"Green cars now so that my daughter will have places to
drive at tomorrow..." this is a clamor of an American father. Air
pollution is everywhere and it is a big problem for most societies.
Air pollution is composed of many environmental factors.
They include carbon monoxide, nitrates, sulfur dioxide, ozone, lead, secondhand
tobacco smoke and particulate matter. Particulate matter, also known as
particle pollution, is composed of solid and liquid particles within the air.
It can be generated from vehicle emissions, tire fragmentation and road dust, power
generation and industrial combustion, smelting and other metal processing,
construction and demolition activities, residential wood burning, windblown
soil, pollens, molds, forest fires, volcanic emissions and sea spray. These
particles vary considerably in size, composition and origin.
As mentioned, vehicle emission is one of the biggest
components. Busy and crowded streets of the United States contribute a lot to
the worsening of the air pollution problem.
Carbon monoxide is a major component of air pollution. It is
colorless, odorless and highly poisonous gas. It is associated with combustion
reaction in cars and other vehicles same with cigarette smoke. Carbon monoxide
is harmful because when it is received by the body, the level of oxygen
decreases. High levels of CO are a threat to one’s life. Small amounts of CO if
being absorbed by the body in a long span of time will still cause respiratory
illnesses. Too much exposure may lead to malign health problems.
When you go to streets, there are these cars blowing out too
much dark smoke. Studies show that there is a very big negative impact caused
by pollution from Cars and other air pollutants.
A study explains that a person’s exposure to poisonous
components of air pollution may vary as much within one city as across
different cities. After studying 5,000 adults for eight years, the researcher
also found that exposure to traffic-related air pollutants was more highly related
to mortality than were city-wide background levels. For example, those who
lived near a major road were more likely to die of a cardiovascular event.
Some research has estimated that people living in the most
polluted U.S. cities could lose between 1.8 and 3.1 years because of exposure
to chronic air pollution. This has led some scientists to conclude that:
Short-term exposure to elevated levels of particle pollution
is associated with a higher risk of death due to a cardiovascular event.
Hospital admissions for several cardiovascular and pulmonary
diseases rise in response to higher concentrations of particle pollution.
Prolonged exposure to elevated levels of particle pollution
is a factor in reducing overall life expectancy by a few years.
These facts are really telling us what future awaits
Americans if this situation continues. Indeed, a need to regulate vehicle smoke
is needed not only for the welfare of the present time, but for the future.
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