| We don't need scientists to tell us we require 'air' to | | | | these Eastern cities are suffocating on their own |
| survive. The air we breathe has a gas called oxygen | | | | economic prosperity. Quite a price to pay wouldn't you |
| and without it there would be no life period. Humans, | | | | say! |
| plants and animals all need oxygen to survive but | | | | But air pollution doesn't stop in developing countries. |
| although oxygen is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless, | | | | Here at home in the US, we are often accused by the |
| there are a lot of pollutants in the air which are not. | | | | international community as being the biggest emitter of |
| Worse still, there are a whole bunch of impurities | | | | greenhouse gases worldwide. In addition to industrial |
| indoors as well as outdoors, which is why ionic air | | | | pollution, millions of us have these big automobiles |
| purifiers have become all the rage these days. But just | | | | which are all spewing out air contaminants and |
| how bad is bad when we talk about the quality of the | | | | affecting the quality of the air breathed as we walk |
| air we breathe? | | | | around outside. President George W bush has not |
| Air pollution first got my attention when I was visiting | | | | agreed to reduce emissions at the time of writing this |
| Hong Kong last year. My first impressions of this small | | | | article. He said it would be damaging to the US |
| country was that it was clean, efficient, and very well | | | | economy. He also went on to say that developing |
| organized despite the fact that its buildings and | | | | countries were not required to cut their emissions so |
| residents were so tightly packed in. As I walked | | | | didn't see why the US had to do so at this time. |
| around the city areas, it was pretty noisy and certainly | | | | Governments play a huge role in protecting its citizens |
| bustling, but I didn't think for one minute that there were | | | | and the planet as a whole, but we the little people, also |
| any real issues with pollution. That was until I read an | | | | have a duty to do what we can in order to help |
| article in a local magazine which reported that there | | | | improve the quality of the air we breathe, and that |
| were over 2000 deaths caused last year through air | | | | goes for inside as well as out. In actual fact, our home |
| pollution alone. | | | | and work environments may be damaging our health |
| I found this an incredible read. What does it say for | | | | without us even realizing it. So many of us spend a |
| places like Bangkok in Thailand where you can almost | | | | high percentage of our time indoors, so the quality of |
| chew on the air it's that thick. My Thai physician here in | | | | the air we breathe inside is very important. |
| the USA, explained that Bangkok has lung cancer | | | | Air pollution isn't just a problem for poor, undeveloped, |
| rates which are about three times higher than the rest | | | | or developing countries, it's a global issue. If any of us |
| of the country, and its air pollution levels are some 14 | | | | care about our children, our children's children and their |
| times higher than international health standards. He | | | | children, then we humans as a race should sit up and |
| went on to say that the city now has the sharpest | | | | take issue regarding the quality of the air we breathe |
| decline in life expectancy within South East Asia. The | | | | as a very, very serious concern. Remember, the |
| price of pollution in the Asia region seems to indicate | | | | planet is in our hands, and we only have the one. |