The air that we breath today is full of toxic and hazardous pollutants. This pollution can harm wildlife and biodiversity on our planet, as well as harm our civilisation. Each year millions of people around the world die from pollution related problems. The worst place in the world is China's Linfen region where over 3 million citizens are affected by the hazardous effects of air pollution. To picture the effects of air pollution levels in Lifen, reported Bryan Walsh puts it as: "This soot-blackened city in China's inland Shanxi province makes Dickensian London look as pristine as a nature park". This got me thinking about the individual steps an individual can take. In some cases this may be out of the citizens control.
I began to look at the steps an individual can take to lower their own air pollution. From the initial lecture by Rosie, she mentioned that it was difficult to get people to make the small changes in their lifestyle, making that first step to change their behaviour. So I conducted some research on the easy ways we can take action. I have listed some of the easiest results below:
Conserve energy – remembering to turn off lights, computers, and electric appliances when not in use.
Using energy efficient light bulbs
Limit driving, using public transport.
Choosing environmentally friendly cleaners. Some cleaners contain allergens harmful to humans and the environment, specifically the ozone layer.
Run dishwashers and washing machines only when full.
Using recyclable products when you can.
Reusing plastic and paper bags.
Planting a garden. This will give the air the nutrients it needs to be cleaner. Plants will eat up the toxics in the atmosphere.
Using electric or hand-powered lawn equipment instead of petrol powered ones.
Eating local, organic food.
While some of these points focus on the bigger issues of pollution, they are still important and are essential in reducing one’s air pollution.
I took one of the above points and explored it further. How can I encourage someone to plant their own garden? The areas which are heavily polluted are usually cities with high rise blocks. Most people live in apartment rises so don't have their own outdoor space. I would need to think of a way to develop a small green space which has enough impact to improve air quality. I conducted some more research to find ways I could implement this approach. and found some schemes already in place.
Increasing green spaces in urban areas can help reduce air pollution. Even adding some plants to your balcony can help. (Rachel Campbell, 2017)
Planting a tree in your fornt garden or in front of your home is a good way in reducing pollutants. The UTAQS scoring system (Urban Tree Air Quality Score) is used when judging a trees ability to absorb and eradicate air pollution. For example, Alder, Maple and Pine have a high UTAQS score and are a few of the best trees to introduce to your street.
The discovary of UTAQS has lead to be investigate the factors which affect an evnironemnt posetivetly and negatively. For example the types of trees, road surface and other human factors present in the area.
Reference list:
Campbell, R. (2017). Permaculture magazine. Available at: https://www.permaculture.co.uk/readers-solutions/improving-pollution-green-spaces (Accessed: 8 April 2019).
Des.nh.gov. (2019). What Can I Do to Help Reduce Air Pollution? Available at: https://www.des.nh.gov/organization/divisions/air/tsb/ams/aqmdp/share.htm (Accessed: 8 April 2019).
Walsh, B. (2019). The World's Most Polluted Places. Available at: http://content.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1661031_1661028_1661016,00.html (Accessed: 8 April 2019).
Bibliography list:
Life Lessons. (2018). 10 Super Easy Ways To Stop Air Pollution. (must watch). Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aX7mC6aFRac (Accessed: 8 April 2019).
Woodlandtrust.org.uk. (2019). Urban air quality. Available at: https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/mediafile/100083924/Urban-air-quality-report-v4-single-pages.pdf (Accessed: 8 April 2019).
Trees for Cities. (2018). Home | Trees for Cities. Available at: https://www.treesforcities.org/ (Accessed: 8 April 2019).
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