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 Why
should I make efforts to reduce air pollution?
Rapid industrialisation in the first half of the 20th
century drastically increased the level of air pollutants,
particularly in urban areas of the UK. The infamous
London smog of December 1952 resulted in more than 4000
premature deaths, leading directly to the introduction
of the Clean Air Acts (1956 and 1968) that significantly
reduced the levels of air emissions from industry.
In both developed and rapidly industrialising countries,
the major historic air pollution problem has typically
been from high levels of smoke and sulphur dioxide arising
from the combustion of sulphur-containing fossil fuels
such as coal, for both domestic and industrial purposes.
However, the major threat to clean air is now posed
by traffic emissions.
Subsequent legislation such as the Environment
Act (1995) has improved air quality still further.
However, current levels of air pollutants in the atmosphere
still pose a risk to health as well as to the
local and global environment.
The Committee on the Medical Effects
of Air Pollutants (COMEAP) claim that air pollution
brings forward the deaths of up to 24,000 people each
year in the UK alone.
The
Department of Health provides detailed information
on the health risks associated with all major air pollutants,
which can be summarised as:
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Aggravation of asthma.
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Increases in cardiovascular and lung disorders.
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Increased incidence of lung disease, heart disease
and certain forms of cancer through prolonged exposure.
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Possible effects to the unborn child.
The main environmental impacts of air pollution can
be summarised as:
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Emissions of carbon dioxide and methane, which
play a major role in increasing global
warming (greenhouse effect).
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Emissions of CFCs cause damage
to the ozone layer in the upper atmosphere that
shields the earth from harmful ultraviolet radiation.
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Emissions of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide,
which react with moisture in the atmosphere, falling
back to earth as acid
rain, damaging vegetation and ecosystems, resulting
in lake eutrophication etc.
The EU and UK Governments are committed to reducing
air pollution levels to a point where it no longer poses
a significant risk to health and quality of life. This
is to be achieved through:
Implementing procedures to reduce and monitor air emissions
makes good economical and environmental sense, as well
as helping to demonstrate compliance with environmental
management accreditation schemes.
For more information about a specific air pollution
issue, please select one of the following sections:
Air pollution abatement and monitoring
service providers
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