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Robert Duffer's Paris Bans Driving Due Smog

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Currently the human race is coming to terms with one of the most monumental problems of its own creation : air and water pollution. The poisoning of the very air we breathe and the water that we drink has become too prolific to ignore any longer. One culprit ? Automobiles. The more smoke we expel from the exhaust pipe, the more we exhaust our environment and poison the air and water that allows us to exist. But what can we do to reduce the amount of pollution we produce ? It’s not like we can just stop driving ,right ? Wouldn’t it have an adverse effect on our productivity or make it harder to get to work ? It’s not like it would make a difference anyway, right ? Well not necessarily, currently there are entire countries banning automobiles …show more content…

It is really just simple math: life minus cars equals to less pollution because cars emit toxic greenhouse gases. Even one to three days without cars can significantly lower the amount of air pollution we have to endure. This is exemplified in Robert Duffer’s article “Paris Bans Driving Due to Smog”, driving was partially banned in Paris by the French government, with even numbered plates staying home on Monday and odd-numbered plates on Tuesday. “The smog cleared up enough on Monday...to rescind the ban on..Tuesday.” (Duffer 3). This just goes to show that curbing our automobile addiction can quickly make a big difference. According to Elisabeth Rosenthal’s work “In German Suburb, Life Goes On Without Cars”, “Passenger cars are responsible for 12 percent of greenhouse gas emission in Europe...and up to 50 percent in some car intensive areas in the United States.” This means that cars account for a significant percentage of pollution around the world, and thus, reasonably, reducing car usage would reduce …show more content…

Pertaining to the “day without cars” tradition the city of Bogota, Columbia : “It has seen the construction of 118 bicycle paths, the most of any Latin American city…” (Belsky, 3) A single day without cars has encouraged not only, new businesses to spring up and infrastructure to be improved but also physical activity to become more common in countries that implement such a tradition. In my own experience, a less sedentary lifestyle means lower risk of heart disease, obesity, and other weight and activity related ailments. In addition car usage reduction seems to lessen stress, a claim that mother of two, Heidrun Walter testifies to. “ ‘When I had a car I was always tense. I’m much happier this way.’...” (Rosenthal 1). This is a benefit that cannot be ignored as higher stress levels can take a toll on your mental health. Last but certainly not least, is the fact that less smog will discourage the pollution-induced respiratory illnesses permeating the developed world. Polluted air is not meant to be breathed and less of it is better for the whole of the

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