How Polluted Is East Los Angeles Essay

Air pollution causes great damage to the environment. These damages include acid rain, eutrophication,haze, ozone depletion, global climate change, etc. "Acid rain is precipitation containing harmful amounts of nitric and sulfuric acids."Acid

Often while driving through the valley you may start to smell a particular difference in the air, and not in a good way. Perhaps you didn’t know that San Joaquin Valley is one of two districts in the county to be classified by Enviornmental Protection Agency (EPA) as “extreme nonattainment” ("The Air District’s Mission"), which means it is considered to have the worst air quality; worse than the National Ambient Air Quality Standards as defined in the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1970 ("Google"). Also, San Joaquin County is one of the nine areas in the country to be designated as a “serious nonattainment” area for particulate matter ("The Air District’s Mission"). Although the air quality is not great here in the valley since

These pollutants are characterized as air toxics, which include lead, ozone, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, and a variety of other chemicals. The impact of air pollution could be very serious to both the heath condition of the population, which could by extension affects the economy of the impacted community. However, this impact is directly related to the amount of pollution in the air. Health consequences from air pollution could range from eye irritation, brain and nerve damage, runny nose, cancer, heart and

For the past few years, the American Lung Association has been releasing its annual reports on the “State of The Air” that lists the most polluted cities in the United States. For instance, in 2014, out of the seven cities ranked to have the worst air quality, six of them are in California. The two major air pollution culprits in California are from the transportation sources such as trucks and cars, or from the stationary sources such as industrial facilities and refineries (Ierodiakonou, et al. 392). However, the California Air Pollution Control Officers Association includes other pollutants in their reports such as Sulphur(IV) oxide, Carbon(II) Oxide gas and Nitrogen(IV) Oxide from chemical industries, which also causes harm to human beings and the environment at large.

California’s central valley air contains several different toxic pollutants produced by things such as industries, vehicles, and other means. Ozone is a type of pollutant that can cause serious health issues. It is produced when nitrogen dioxide, which is produced by cars and power plants, is exposed to the sun. Nitrogen dioxide alone can cause breathing issues and damage to the lungs. When nitrogen dioxide becomes ozone, it can cause eye, nose and throat irritation, cause damage to rubber, paint, and paper surfaces, and damage plants. Carbon monoxide, nitrates and other oxides are also problematic in California. The state also has an abundance of natural pollutants such as dust and smoke. In California, we do not get enough rain to wash the air clean, and we get enough sun to create an increase in issues with pollution.

The most polluted cities of the U.S are in California. One of these cities is Los Angeles and Long Beach. Ports significantly contributes to regional air pollution. Vast amounts of air pollution that affect the health of workers and people living in nearby is caused by diesel engines which power ships, trucks, trains, and cargo-handling equipment. “In the Los Angeles area, oceangoing ships, harbor tugs, and commercial boats such as passenger ferries emit many times more smog-forming pollutants than all power plants in the Southern California region combined” (Harboring Pollution p3).

New York City has a significant air pollution problem that causes death for hundreds of people year round. Researchers at NYU’s medical school have reported that just

Air pollution is everywhere in today’s society from vehicles power plants, industries, and even forest fires. These pollutants are either manmade or from natural sources. No matter where they come from one thing they have in common is that these different kinds of pollutants are harmful to people’s health. Air pollutants affect the body’s organ systems causing damage, especially to the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Air pollution contributes to the higher risk of developing or worsening respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.

“Ours, a water planet. The ocean covers 71 percent of the surface of the globe, and it constitutes over 90 percent of all habitable space on Earth. It’s total volume is around 300 million cubic miles and its weight is approximately 1.3 million million million tons. No wonder that Arthur C. Clarke, scientist and writer, once remarked that it was ‘inappropriate to call this planet Earth, when clearly it is ocean.* * (Mulvaney 28). Ocean pollution is growing out of control, and the clean up of our world’s oceans is critical.

Air pollution is characterized by the introduction or rise in air gases and particles beyond the standard levels of clean air (EPA, 2016a). Types of air pollutants vary depending on the source, such as industries, motor vehicles, combustion or natural sources; however, certain air pollutants have drawn more attention because of their widespread and health effects (EPA, 2016a). Examples of these pollutants are: ozone, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds and particulate matters (EPA, 2016a). A recent report from the World Health Organization states that 98% of the cities in low and middle income countries and 56% of cities in high income countries don’t meet the WHO’s air quality standards indicating high levels of pollution (WHO, 2016). In the US, national data on air quality shows improvement in the levels of air pollutants in the past 16 years (EPA, n.d.). Specifically, carbon monoxide, lead, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, ozone, PM10 and PM2.5 dropped by 60%, 91%, 45%, 69%, 17%, 36% and 37% respectively, yet ozone and particulate matter remained among the highest pollutants (EPA, n.d.; American Lung Association, 2016). While a similar trend of improvement in air pollution can be seen across cities and counties in the US, it is well documented that some counties score substantially higher all year round on air pollution quality standards (EPA, n.d.).

A study done by the environmental nonprofit pure earth stated that “Sixteen percent of all the global deaths are caused by pollution and Air pollution is the fourth highest risk factor of death globally.” According Professor Michael B. from the university of british columbia analysed that two countries accounts “55 percent of their deaths were caused by air pollution”. China had 1.6 and India had 1.4 million deaths due to air pollution. Pollution is when gases, smokes and chemical are released in the air which is a major threat to the environment, humans, plant and animals. Some of the world's pollution is are visible and some are not.

For millions of years, all organisms have relied and survived on what the planet provides but in the last century industries have peaked and its production was the highest during the last ten years These industries produce carbon monoxide causing many problems for the earth's health like global warming and pollution. Although there is help for pollution reduction not enough is being done to preserve the earth’s natural resources-air,water, and soil.

Since last century, air pollution has become one of the most popular topics related to people’s healthy life. After the Second World War, the consumption of fossil energy increase sharply due to the rapid development of industry and transportation, however, there almost no relevant environmental regulations to control the negative effects caused by industrial emissions. Therefore, air pollution became a growing problem. This paper will compare the conditions of air pollution between Los Angeles and Beijing, and discuss both reason and measures of their pollution.

“The United States Congress passed the Clean Air Act in 1963 in an effort to limit the amount of pollutants released into the atmosphere. Since that time there have been several amendments to the act that have served to strengthen it and make it more detailed”(Audet). “The group's annual "State of the Air" report finds 47 percent of Americans live in counties with frequently unhealthy levels of either ozone or particulate pollution”(Roppolo). The high percentage of affected communities shows that pollution is a genuine and demanding issue that we need to recognize and focus on preventing before it gets worse. If the problem is allowed to get worse it may become irreversible.

Increasingly our society is being inundated with information wirelessly, through emissions of electromagnetic waves (EMF). Any room you enter is being blanketed with ever increasing amounts of, in some cases, highly powerful electromagnetic waves. These waves carry everything from cell phone traffic to wireless internet signals, to even conventional AM/FM radio signals. Although humans and animals cannot perceive most of these electromagnetic frequencies, they can affect biological organisms in many ways that scientists currently do not even understand. Even further, demand for such wireless applications is growing in terms of both signal strength and bandwidth. This leads to the important question of