Wind-strewn dust from California's lithium-rich, shrinking Salton Sea may be triggering respiratory issues in children who live nearby, a new study has found.

Among the many symptoms — worse for those young people who reside closest to the saline lake — are asthma, coughing, wheezing and sleep disruptions, according to the study, published in Environmental Research.

About 24 percent of children located in this region have asthma, in comparison to the national rate of 8.4 percent for boys and 5.5 percent for girls, the authors found.

Of particular concern to the researchers was the fact that these abnormally high rates affected predominantly low-income communities of color around 150 miles southeast of Los Angeles.

“These rural environmental justice communities are facing health consequences due to local dust........

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