Air Pollution In Los Angeles

Pollution continues to pose an enormous threat to residents of urban cities worldwide. In the August 2008 Monthly Update, it is stated that approximately 800,000 deaths each year can be attributed to outdoor air pollution, making pollution the single most harmful environmental hazard to human health in urban areas (Kallman). The fact that pollution kills hundreds of thousands of people each year alone portrays just how dangerous living in these conditions can be. Kallman writes about a study which proves an increase in upper respiratory diseases, cardiovascular mortality, respiratory mortality, and low birth weights when exposed to air pollutants (August 2008: Monthly Update). These can be very serious diseases and complications which, when contracted, can lead to death or very serious illnesses. There

There are various types of air pollution contributors in California such as fire generated pollutants and vehicle traffic, which add particulate matter and carbon monoxide into the air we breathe. According to an article by Union of Concerned Scientists (Cars, trucks, and air pollution, 2014) particulate matter is made up of fine particles soot and metal that can pose serious threats to human health when deep in the lungs. Other pollutants emitted from vehicles are: nitrogen oxide which lowers the body’s defense system against respiratory infections such as pneumonia, carbon monoxide which blocks oxygen from reaching vital organs, sulfur dioxide which is emitted by both power plants and vehicles affect children and asthmatics, and hazardous air pollutants (toxics) which are chemicals that are linked to cancer, birth defects and other illnesses (Union of Concerned Scientists, 2014).

Bakersfield California is a fun place for people to go on vacation. There is Beach Park, located near the city that has playing fields, bike paths, skate parks, and barbeque pits. There are lakes to go water skiing and boating, also Kern River County Park that has 50 campsites for a family to bring their children to enjoy a nice outdoor vacation. Restaurants, that force you to try new things and have the experience of eating in an older restaurant building. However, what most people don’t know is that Bakersfield, California is the most polluted places in the United States. In this paper, I will go over the pollution problems, geographic factors, climate conditions, and social activities that contribute to the buildup of air pollution in Bakersfield, California.

There are different components that are contributing to the levels of air pollution in the San Joaquin Valley in California. Those components are the main reason for the air to be polluted and causing harm to the residents of the valley. The San Joaquin Valley is known very well for its agriculture. This according to an article called “Move Over, Los Angeles” By Marylin Berlin Snell talks about the main point of how serious the air quality has been and how it has been becoming worse than the city of Los Angeles. The southern part of the great central valley has now been covered in a brown murky layer of mist being at its worse air quality. The Valley has a “combination of pesticide spraying, heavy duty-diesel equipment, dust stirred up during

Did you know many upper respiratory diseases such as asthma and others diseases like cataracts and skin cancer are aggravated by air pollution. The NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) states that “the following air pollutants are common triggers of asthma, ground level ozone, sulfur dioxide, fine particulate matter and nitrogen oxide.” Air pollution is the presence in or introduction into the air of a substance which has harmful or poisonous effects.

The good news was that that “the 375 cities included in the list 36 of them passed the WHO’s air quality standard of 20 micrograms of particulates per cubic meter”. The bad news is that out of the ten worst performing cities; five are located here in the central valley (Berg, "Why Does California's Central Valley Have Such Bad Air Pollution?").

Being one of the biggest social issues in Los Angeles, Air pollution has two main reasons: vehicle traffic and population growth. Actually, it is in a such crucial level that scientists indicate that air pollution in Los Angeles may endanger peoples lives. Scientific researches show that the air pollution causes cancer and have an impact on pregnant woman. Advertisements shows us some solutions like making public transportation common and sustainable housing. With the growing population of Los Angeles, something has to be done . Otherwise it is going to be impossible to deal with the air pollution. Population growth in Los

It’s a good thing that the U.S came up with laws that limit air pollution. Congress made the Clean Air Act in 1970 to protect public health from different types of air pollution caused by different pollution sources. What the act does is sets standards for air quality to limit the amount of pollutants to specific levels. It sets certain limits for governments and industries to pollute at a certain rate. I think that in the world we live in today, how industrialized it is, it is important to know how polluted the air you breathe in is. So, how polluted is East Los Angeles’

No matter where you are at today the air quality is poor and increasing in most cities. Dallas-Fort Worth is ranked number seven according to the American Lung Association’s air quality report for having the worst air. Everywhere you look there is pollution and its time to take dramatic measures in order to lower health and en-vironmental problems. Problems that are increasing due to the higher demand for goods, services, and transportation.

In recent years, California’s Central Valley has gone from being America’s breadbasket to a near-dystopian wasteland—a landscape beset with air pollution with strikingly diverse causes. Five of the ten most polluted American cities can be found in this region (Wheeler, Morris and Gordon). This is not surprising given the host of actual and potential causes of air pollution problem in the heart of California. Ground level ozone is a major type of pollution in the Valley that primarily causes summertime “smog,” produced through the photochemical or sunlight-induced reactions between volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) (San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District 3). The other type of pollution, particulate matter (PM), refers to small solid or liquid particles that form in the atmosphere through gases or photochemical reactions. While the causes of air pollution in the Central Valley are undoubtedly manifold, the region’s agricultural practices still count as the most substantial factors for this environmental problem; in any case, the Valley’s unique meteorological and topographical conditions exacerbate the level of air pollution.

Los Angeles County ranks among the 10% worst air quality polluters in the US. The hustle and bustle of public transportation and smog released by an over-populated commuter based region, have significantly lowered air quality standards. Henceforth, health concerns have risen for all Angelinos. Research has observed that there is a serious influx of pollutants in the air that could have damaging results both on adults and children alike. However, different forms of renewable energy over the years have facilitated an alternative to this issue. A movement away from an urban sprawl Los Angeles to new urbanism has allotted us better living and breathing conditions over the last several years.

In the article, "Life in San Joaquin Valley, the Place with the Worst Air Pollution in American" for The Guardian. Rory Carroll explains, "Pollution is blamed for high rates of cancer, asthma and hundreds of premature deaths each year." People aren't unaware of the surrounding like the places they live many people are unsure of pollution that happens in their daily life. Many people experience the symptoms that contribute to the air pollution but don't recall what was the cause. Air pollution isn't being hidden from people you can smell it in our daily lives here in the San Joaquin Valley some of the major smell are the chemicals and

Air pollution has been recognized as a major threat to environmental health, and the effects that it can have on the population are extremely varied. In the environmental aspects, air

Starting in the year 2004, the air pollution has reached an alarming level in the city o Toronto. Dr Barbara Yaffe, the acting medical officer of health of Toronto Public health, has released a report in July 2004 saying that the “air pollution [in the city] has contributed to over 1700 premature deaths and 6000 hospitalization admission in Toronto each year” (Yaffe, 2004, p.i). According to this report, pollutants such as ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, and carbon monoxide have increased within the air of the city; these pollutants are tiny particles that are 2.5 micron in diameter or less and can affect people’s respiratory system and cause cardiovascular and respiratory problems such as “asthma, bronchitis in children, adult chronic bronchitis, and heart problem” (TPH, 2007, figure 1). Although it

Bhatnagar explains that majority of the chemicals that are linked to lung cancer are absent in these products, however, particulate matter remains which is what we should be concerned about. He describes the particulate matter as “small particles found in the atmosphere and is what is responsible for the health effects of air pollution.” His scientific approach in stating facts from various studies as well as his knowledgeable background makes him an effectively credible presenter.