Essay Carbon Monoxide: The Health Risks and Environmental Problems

Carbon Monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, and poisonous gas. CNESST reported that 4 workers died at work of CO poisoning in the last 5 years. (25) CO could be fatal at certain concentration. Its effects can occur well before being aware enough of its presence. In Canada, more than 50 person lose their life each year from CO poisoning, of which an average of 11 deaths in Ontario. Every year significant number are suffering from CO poisoning, many of whom are permanently disabled. In Canada between 2000 and 2009, 380 accidental deaths were documented by CO. (27) Headache, nausea, burning eyes, fainting, confusion, and drowsiness are such alarm that you are exposed to CO. (28) Exposure to CO may be particularly dangerous for elderly,

Carbon monoxide is a potentially deadly gas emitted by gas burning appliances. Considering it is colorless, odorless and tasteless if a leak occurs only a carbon monoxide detector can alert you and your family to its presence in your home. Install the detectors near the bedrooms and at least one on each floor.

Before the Clean Air Act (CAA) was passed by Congress, the Air Pollution Act of 1955 and Motor Vehicle Act of 1960 preceded it. The two acts before the CAA did not really do much except jump starting research and throwing plenty of money at the research. When the research was released to Congress from the Motor Vehicle Act, Congress found out that approximately 60% of pollution was coming from vehicles; of the pollutants that were being emitted from vehicles, the most prominent that were found were Carbon Monoxide (CO), Nitrogen Oxide (NOx), and Hydrocarbons. These findings pushed Congress to pass another bill that would help to slow down pollution, especially from vehicles. However, when the CAA was passed, it did not mandate any reductions

The burning of gasoline by automobiles releases carbon dioxide and other types of air pollution

Improved air quality wasn’t a subject of national concern until the mid 1900s. After decades of coal burning, unregulated gas emissions from cars and the excessive burning of fossil fuels, people started noticing bad air quality as a hazard to their lives. Over several decades, after seeing the costly effects air pollution was having on the environment and people’s health, interest groups like the Friends of The Earth club and the influences of Theodore Roosevelt and Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring finally came together to persuade the government to enforce legislation that would reduce air pollution. Because of these efforts, the policies of the Clean Air Act of 1963 and the Motor Vehicle Pollution Control Act of 1965, that aimed to control air pollution and raise air quality standards, helped create the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on December 2, 1970. Since then, the EPA has passed more air quality improvement acts, and amendments to previous acts passed, to increase restrictions on air pollutants, with their main policy concern being the Clean Air Act. Improved air quality acts imposed by the EPA have been successful in cleaning the United States’ air quality by reducing ground-level ozone pollution and reducing emissions, allowing for a decrease in pollution related deaths/illnesses and a better standard of living. The EPA, through regulations and the Clean Air Act, has delivered it’s promise to improve air quality in the United States.

Carbon dioxide is very important in the atmosphere, however only in moderation. For centuries humans have been burning coal, oil, and fossil fuels therefore releasing tons of carbon into the air. The problem with this is that this can cause a problem known as global warming. This is a major climate problem, which has series results on people and the environment. The result on people can be very deadly. Too much carbon in the air can cause cancer.

Maybe when you drive your car in the country you don’t think about the effect this is having on a coral reef in Far North Queensland? Increased carbon monoxide decreases the waters pH making the oceans more acidic thus affecting to some degree the marine life and its ecosystems. From a current pH level of 8.2, it is predicted by current marine biologists that the oceans pH level could fall to around 7.8 by 2100, even small amounts of ocean acidity increases could ultimately decrease the capacity of corals to build skeletons and thus decreases the ability to create habitats for marine

Carbon monoxide is harmful when it is inhaled, because it displaces oxygen in the blood and deprives the heart, brain, and vital organs of oxgyen causing

"For too long the coal industry has used our atmosphere like a sewer for its airborne pollution," says a website www.GreenPeace.org. Coal when burned releases harmful gases, and humans are being affected by this airborne pollution. In the USA there are more than 40% of people who live in areas with unhealthy levels of air pollution. Many doctors say inhaling these harmful gases could possibly lead to death. Many doctors say that inhaling these gases is like giving your lungs a sunburn. The effects of inhaling these gases have caused premature death, lung damage, and have even been connected to cause heart attacks.

Did you know that 75% of poisonous carbon monoxide emissions come from motor vehicles? By breathing in excess amounts of carbon monoxide, it can enter the bloodstream and result in severe tissue damage, lung damage and even death. Even though scientists and innovators know that motor vehicles produce over 10 different types of pollution, they still focus on enhancing strength of the vehicles rather than lowering the emissions. Improving strength is a very important part of advancing technology. Strength may be necessary but reducing pollution is of much more importance.

The researcher states that in 1994 Carbon Monoxide was detected as a minor part of the Earth's atmosphere. They search that endogenous carboxy- hemoglobin level is about 0.5% to be exact because of Hb catabolism. They said that in a normal person that is non-smoker the average percentage is 1 while in heavy smokers it is 15%. They emphasize that in U.S. more or less 2700 fatalities were recorded annually, while in Britain was 50 and about 200 were severely injured after they experience Carbon Monoxide poisoning. They think that Carbon Monoxide is a silent killer because it is odorless, you will not feel any irritation and colorless. The researchers said that most of the victims of Carbon Monoxide were exposed to different kinds of appliance that produce a Carbon Monoxide, like water heaters, grillers, and tobacco smoke. About the autopsy of the survivors of Carbon Monoxide poisoning, they found that possessed neuro-anatomical injury, where the white matter is destroyed, atrophy of the globus pallidus, thalamus, and cortical atrophy.

Specific Purpose: To inform my audience how to become more aware of the dangers of carbon monoxide and how to prevent exposure.

   The United States releases twenty tons of carbon monoxide per person per year. Carbon Monoxide release is a result of burning fossil fuels with an insufficient amount of oxygen that causes the formation of carbon monoxide that pollutes our environment. Everyday fuel is burnt by cars, airplanes, large factories and manufacturing plants. This is causing a very large and deadly problem for our environment. When gases used on earth are released into the atmosphere they act as a blanket and trap radiation that is then redirected to earth. This concept is called the Greenhouse Effect (Bad Greenhouse, 1).

Since the Industrial Revolution, there has been an increased presence of pollutants and carcinogens in the environment, specif-ically in urban areas.1 The presence of airborne pollutants can lead to an increase in allergic reactions and asthma rates. A common airborne pollutant is carbon monoxide (CO), which is commonly found in diesel exhaust. It is an odorless gas produced from me-thane and non-methane hydrocarbon oxidation.2 The toxic gas eliminates and takes the place of oxygen in the form of carboxy-hemoglobin when it binds to hemoglobin in red blood cells. It also affects the binding sites of heme groups, which complicates the transfer of oxygen to tissues.3 The majority of deaths from carbon monoxide poisoning is brought on from car exhaust.4 Between the years 1979 and 1988, 57% of deaths from carbon monoxide poi-soning were brought from car exhaust. There tend to be higher rates of carbon monoxide poisoning from car exhaust in northern regions, where temperatures are relatively low (Figure 1). 5

Other pollutant from cars was lead; it is highly toxic metal. Lead has been phased out of gasoline, but there, are other sources of it. It includes paints, production of lead batteries, water pipes, and a few heir dye products. Car exhausts can also produce nitrogen oxide, volatile organic compounds, which are also, product of burning fuels. Factories and power plants produce same pollutants as cars do, but they produce them in bigger mnozstve and the produce some more such as sulfur dioxide, which is made during production of paper, burning coal in power plants, or smelting of metal. Burning other fuels like wood, or natural gas can make all of these pollutants too.