Countries in the northern hemisphere have significantly cut air pollution, thanks in part to a 1979 treaty, highlighting the potential for a broader climate change pact to be negotiated next month in Copenhagen.

Levels of sulfur dioxide - one of the main causes of acid rain - dropped 70 percent in the European Union and 36 percent in the United States between 1990 to 2006, the Geneva-based Economic Commission for Europe said.

"The acid rain problem is well on the way to being solved," said Martin Williams of Britain's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Britain is one of 51 countries that have adopted the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution.

The amount of NOx, a class of nitrogen oxides that causes smog and is thought to contribute to global warming, has been reduced by 35 percent in the EU and 23 percent in the US during the 16-year period, UNECE said.

Levels of ammonia and non-methane volatile organic compounds that are linked to human health problems have also dropped, and countries are currently discussing adding further chemicals to the treaty, the body said.

The Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution was signed in 1979 amid concerns about acid rain in Europe.

Williams said the fact that the US, Russia, most European countries and several nations in Central Asia have joined the accord could point the way for other environmental treaties, including one that will be negotiated during the UN's December 7-18 climate change conference in Copenhagen.

Success in the Danish capital hinges on whether the world's biggest greenhouse gas emitters can agree at least the outlines of a deal for leaders to formally ink next year.

- AP