One of the most prominent forms of pollution is air pollution. A result of many daily human activities, air pollution is caused by the burning of fossil fuels in factories and vehicles, both of which emit large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Industrial processes also release matter like sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide and other noxious gases. 1 Power plants, factories, oil refineries and steel mills release pollutants called stationary emissions. Examples of stationary emissions include sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxides, furans and dioxins. 2
Effects on Humans and the Environment
These gases have serious environmental implications as contributors to global warming, climate change and acid rain. 3 Research has also revealed the detrimental long term impacts of air pollution on human health, which has led to a rise in chronic respiratory diseases among infants, small children and elderly citizens. Breathing in polluted air particles can lead to lung cancer and asthma as well. The harmful effects of air pollution should not be underestimated. Studies have also shown that pollutants like dioxins and furans are carcinogenic compounds which cause DNA mutations, leading to cancer and fetus malformation. 4
Watch the video below to learn more about air pollution. Keep watching to learn about the historical regulations set on air quality in the United States, especially Utah in particular.
- “What is Pollution?” Conserve-Energy-Future, Accessed December 11, 2014, http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/PollutionTypes.php. ↩
- “Benefits and Costs of the Clean Air Act, 1970 to 1990,” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Accessed December 11, 2014. ↩
- “Air Pollution,” World Wildlife Fund, Accessed December 11, 2014, http://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/pollution. ↩
- “Benefits and Costs of the Clean Air Act, 1970 to 1990, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Accessed December 11, 2014. ↩