National Clean Air Day 2019
Posted on 20th June 2019As we strive towards further industrial advancements, it’s vital to remain aware of the impact we might be having on ourselves and the world around us.
National Clean Air Day is a dedicated event centred around air pollution awareness and is the ideal opportunity to remember that what we do has consequences. Air pollution is a serious and ever-growing problem and is something that we at Parsons are particularly concerned about.
This year National Clean Air day falls on the 20th of June and is orchestrated by Global Action Plan.
What is air pollution?
As far as Europe is concerned, the majority of pollutants are produced during the combustion involved in space heating, power generation and vehicle engines.
Not only do the pollutants from these processes affect people in the immediate vicinity, but they can also travel, meaning the pollution created in one country can affect people in another.
Air pollution is the major side effect of our industrial advancement, it’s caused by a number of varying gases and particulate by-products which have a detrimental effect on the health of all living things and the planet as a whole.
There are a few key pollutants which have noted effects upon human health:
| Pollutant | Effects |
| Nitrogen Dioxide, Sulphur Dioxide, Ozone | These can irritate the airways of the lungs, increasing the symptoms of those suffering from lung disease. Sulphur Dioxide, in particular, is associated with acid rain as well. |
| Particles | Fine particles can be carried deep into the lungs, where they can cause inflammation and contribute to the aggravating of existing lung and heart diseases. |
| Carbon Monoxide | Carbon Monoxide prevents the uptake of Oxygen by the blood. This can lead to a significant reduction in the supply of oxygen to the heart, particularly affecting people suffering from heart disease. |
What are the effects of air pollution?
Air pollution has a wide range of effects on everything from lung disease to global warming. Every year 7 million people die as a result of the effects of air pollution and 90% of children breathe polluted air.
The levels of air pollution in many places are now so high that it’s having a similar effect upon people’s health to that of smoking tobacco. Not only this but the pollution we create is damaging the environment around us.
If the health and environmental effects weren’t enough to worry you, this all has financial implications too. The top 15 polluting countries in the world are estimated to spend more than 4% of their GDP on dealing with the health implications of air pollution.
You can find out just how polluted your local area is with the Online Pollution Meter, created by the WHO, UN Environment and Clean Air Coalition‘s Breathe Life campaign.
The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has declared that if all coal-fired power stations are not put out of commission by 2050, we will not be able to contain temperature rises to within the needed 1.5 degrees Celsius. If this is exceeded, we could be facing a major climate crisis within the next 20 years.
If you have concerns about the air pollution your operations may be producing, then get in touch with us today.
At Parsons, we can provide a wide range of tailored fume and odour scrubbing services to reduce all aspects of air pollution in your operations.
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