By Barry Jonathan Lough
When we contemplate air pollution, most of us think that the air is okay. That is, if we don't see a colored haze hanging above our heads or black particles raining on our towns. But poor air quality, like a virus, can't always appear to the naked eye. The Air Quality Index (AQI) is a sort of measuring stick used by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and it has proven this fact.
There are many types of pollution hogging our air space; these thieves silently enter our bodies and cause disease over time, illnesses such as bronchitis, lung cancer and heart defects. Additionally, pollution threatens plants and trees, destroy animals and takes over water streams where fish get contaminated.
Sulfur dioxide (SO2) is a compound that comes from volcanoes, which we may have very little control over. It is also created by varying industrial processes, such as coal and petroleum. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) comes out when a mixture of air and fuel becomes hot as is found in the emissions from internal combustion engines of our cars and SUVs and industrial equipment. In low doses, these two compounds have a small effect but in cities with many factories and loads of cars, the results can become overwhelming to our air.
28 eastern US states have been found to hold high amounts of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides in their air because of the heavy industry in this area. So, in 2005, the EPA came up with a new rule, the Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR), which is to reduce sulfur dioxide by 70% and all nitrogen oxides by 60% by 2015. Apparently this would reduce health costs by a couple billion dollars and maybe help prevent premature death.
Acid rain is another example of how we never see what exists in our atmosphere. Acid deposition, as we also call it, is caused when compounds of sulphur, nitrogen, and carbon combine with precipitation in the atmosphere and produce acids. Acid rain pollution is also measured regularly and its major cause is the power we consume in our regular, modern lives. Coal, oil and natural gas all play a major role in creating this dirty air. One or all of these fossil fuels is used to power electricity generation, and it would be impossible to live without this usual necessity today in the first world.
The weight we place on renewable fuels is starting to be manifest itself on our environment and we may wonder if reversing accumulated damage too late? The air has been taking a beating for over a hundred years now and the changing health of millions of residents is beginning to show. The US EPA was formed in 1970 and nowadays has 17,000 employees, all of whom work hard to educate people, conduct research, and find ways to decrease and monitor pollution levels thereby keeping the public safe. Ideally.
Now that we have the basic facts, it's time to focus on what to do afterwards. We might need a combined effort from the United States and other nations in order to undo what we have abused in the past. Start with your own immediate area and community and become involved. The more you learn, the more you shall understand the importance of the air quality now and forever in the future.
Barry is an air quality meteorologist who authored this weather and air pollution website: http://www.stuffintheair.com - Please see this air quality page for a description of what an air quality consulting company does.
Source:www.isnare.com |
