Air Pollution

Something is in the air...

"Almost 20 years after the Clean Air Act passed, tens of millions of Americans still breathe dirty air. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, over 76 million people live in areas where the [clean air] standard is exceeded." ---Breathing Easier, The World Resources Institute

What is it?

"Ozone, the primary component of smog, is a gas that forms when nitrogen oxide and hydrocarbons combine in sunlight. In the atmosphere, ozone occurs naturally as a thin layer that protects us from the sun's ultraviolet rays. But when it's formed at ground level, it's deadly." --- The Clean Air Project

Where does it come from?

"Cars, trucks, and buses...are of the chief sources of ozone. In 1986, an astonishing 6.5 million tons of hydrocarbons and 8.5 million tons of nitrogen oxides were spewed into the air by motor vehicles...Utilities, oil, and chemical plants are also a large part of the problem, accounting for approximately half the hydrocarbon emissions and half the nitrogen oxide emissions in the U.S. Lung damage from ozone-polluted air is a risk faced by roughly 3 our of 5 Americans." ---Exhausting Our Future, The Public Interest Research Group

Smog harms ALL life...

"Most people don't realize that smog harms other forms of life as well as people. Ozone smog is responsible for extensive damage to pines in California and in the eastern United States...It's also to blame for crop losses in many agricultural states." ---The Clean Air Project 

Reference: The Earth Works Group