10 Ways to Fight Air Pollution
- Written by News Company
Millions of people lose their lives to air pollution every year – one way or another. The air that was supposed to take the oxygen inside us is taking more toxins, killer gases and particles. Everyone is responsible for the air pollution invading our atmosphere today, and we all can do our part in fighting air pollution for a better tomorrow, particularly by utilizing environmental remediation services.
1 – Making Les Use of Transportation
Transportation, especially road transportation is the biggest contributor of nitrogen oxides in the air. Oxides of nitrogen are one of the most toxic constituents of polluted air. They have a severe adverse effect on healthy lung development as well as the overall life-expectancy due to wearing out of lungs. The problem of the harmful effects of the emissions from transportation can be felt in the cities, especially those rich in industries.
Since it’s practically impossible to cut down the use of public transport or vehicles, we can do our part in minimizing the emissions, such as not idling the vehicle when out on a drive or driving less by combining trips – whether to work, holidays, road trips, etc. avoiding driving during rush hours.
2 – Walk or Use Bike More
Another way you can contribute to the ecosystem’s wellbeing is to avoid taking public transportation to get to work. You can choose an alternate way, such as a bike or take a walk. Most cities around the world have already adopted ways to cut down the use of public transportation by encouraging people to take walks and reduce the number of cars on roads by offering benefits.
3 – Use Energy Efficiently
Air pollution is an energy problem. Many international journals and research papers also have the same opinion. Most of the health problems, according to the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health resulting from the contamination of air due to fuels. Therefore, being mindful of your energy consumption can save lives and go a long way in maintaining the balance of the ecosystem.
Decreasing your energy usage matters. It will not only benefit you personally by cutting down the energy bills but will also benefit your and everyone else’s health in the long term.
4 – Take Care of Your Wood Stoves and Fireplaces
The fires and stoves do a lot for the atmosphere. If you have a stove that burns with wood or your house has a fireplace, ensure its maintenance. When you burn firewood in stoves, it often results in incomplete combustion. Incomplete combustion results in the release of particulate matter of a very small size. The harmful particles range from 0.5 to 2.5 micrometers. These minute particles are extremely harmful and get stuck inside the respiratory passage and go deep into the lungs.
5 - Recycle and buy More Recycled Stuff
Creating new items from scratch is a complex process. Imagine all the resources needed to do that. All the mining and refining of the materials, the transportation and the process of creation until the desired effects are achieved sounds a bit too much, right?
But the effort is not the only thing; the entire process of manufacturing involves the emission of hazardous particles, chemicals, and greenhouse gases that add to the pollution of air. Also, more energy is required for the production of materials. However, recycled items are safe from all these evils, and their use also makes you a good citizen of earth.
6 – Live Minimal And Consume Less
According to an international study, almost twenty-two percent of infant or premature deaths are resulted from air pollution, especially in the third world, developing countries that produce cheap products. China, known for producing almost half of the world’s goods, is a good example of deaths due to industrialization that leads to air pollution. Over 100,000 people have faced death in Chinese towns where factories are located.
Hence, our combustion pattern needs to be checked, and since it is the biggest reason for the increasing pollution globally. You don’t need to travel to China to know what you’re the common consumption patterns are doing to the inhabitants of Earth, your choice of products is enough to decide the future of the polluting business across the globe.
7 – Go Organic And Say No To Processed Foods
Agriculture is the main contributor to ammonia and other compounds of nitrogen, such as nitrous oxide and nitric oxide. Livestock farming also gives off high concentrations of greenhouse gases such as methane and other volatile organic compounds. The pesticides and fertilizers release some harmful chemicals with complex names – which alone will scare the lights out of you.
All the processed foods we eat and the vegetables we buy from the local stores just for the convenience of it are not worth all this danger, are they? So go green and save the planet.
8 – Plant Trees
In countries with intensively farmed lands, agriculture is the main emitter of ammonia and other nitrogen-containing compounds like nitrous oxide or nitric oxide. Livestock farming also emits high concentrations of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, and non-methane volatile organic compounds.
Agricultural pesticides and fertilizers release Persistent Organic Pollutants, such as hexachlorobenzene, and pentachlorophenol in the air. Those names don’t sound that good or do they? Now, consider that the air you breathe may also contain these compounds with their complex names. There is nothing natural about that…
A study by the Earth Institute of Columbia University warns over the health-damaging effects of gases emitted from conventional agriculture in combination with industrial emissions. The research says that when these pollutants combine, they form fine particles that easily damage our respiratory system, leading to chronic health problems.
9 – Raise Awareness
Awareness-raising can be the first step to increase the knowledge of people around you and start the change in their attitudes towards mitigating the problem of poor air quality in affected areas.
Consumer behavior impacts a lot when it comes to measures tackling air pollution. Often, all it takes is just being a little bit more aware of the impact of your personal decisions as a consumer on the air quality–even so far from you as on a different continent.
By making conscious consumer choices, your initiative can serve as a good example to your friends, family, and community. This way, you can become one of the initiators of a bigger change in your area.
Equally important is to express your support to public policies and representative politicians who work to protect the air and the environment. If you care about the quality of life in the place you call home, it is necessary to stay informed and take supportive actions for good causes.
10 – Grow Your Food
It is easy to get products from all over the world these days. Just a quick trip to the supermarket opens up a world of a great variety of exotic fruits, vegetables, and spices. Although having such great diversity is wonderful, it always comes with a cost – in this case, the cost of polluting the air we breathe by long-distance transportation.
Just think about it. Bananas imported from Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras or other exotic destinations. Kiwis from Italy, Chile, New Zealand… Mangoes brought from Thailand, Philippines, India or Pakistan. These favorite fruits have to travel long distances to make it to your supermarket.
Conclusion
Air pollution not only affects our environment but is also a principal source of several kinds of diseases. One of the main factors behind the reduced mortality rate is also air pollution. Issues like global warming that appear due to increasing greenhouse gases are a great threat to the planet earth. Moreover, global warming is also the root of cause increased flooding, drought, and famine… Thus, it all rests upon us, how seriously we carry the responsibility of preventing this ominous threat, surrounding the humankind from every dimension.