ENG 170 – Arguement Research Paper Final Draft

Adetola Okunoye
Professor Newcomb
Writing and Rhetoric
09 March 2021

The Very Thing That Should Be Keeping Us Alive but Isn’t

Take a moment to think about what is needed to survive. Perhaps food, water, or shelter came to mind. Those are all necessities we need to survive, but the air is the one thing that a moment without it, we would all pass away. Due to human activities, pollution in the air is a prominent issue that has increasingly gotten worse over the years causing common problems such as global warming and the devastation of wildlife. Air pollution consists of chemicals or particles in the air that affects the lives of humans, animals, and the physical environment we live in. It is imperative for citizens, especially in highly polluted states such as California, to understand the dangers associated with air pollution so they can avoid the damaging effects. Long-term air pollutants such as smog, greenhouse gases as well as other toxins exposed to the body cause detrimental health effects and reduce the longevity of citizen’s lives. The number of pollutants in the air we breathe every day is likely diminishing lives rather than nourishing them. Specific measures must be taken to prevent air pollution and the harmful health effects unaware to citizens who are experiencing it.

Air Pollution in California

The most air-polluted cities in America with the poorest air quality are in California. Bakersfield, the Fresno-Madera-Hanford area, and San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland take the spots for the topmost polluted cities in the United States (American Lung Association). The recent devastating wildfires that took place in California have caused: more harmful pollutants in the air of nearby communities, heightened anxiety for many citizens, and daily spikes in the concentration of particle pollution (American Lung Association). Although there have been minor laws enforced to help with the air quality, not enough has been done to see a drastic change. Citizens living in these areas are at a much higher risk of encountering air pollution-related problems and need to be aware of the threat it poses in their communities. To combat this problem, citizens should know the various effects of air pollution and why the health effects are more adverse than they appear to be.

What is Air Pollution?

Before we assess the problem at hand, it is important to analyze how air pollution exists and why it’s harmful to society. Air pollution is how it sounds but it goes a little more in-depth. Air pollution is the release of particulate matter or chemicals that contaminate the air. The director of the Clean Air Project, part of the Climate and Clean Energy Program at NRDC, puts it simply when he states, “Most air pollution comes from energy use and production…burning fossil fuels releases gases and chemicals into the air,” (Mackenzie). This destructive feedback loop contributes to and worsens climate change bringing about smog, ultraviolet radiation in the air, and other allergenic pollutants like mold and pollen (Mackenzie). From industrial production to daily driving emitting gases into the atmosphere, it is safe to say that societal practices heavily influence the number of pollutants in the air. With societal advancements that negatively affect climate change and global warming, air pollution is bound to occur especially in areas prone to it. Long-term air pollution can end up deteriorating buildings, cause deforestation/the extinction of animals, allergies, diseases, and cancer. The toxicity in the air may end up being so much where it becomes dangerous for people to live. All this makes it more of a reason to prevent air pollution as much as we can.

The Presence and Effects of Air Pollution

Multiple factors contribute to the presence of air pollution and there are certain substances in the atmosphere that citizens should be cautious of. Smog, soot, and mold are common examples that abound heavily in highly polluted areas. Smog (the mixture of fog, smoke, and chemicals) occurs when there’s combustion from burning fossil fuels reacting with sunlight whereas soot is a particulate matter made up of chemicals, soil, or dust. The combination of smog and soot can penetrate the lungs and bloodstream of humans, worsen symptoms of bronchitis, and lead to heart attacks (Mackenzie). This is notable because it explains how pollution can already be lingering around in the body waiting to irritate vital organs. If they continue to accumulate over time eventually attacking organ systems, the harder it will be dealing with the symptoms and the harder it will be to remove those pollutants from the body. Another aspect associated with air pollution is mold found outside and inside the homes of citizens, “Mold, an umbrella term for a variety of fungi, lives everywhere…causing sniffling, wheezing, eye irritation or rashes… triggering asthma attacks, exacerbating chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and sometimes causing fungal infections in immunocompromised individuals,” (Hefferan, par. 8). This evidence expresses that people who already have their health compromised from previous circumstances may not have the ability to overcome these airborne pollutants affecting their bodies. This leaves them with no choice but to trust their body to keep them healthy enough, which isn’t guaranteed. There’s no exact way of knowing when these pollutants will encounter the body, so more citizens should be alert when there is a considerable amount of pollution within their communities and find methods to decrease its continuity.

In addition to the impact of air pollution, gases that roam around including greenhouse gases have created unpleasant circumstances for the environment citizens live in that can affect their lifestyles. Carbon dioxide and methane are popular greenhouse gases that come from industrial sources as well as the combustion of fossil fuels. An abundance of these gases can, “lead to warmer temperatures and all the hallmarks of climate change: rising sea levels, more extreme weather, heat-related deaths, and increasing transmission of infectious diseases like Lyme,” (Mackenzie). Not only does air pollution minimize the sustainability of the environment, but it creates a hostile environment for citizens to live in that can force them to migrate away from their homes and communities. These consequences are situations that no one would ever want to experience as it creates grief, distress, and inconvenience for those affected by it. Furthermore, harmful gases are known to be existent in the outside world but can certainly reside inside one’s own home. Malfunctioning heating systems, such as furnaces, gas water heaters, and gas dryers within houses can produce an odorless, lethal gas called carbon monoxide. Once in contact with it, symptoms like nausea, dizziness, and confusion will take effect making one lose consciousness or worse (Hefferan, par. 11, 12). This goes to show how air pollution isn’t something that citizens can avoid by just staying indoors. If these pollutants create multiple health problems within such a short distance putting people in a dire position, imagine how much damage it has already done. Enforcing laws to decrease the effects of air pollution and avoid these frightful consequences are necessary however, without the effort from citizens, nothing will change for the better.

There is all this information to process the idea of long-term air pollution affecting the health of citizens however, does it have any effect on the span of people’s lives? By understanding air pollution’s effects, one can believe the possibility of its endangerment but what about the reality? Results from a simulation performed by scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill revealed that certain air pollutant emissions sectors (Transportation, Energy, Industry, Residential, and Commercial) associated with the presence of anthropogenic ozone and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) have influenced the mortality rate of people around the globe since 2005. One part of their results showed, “Land Transportation dominated in North America (32 percent of total anthropogenic PM2.5 mortality in this region)…globally, we estimated 493,000 deaths/year due to anthropogenic ozone and 2.2 million deaths/year due to anthropogenic PM2.5.,” (Silva et al, 1778, 1782). This information illustrates the clear correlation between air pollution concentration in the atmosphere and the mortality of humans. With a focus on North America alone, we see the increasing negative effect of fine particulate matter on the longevity of humans lives, which also corresponds to the 91,100 PM2.5 associated deaths and the 37,100 ozone-related deaths in 2005 (see fig. 1 and 2).
Figure 1. (Silva et al, 1781)

Figure 2. (Silva et al, 1780)

The damage doesn’t stop there and in fact, it seems to be getting worse. After years of a decline in PM2.5 concentration since 2011 in America, fine particulate pollution has increased by 5.5 percent on average across the country between 2016 and 2018 (see fig. 3) (Popovich, par. 2).

Figure 3. (Popovich)

The percentage may look small but if citizens continue to neglect the issue, the likelihood of that number rising is high. The bottom line is that numerous lives have been lost due to the increase of air pollution as well as poor air quality over time. Affording to let the air remain contaminated hoping it will take care of itself isn’t a viable option but taking measures to get rid of poor air quality is.

Conclusion

In final analysis, air pollution is an environmental issue that should be taken seriously so citizens who are at the forefront of this problem do not suffer any repercussions. The environment citizens live in should be a place of safety where their health and lifestyles are not compromised. As we let air pollutants linger around the atmosphere for an extended time, they create harmful health effects and prematurely decrease the length of citizens’ lives. To avoid future dilemmas, citizens can minimize pollution-inducing activities such as driving or partaking in heavy industrial practices and begin conserving energy. The betterment of this environmental matter is in the hands of the people, so the only way to achieve positive progression is to take action.

Works Cited

American Lung Association. “Nearly Half of US Breathing Unhealthy Air; Record-Breaking Air Pollution in Nine Cities.” EurekAlert!, American Association for the Advancement of Science, 21 Apr. 2020, www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-04/ala-nho041720.php.
Kwak-Hefferan, Elisabeth. “There’s No Better Time to Clear the Air.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 28 Nov. 2020, There’s No Better Time to Clear the Air – The New York Times (nytimes.com)
Mackenzie, Jillian. “Air Pollution: Everything You Need to Know.” NRDC, Natural Resources Defense Council, 1 Nov. 2020, www.nrdc.org/stories/air-pollution-everything-you-need-know.
Popovich, Nadja. “America’s Air Quality Worsens, Ending Years of Gains, Study Says.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 24 Oct. 2019, www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/10/24/climate/air-pollution-increase.html.
Silva, Raquel A., et al. “The Impact of Individual Anthropogenic Emissions Sectors on the Global Burden of Human Mortality Due to Ambient Air Pollution.” Environmental Health Perspectives, vol. 124, no. 11, Nov. 2016.; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/EHP177