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Air Pollution Threat

Jacqueline Barnes
Lincoln Middle School

Air Pollution Threat


Introduction
Seven million people died prematurely in 2012 from a link with poor air quality; that is
one in eight deaths on the face of the earth. These people suffer within the ranges of an asthma
attack, to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), to even a possible stroke or heart
attack from air pollution. The source of all these deaths is by chance in every house, in every
city, in every country, around the world. Whether it is use of transpiration, or it be industrial
process, if we continue our current ways of modern society, we may see America filled with
smog within the next few decades, much like the smog coating Beijing. Masks may become a
necessity to live in the future, and maybe even oxygen tanks. If we do not address this issue
soon, we will be letting go of everything that we know about the current world we live in. We
will adapt to a new world where there is no blue sky, no green trees, and no outdoors to go and
breathe fresh air.
More than often, larger cities in the United States have more air pollution than those of
smaller cities and counties. In these larger cities, air pollution occurs of which is unhealthy for
sensitive groups of people. This includes children and elderly who are actively outdoors, and
people who may have bad allergies or people who have diseases such as COPD and asthma. Air
pollution can come into our lungs through our use of coal, power plants, industries,
transportation vessels, tobacco smoke, burning wood, biomass stoves, and other forms of particle
pollution. PM. is a microscopic particulate that easily passes through our basic protection
systems in our body, and can cause great damage to our health. PM. is quite common in the
smog that occurs in Beijing. Smog has occurred since last century, which is where air pollution
caused one of its biggest fatalities in its history: The Great Smog.

History
The history behind the Great Smog of 1952 includes a standstill in transportation, for the
air was so thick, many could not even see their feet from where they were standing. At least
4,000 deaths were documented at the time of the disaster, but many more could have suffered
fatalities from breathing issues that occurred after the smog passed. Even at this disaster,
livestock passed at Smithsfield from the lack of good air to breathe.
Smog and other forms of pollution had not been uncommon in the past centuries. In fact,
air pollution first became common in the Industrial Revolution. When the Industrial Revolution
occurred, people had only known a world where all air is fresh to breathe. Most factory owners
had not realized the effect from the gases they were releasing, was causing more cardiovascular
issues in people working in and around the factories. The excessive burning of coal and wood
caused a large jump in the number of deaths related to cardiovascular diseases. However, most
doctors had probably not known what was going on when this occurred, for the modern day
definition for COPD and heart attack didnt exist until the early to mid 1900s.
Air pollution regulations and laws were not created in the U.S. until 1955, which is when
more and more people started to become more aware about their health. These air pollution laws
did not make a big difference to the air quality in some parts of the USA. There are still green
house gas leaks and burning of coal and wood that makes air pollution stay around in the United
States. But there are many other reasons that air pollution is a big issue across the world. It
comes from our use of electricity and heat, to even our production of waste. The daily basis of
our lives depends on our air polluting use of fuel. Without them, we wouldnt be here today.

Basics
Air pollution occurs in the most unpredictable places, from deforestation to agriculture.
The dictionary definition of air pollution is the presence in or introduction into the air of a
substance which has harmful or poisonous effects. That means that everything from carbon
monoxides, to organic compounds. These usually come from pollutants such as coal, wood,
factories, transportation vehicles, manufacturing, industrial processing, and sometimes even
agriculture and bunker fuels (fuels that are used in international affairs, such as airplanes and
boats in international waters).
The most deadly of all of the air pollutants is PM., which are pollutants that are so
small, they can pass our bodies defense against breathing in pollutants. India and China have the
most of these pollutants, with ten times as many of these pollutants per square foot than the
World Health Organization suggests for breathing healthy air. This naturally makes sense,
because they both have some of the worst pollution and smog in the world.
A quite common form of air pollution that we breathe in called ozone (also known as
smog), which is a molecule with three oxygen atoms. It is harmful for us to breathe because the
ozone chemically attacks our lung tissue when we breathe it in. Ozone is not completely
harmful, for when it is up in the stratosphere, it protects us from the harmful UV rays from the
sun to hit us directly. Ozone is created here in the troposphere when carbon monoxide, nitrogen
oxides, or hydrocarbons come in contact with sunlight. When they do, they turn into ozone, or
like seen commonly in places like Beijing, New Delhi, and Los Angeles.

Rankings
Although in general, more precautions are being taken in America over air pollution,
there are still quite high levels of air pollution and ozone levels in the U.S. Unfortunately, the El
Paso- Las Cruces Metropolitan area made it onto the top ranked metropolitan areas with the most
high ozone days, the most twenty four hour air pollution, and most annual particle pollution. El
Paso is in grade F with an average of five code red days a year in annual particle pollution. This
is most likely because we are a border community next to Mexico, where Juarez has an air
pollution issue as we do. Many people are driving back and forth from El Paso to Juarez, so that
causes more exhaust fuels, which causes more ozone. We are certainly not helping each other in
that situation. Another factor includes our location. We have plenty of sand and small particles
blowing around here, so that contributes more to our air pollution. But we also cant just blame
our location on the map; we still do have many cars driving from Las Cruces, to El Paso, to
Juarez every day. Although, El Paso doesnt have the worst air pollution in the country, El Paso
has worse air quality, for some of the pollutants are not manmade.
When it comes to air pollution itself, California has the worst of that in the United States.
The contributing factors to that include overpopulation, and their agricultural industry.
California has ten metropolitan areas in the list of the metropolitan areas of the most ozone, most
year round particle pollution, and the most short term particle pollution. California has roughly
thirty nine million residents as of the year 2015, while other large states such as Texas, New
York, and Florida all have a population of fewer than thirty million residents. The Los AngelesLong Beach metropolitan area has about ten million residents (as of July 1, 2015), and has an
average of one hundred fifty two high ozone days every year.

Deaths
Poor air quality is one of the leading causes of death, whether it is in the form of an
asthma attack, lung cancer, heart attack, COPD, or premature death. Poor air quality can also
cause developmental harm, reproductive harm, wheezing and coughing, shortness of breath,
susceptibility to infections, asthma, and lung tissue redness and swelling.
Asthma is now the most common chronic disease found in children, with seven million
children diagnosed in the U.S. in 2015. About one in every ten school aged kids have asthma,
and heart disease is among the top six leading causes of death in people aged between one year
old to twenty four years old in the year of 2014. In the Southern East section of Asia (the general
area of Beijing), 1.7 premature deaths were caused by the use of indoor air pollutants, and 2.3
million in all deaths. Kids who grow up in areas with more air pollution are at risk of growing up
with underdeveloped lungs and a possible drop of twenty percent drop of lung function.
Indoor and outdoor air pollution caused seven million premature deaths in 2012, while
the number of HIV and malaria deaths combined together is only 2.8 million deaths. Incredibly,
the smallest increase of air pollution particles (whether it be ozone or particle pollution) can
increase the amount of deaths by three percent in deaths overall in the United States, while it also
can increase by ten percent directly to heart disease in the U.S. Air pollution in the form of
particulate matter (the greatest environmental health risk) causes more than three million
premature deaths around the world each year (as of 2016). If we do not improve our use of air
pollutants, that number can double by 2050.
Math

Premature Death Rates Due to Particulate Matter


7
6
5
4
Premature Deaths (Millions)

3
2
1
0
2015

2050
Years

This bar graph shows how within thirty five years, the number of premature deaths due to
particulate matter will increase by about twice as much.

Outdoor Air Pollution Caused Deaths


ischaemic heart disease

stroke
6% 3%

11% disease (COPD)


chronic obstructive pulmonary
40%

lung cancer

40%
acute lower respiratory infections
in children

This graph shows the percentages of which diseases cause the majority of outdoor air
pollution deaths. It is in this order because ischaemic heart disease is a broader and more about

the plaque that may block the heart. There is a variety of pollutants outdoors that can contribute
to this disease.

Indoor Air Pollution Caused Deaths


stroke

ischaemic heart disease


12%

COPD

6%
34%

22%
acute lower respiratory infections in children

lung cancer

26%

This graph shows the percentages of which diseases cause the majority of indoor air
pollution deaths. It is in this order because indoors, most of the air pollutions come from a stove
or a fire. The smoke is trapped in the house, so those inside the house cannot breathe any other
air. The smoke may reduce blood flow and cause a stroke to occur.

Top Metropolitan Area Pollution


70
60
50
40
30
20
Ranking (Worst to Best)

Ozone
24 Hr Particle Pollutant
Yearly Paricle Pollutant

10
0

Metro Area

This graph shows the Metropolitan areas with the most particle pollutants and ozone
levels, showing the top ten worst. The Los Angeles area is considered the area with the worst air
pollution, most likely because the ozone air pollutant is much worse than the other particle
pollutants.
Solution
To help improve our current air quality, we need to continue following certain rules and
taking certain precautions. We have improved our air quality in the past few decades, with new
anti pollutant laws, especially those that have taken place in California. NASA has recently
released a new study in 2014 on how they can use satellite technology to show before and after
images on air quality in the United States, and how we have improved in air pollution from 2005

to 2011. Surprisingly, even though our population and the amount of cars have increased greatly,
our amount of pollution has generally decreased.
But even though we have improved our air quality within the last few decades, that
doesnt mean we have easily breathable air. We still have quite a bit of smog and ozone
lingering around in our cities. We can still do much to improve our air quality as a country, just
by doing simple everyday tasks, such as driving less to provide less exhaust fuels to enter the
earths atmosphere. People can also eat less meat to lower the use of greenhouse gases used for
agriculture, and the possibility for greenhouse gas leaks. Even just using a little less electricity
everyday can help prevent possible smog to come over a city (well, depending on which city.)
In the end though, sometimes unplugging the TV may not be enough to be rid of smog in
a community, so sometimes people will have to compromise. Buying a mask just in case things
get bad in some places is a good idea, so people dont have to go out of their way to get from one
place to another. Also avoiding high traffic areas is a good idea if air pollution is bad at the time.
Especially dont exercise outside when there is bad air quality at the time. For people who live
in cities who constantly have questionable air quality, its a good idea to get an app or to check
online to see if your air quality is too bad to go outside.
Conclusion
When it comes to air pollution, the world is surrounded by it. Everywhere you go, there
will be no way to survive without polluting the air one way or another, whether it is burning
firewood, or driving around town. Although we need to pollute the air one way or another, some
cities seem to go overboard with their usage of gases, wood and coal. Their over usage of fuels

and gases caused a good portion of deaths around the world. Those cities can be more cautious
about how they use their fuel, but they can also start figuring out ways to help improve their air
quality. Whether it is using less of the fuels, or coming up with new technology, they should
better start quick, for the longer they wait, the worse the air pollution can be.
Although some may do all they can to stop air pollution, they will never be able to stop it
all. Air pollution is part of our everyday lives, and ever since the industrial revolution, the
country hasnt changed from its ways. We have gotten better, but there is no way we can steer
clear of all air pollution. We cannot be hiding our whole lives away indoors, for that is
completely unhealthy as well. For those with asthma and lung and heart diseases, it may not
always be the best option to go outside when there is smog out, but for everyone else, its always
better to go outside and get exercise done. There is equally as many reasons why it is bad to stay
inside all day, even if you are exercising. Air pollution may never be completely kept out of our
lives, but if people never experience what its like to breathe air harder to breathe, our systems
will never know what to do in the event of an emergency. Although air pollution may be the end
for us all someday, there is no use for us all to be cooped up inside all day. Who knows, maybe
one day we can live our lives with minimal air pollution, with minimal deaths, and yet, live
outside.
Bibliography
Ansari, A. (September 16, 2015). Study: More than 6 million could die early from air pollution
every year. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/16/health/air-pollution-deathsrising/index.html

This source has to do with the types of sources that cause air pollution. This report also
shows the rising number of deaths in some areas of the United States and the earth. This source
as well shows what certain countries are doing to help prevent more deaths and air pollution.
This report sums this information up by explaining how technology is going to help us be more
efficient in the future.
Jasarevic, T., Thomas, G., & Osserian, N. (2014, March 25). 7 million premature deaths
annually linked to air pollution. Retrieved from
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2014/air-pollution/en/
This article explains how air pollution, having doubled in numbers of estimates over the
past few years, is becoming one of the biggest environmental health risks around the world,
having caused seven million deaths in 2012. The risk factors do not only come from outdoor air
pollution, but indoor air pollution too, causing 3.3 million deaths in low- and middle-income
countries such as South-East Asia and Western Pacific Regions in (2012). These people have
passed in the forms of ischaemic heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
(COPD), lung cancer, and acute lower respiratory infections in children. These factors are
causing more and more deaths, with coal, biomass stoves, and wood being used more and more
on a daily basis.
Kopman, J. (May 9, 2014). The WORST Cities for Air Pollution. Retrieved from
https://weather.com/health/news/worst-cities-air-pollution-20140430#/!
This source shows the worst cities with air pollution in general. These cities are taken
from the level of air pollution in 2014. The air pollution levels are measured by the amount of

smog (ozone), the amount of particle pollution (24 hour and yearly amount), and the visibility
through the smog (if there is any smog to start with).
Mooney, C., Dennis, B. (May 12, 2016). WHO: Global Air Pollution Is Worsening and Poor
Countries Are Being Hit The Hardest. Retrieved from
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2016/05/12/who-globalair-pollution-is-worsening-and-poor-countries-are-being-hit-the-hardest/
Here, the Washington Post informs how air pollution is worsening all over the globe.
Delhi, India has the worst PM. levels in the world, while China and India have over 100
micrograms per cubic meter of PM., of where the recommended amount of PM. by WHO is
approximately 10 micrograms per cubic meter. The air quality in India and China are worse than
richer countries (such as the United States) from the fact that they both have high levels of air
pollution and larger populations. In more high income areas, air pollution levels are lower than
those of low income areas.
Murray, A. (April 22, 2009). Smog Deaths In 1948 Led To Clean Air Laws. Retrieved from
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103359330
This source explains the Great Smog that occurred in London back in 1948. It explains
how the smog occurred, how life was like before the smog occurred, past customs, the fatalities,
and the general aftermath of the Great Smog. The Great Smog was the first smog that caused a
great number of fatalities and started to make people more aware of what they put into the air
and the consequences.
NASA. (2016). Discover AQ. Retrieved from http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/discoveraq/index.html#.V0Kw8Y-cFOw

This shows how NASA is using a new satellite to show what is going on with our air
pollution. It is to show how we are soon advancing in our way to show how we are improving
over time with air pollution. This is a NASA Earth Venture program funded mission for
observations relevant to air quality.
Osseiran, N., & Chriscaden, K. (May 12, 2016). Air pollution levels rising in many of the worlds
poorest cities. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2016/airpollution-rising/en/
This article explains how not only cities with high income are getting more air pollution,
but also more cities with low income too. It explains how people who live in more urban cities
have more controlled air pollutant rules. More air pollutant rules means less air pollution.
People who live in rural places are starting to get more and more air pollution because of their
lack of government. They dont have the money to have regulations to live by. This naturally
means that they have more air pollutants. Before air pollutant regulations were beginning to be
taken seriously, those who lived in more urban cities had more air pollution to live in. This is
because of how the cities got richer and richer, through business (either agriculture or industrial,
neither are good for air quality). As the cities got richer, more factories were used and more cars
were used too. So before the regulations took place, rich cities had more air pollution than ever.
Now poorer cities have to air pollute, because they cant live any other way.
Singh, C. (2016). Atmospheric Monitoring of PM., PM., PM, Arsenic and
Carbonaceous

Aerosol at Wainuiomata. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/10063/5051

This explains how according to previous studies (2008-2009), New Zealand Ambient Air
Quality Guidelines (NZAAQG), and the National Environmental Standard (NES) (New

Zealand), believe that biomass burning at Wainuiomata was responsible for the peak of air
pollution and passed NES and NZAAQG guidelines. In that biomass contains arsenic, which
source is believed to be copper chromium arsenate (CCA) which is used for treating wood fuels
for household heating. These fires are not only a health risk, but also the chance of the arsenic
mixing with other objects may also be a health risk. The wood used in household fires may have
not occurred quite often on a daily basis, but this wood is becoming more and more common.
Wong, E. (December 8, 2015). Smog So Thick, Beijing Comes to a Standstill. Retrieved from
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/09/world/asia/beijing-smog-pollution.html?
_r=0
This source helps me by explaining how bad some of the earths smog has gotten.
Beijing had its first red alert with smog pollution just last year. The smog had gone so out of
control in Beijing, all of the roads were closed, along with many schools and businesses.
(2016). State of Air: Most Polluted Cities. Retrieved from http://www.lung.org/ourinitiatives/healthy-air/sota/city-rankings/most-polluted-cities.html
This source shows all of the cities and metropolitan areas with the worst air pollutants.
This shows their ranking, whether or not they pass, and their daily level of pollutants. This also
shows the amount of days they may have worse than usual days of air pollution, whether it be
code orange, red, or purple.
(2016). Toxic Air Pollutants. Retrieved from http://www.lung.org/our-initiatives/healthyair/outdoor/air-pollution/toxic-air-pollutants.html

Toxic air pollutants were explained in this article, about what they are and how people are
exposed to these pollutants. These pollutants are cause Cancer, birth defects, throat, nose and
eye irritation, coughing, and more harm to the body. Wood smoke, tobacco smoke, coal fired
power plants, and transportation systems (cars, buses, planes, motor powered boats, etc.) are all
found to be the source of which these pollutants are coming from. People often breathe in these
pollutants in, while some of these pollutants can soak into the soil outdoors, where animals and
small children may put the soil in their mouth. The pollutants can also soak into water sources
such as lakes, rivers, and streams, and can affect drinking water for humans, and can also effect
habitats for animals living in those waterways.

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