Air Pollution Research Paper
An example of how fatal smog was in 1 952 with the incident, “Loon’s killer smog. ” This incident happened in December of 1952, when a deadly wave of smog hit London killing over 10,000 people. Citizens walked through the streets with surgical masks on, waiting for a wind to raise and blow this terrible wave of pollution away. There wish came true on December 1 0, after almost a week oftener and many injured and dead people. Smog alone is just as fatal and dangerous as the other forms of air pollution. The other major types of pollution are acid rain, greenhouse effect, and holes” in the ozone layer.
Acid Rain is any precipitation that has an abnormal acidic amount. Acid rain is formed when chemicals are released from places like cars and factories, these chemicals rise and mingle in the clouds, and than return to earth in the form of precipitation. The Greenhouse effect is another import issue in air pollution. The Greenhouse effect is the trapping of heat and energy due to the gases that form a barrier in the atmosphere. The gases will let heat in but will not let all heat out. This is similar to what happens in a greenhouse. The ozone layer is also at great risk.
In places like Antarctica the ozone layer is disappearing rapidly. Scientists have different theories about that, saying that it is due to chemicals made on earth, the extreme temperature in Antarctica, and some believe it is a solar activity to blame. In any case it is obvious to see that the ozone layer is in danger. CAUSES AND SOLUTIONS There are numerous causes to air pollution. There are two main causes of air pollution; fuel burning in residential, commercial, and industrial places is one cause. The other cause is automobiles creating immense amounts of carbon monoxide and other toxic fuels.
The burning of chemicals releases fumes in the air polluting the atmosphere. Large factories are at blame in this case due to their large amounts of chemicals burned and of their large smoke stack which pumps these fumes into the air. Inside many factories they burn fossil fuels, these fumes than are sent into the atmosphere, further contributing to the air pollution problem Another major cause of air pollution is car fumes. Inside the engines of cars, fossil fuels are being burned, and than these vapors are omitted out through pipes in the car.
The major chemical being pumped out of the car is carbon monoxide; this is a very toxic material and can be fatal if enough is in taken. Diesel engines are also very toxic. These engines contain over 450 different chemicals and about 40 of the chemical’s exhaust are considered toxic air contaminants by the State of California. Air Pollution also imposes the biggest threat of all; our health. Our health is the most precious thing to us and air pollution endangers this greatly. The people that are most vulnerable to the air pollution risk are young children, people with breathing problems, and elderly people.
Short-term effects to air elution include irritated eyes, nose, throat and upper respiratory system and other symptoms include headaches and nausea. Some long term effects of air pollution exposure are chronic respiratory disease, lung cancer, heart diseases and damage to important organs such as the brain. Although there are many problems there is also a number of solutions. By completely eliminating the pollution would solve all these problems, so by doing little things we all can make a big difference. Since cars contribute a great deal to the air pollution problem, by using them less would lessen the problem.
By not using things like Styrofoam, which are made in a factory that had to burn fossil fuels, you are also helping your community. To eliminate pollution indoors always use clean and clear ventilation machines and filters. Lawmakers should also make more laws on air pollution and pass more bills pertaining to this subject CONCLUSION There is many to blame when it comes to air pollution. There is the citizens who use cars (that give out carbon monoxide) and use material made in a factory. There are the factory owners, who let their factories run, although they know they’re polluting the air everyday.
