Air pollution is a serious issue that has been affecting the environment and human health for centuries. Unfortunately, it still remains a huge problem today. This article will help you understand the environmental and health impact of air pollution in order to better protect yourself from its negative effects. We’ll cover what air pollution is, how it affects your body, as well as some ways to mitigate these effects.

What is Air Pollution and What Causes It?

Air pollution is the release of chemicals and particulates into earth’s atmosphere, causing widespread damage to both human health and the environment. There are many different kinds of air pollutants that contribute to this phenomenon. Some common causes include vehicles, power plants, construction sites, agriculture operations (especially livestock farms), industrial facilities and wildfires. A major international study by WHO in 2014 found out that 92% of children live in areas with unsafe levels of outdoor air pollution, these heed me hence what does it mean for their future?

Environmental and Health Impacts

Air pollution has been linked to a number of different diseases, including COPD, asthma, heart disease, stroke, cancer and other respiratory illnesses. It is well-known that air pollution can worsen asthma, allergies and other respiratory diseases. In addition to the effects on human health directly caused by air pollution, there are indirect adverse effects as well – for example bushfires in sub-Saharan Africa is a common practice use to burn crop residue after harvest. This method has proven effective due to low cost and easy access to. On the contrary, doing so result to a lot of smoke in the atmosphere, this complex mixture of small particles and liquid droplet in microns of PM10, PM5 PM2.5 can easily infiltrate our respiratory tract causing illness and disease and also tainting our environment; wildfires in California have worsened because of emissions from vehicles that were sitting idle due to the closure of freeways related to an unrelated accident. Pollution can also cause changes in weather patterns (such as smog) or damage ecosystems around lakes and streams where water cannot flow freely. One final environmental impact is how climate change could be exacerbated by this poor-quality air; warmer temperatures lead to more evaporation which leads then leads again back into our atmosphere with bad consequences. It also contributes to the formation of ground level ozone which causes smog. The World Health Organization estimates that in 2012, seven million people died as a result of living or working in places with high levels of outdoor air particulates. Pollution makes it hard for kids to grow up healthy.

However, air pollution also has an environmental impact on the environment and ecosystems in general. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that outdoor air pollutants result annually in a $37 billion loss of crops due to ozone damage alone. Air pollution is a problem that everyone shares and needs to take responsibility for solving, as it impacts human health and the environment alike.

How to Reduce the Environmental Impact of Air Pollution

The first step to reducing the environmental impact of air pollution is recognizing that it’s a problem. This may seem like an obvious thing, but if you don’t know about it then there’s no way to solve it. Next, try to stay indoors when possible and make sure your home has proper ventilation so indoor pollutants are not released into the atmosphere. Also, cut down on use of products with toxic ingredients such as household cleaners and plastics which can release chemicals into the environment over time. These are just some simple ways anyone can start making changes today for cleaner air for everyone tomorrow!

Resources for Finding out About Emissions in Your Area and Ways to Reduce Them.

There are many resources available to help you find out more about the emissions in your area, and ways that you can reduce them. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has a number of tools on their website for both individuals and businesses interested in reducing air pollution. For example, EPA offers an Air Quality Index map so that people know if there is a health-based warning due to local air quality conditions during poor weather days or under certain meteorological circumstances. This index helps people make decisions based on whether they should avoid exercise outdoors when ground level ozone concentrations reach unhealthy levels, such as exercising indoors or postponing outdoor activities until better air quality returns.

Conclusion

A healthy environment is an important part of a happy and fulfilling life. We need to take care of our planet so that we can continue living on it. As an individual who care about your health and the planet you live on, take steps today to make changes in how you interact with the world around you for better tomorrow! If we all work together our communities will be healthier places for generations to come.

References

Tibi, P. (2017). Air pollution is now the biggest killer in Africa.
Available at: https://www.zmescience.com/science/air-pollution-africa-0432423/

Eddie, H. (2018). Air pollution is the landing cause of death among children in sub-saharan Africa.
Available at: https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2018/07/02/afri-j02.html

About the Author

Bawa Prince Danjuma is from Nigeria, he is a medical student at Kampala International University, Uganda. He is a global ambassador of Toufik’s world organization and an advocate for human right and reproductive health. He likes studying and writes mainly poetry, storytelling and research articles. Prince likes engaging in recreational activities which involves playing games, listening to music and working out in his spare time.