Air Pollution

PETER XIE
MR. TOOLE
May 13, 2016

Table of Contents
DEFINITION................................................................................................2
SIGNIFICANCE...........................................................................................3
BACKGROUND...........................................................................................5
EXPERT........................................................................................................6
ROLE OF CONTROL...7
LOGIC OF EVIL...9
CASE STUDIES
China...11
India16
Chile...18
INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS22
CANADIAN CONNECTION..25
SOLUTIONS27
APPENDIX...29
BIBLIOGRAPHY.30

Definition
The nature of humans is to explore and evolve. Thousands of years ago, stones,
the very first tools created by humans, were used to break things apart. From the dawn of
the human species to modern day times, humans have created lots of things to make the
world a better place, but they often have negative consequences. When new technology is
developed, it may benefit humanity, but it may also produce things that can harm the
environment, such as pollution, loss of biodiversity, diseases, etc.
Air pollution is one of the environmental issues caused by humans themselves.
Air pollution is a combination of gas, liquid, and solids in the atmosphere that can
threaten the health and welfare of humans or other living things, damage manmade
structures, reduce visibility, or produce undesirable odor. (Air Pollution) In modern day,
air pollution can be caused by natural sources such as wildfires, volcanic eruption, etc.;
but air pollution mostly caused by factories. For example, coal power plants create major
pollutants that form air pollution. (Air Pollution) The major pollutants are carbon
monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, ground level ozone, lead, coarse particulate
matter, fine particulate matter, and greenhouse gases. (Air Pollution) In urban areas,
motor-vehicle exhaust and the smoke from factory are the major cause of the air
pollution.
In addition, air pollution not only can cause harm on humans and living things, it
can also cause massive damage to a countrys economic system and change the focus
point on political system.

Significance
Air pollution is known to increase the chance for certain diseases, especially
respiratory and heart disease. In the middle of the 20th century, epidemiologic studies
suggested rather consistently that general ambient air pollution, chiefly due to the
incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, may increase the rate of lung cancer. (Cohen)
Studies show that the levels of hazardous air quality in some parts of the world have
increased significantly, appearing predominantly in developing countries with large
population. (Simon, 2013) People from China, India, and Chile, for example, are exposed
to considerable air pollution produced by factories around or within their cities.
Individuals health is threatened from the chemical gases and smoke that is produced by
vehicles and factories. With the increased risk of getting respiratory disease, heart
disease, and lung cancer, lives are at stake. The most recent data from the Global Burden
of Disease Project indicates that in 2010, 3.2 million deaths worldwide resulted from air
pollution, including 223,000 from lung cancer. (Simon, 2013) The situation only could
get worse if there is no solution for this. Back in 1952, the Great Smog occurred in
London, United Kingdom, where at least 4,000 people were killed within five days. The
major causes were pollutants from factories and home fireplaces mixed with air
condensation. (History.com)
Moreover, breathing polluted air can irritate the throat and make breathing
difficult. Pollutants like tiny airborne particles and ground level ozone can trigger
respiratory problems, especially for people with asthma. Air pollution can also aggravate
health problems for the elderly and others with heart or respiratory disease. (The Plain
English Guide To The Clean Air Act, 2007) Cancer, birth defects, long term injury to
lungs, and brain and nerve damage can be caused by toxic chemicals such as benzene or
vinyl chloride. These highly toxic gases can be deadly to the people who inhale them.
Other pollutants rise up into the upper atmosphere, diminish the protective ozone layer.
This has led to changes in the environment and increases in skin cancers and cataracts
were breathtaking. (The Plain English Guide To The Clean Air Act, 2007)
In addition to the devastating effects on the human body, air pollution can be a
threat to the environment as well. Burning fossil fuels can release sulfur dioxide and
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nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere. These chemical gases react with water, oxygen, and
other substances to form mild solutions of sulfuric and nitric acid. These acid solutions
spread by wind across the atmosphere over hundreds of miles. When acid rain reaches
Earth, it enters the water systems, and sinks into the soil. Acid rain has the greatest
impact on lakes, streams, wetlands, and other aquatic environments. Water becomes
acidic and absorbs the aluminum that makes its way from soil into lakes and streams.
This combination makes water toxic to aquatic animals. (Acid Rain)
Economic and political systems can also be threatened while air pollution ravages
lives of humans and wild species. Air pollution can have a huge impact on economic
system because various businesses need to be shut down when the pollution is heavy
enough. For example, smog issue in Beijing, China has been known for years. When the
smog hits the city, industries can be dreadfully affected. Tourists are forced to be keep
away from polluted areas, manufacturers are halted, shipping industries are shut down,
etc. (Something in the Air, 2013) These causes may lead to massive economic losses, plus
the money required to fix the issue can be a great cost. The government will collect more
taxes from citizens and raise the commodity price in order to make up the money they
have lost. On the other side, politics is facing huge pressure from the authorities. If
policies change such as new standard of the amount of air pollution can be released
everyday could lead to another financial loss, because factories need to buy newer
technologies and slower the production in order to meet the standard. In this case, the
economy growth will slow down and less money will be gained. More laws are passed
and executed. Old facilities would be replaced and the facilities require more financial
resources and manpower to operate.
With all the history and studies from the past to modern day, industry is the
leading cause of this environmental catastrophe. Even though the companies that
developing technologies are putting efforts to make life on Earth easier, citizens are the
victims, and their health is being harmed. People should have the consciousness to
remind themselves that having a healthy life is what it matters, effective solutions have to
be generated to save the human race and the world.

Background
Air pollution has been a world environmental issue for a long time. Back to the
late 13th century, Englands King Edward I threatened citizens of London with harsh
penalties to stop burning sea-coal in order to reduce the air pollution. However, the
outcome was not significant. (History.com)
Air pollution started to become an issue when coal was first introduced. During
the industrial revolution, from late 18th century to the early 19th century, coal became the
main source to keeping the revolution advancing; it was used on a large-scale for
ironmaking, as a heat source in every house, and used as fuel to operate locomotives and
to sail ships. The result of using coal was the creation of smog and soot, which led to
serious health impacts on the residents of growing urban centres. In 1948, severe
industrial air pollution formed a noxious smog that asphyxiated 20 people in Donora,
Pennsylvania, and more than 7,000 people were sick. Later in 1952, the Great Smog
suddenly swept across the city of London from December 5th to 9th. The pollutants from
the factories and home fireplaces mixed with air condensation, resulted in the death of at
least 4,000 people within five days. In the 1850s, acid rain was discovered, another tragic
side effect of coal-powered plants. Human-produced sulfur and nitrogen compounds
release into the atmosphere, resulting in acid rain, negatively impacted plants, fish, soil,
forests and some building materials. (History.com)
On May 26, 2015, the resolutions of air pollution were passed on the World
Health Assembly. Air pollution is the worlds largest single environmental health risk.
Every year 3.7 million deaths are attributable to outdoor air pollution. National health
authorities are the key role of this resolution, the authorities need to raise awareness
about the potential to save lives and reduce health costs, if air pollution is addressed
effectively. Strong cooperation between different sectors and integration of health
concerns was developed and related to all national, regional and local pollution
policies. Air quality monitoring system and health registries are required to record
every information that is related to air pollution. (World Health Assembly Closes,
Passing Resolutions on Air Pollution and Epilepsy)

Expert
Helen Apsimon is Professor of Air Pollution Studies at Imperial College London.
She is the founding member and Chairman of the European Association for the Science
of Air Pollution (EURASAP). She developed simulation studies of nuclear accidents, and
diversified into international issues such as acid rain, and air pollution problems in
Eastern Europe. (Helen Apsimons Story) Helen and her Fellowship through meeting
with working scientists and discussing their priorities toward to air pollution control in
Eastern Europe. This has led to the Integrated Assessment Unit in the Centre for
Environment Policy. Apsimons role is to investigate future scenarios for emissions of
atmospheric pollutants, dispersion and mapping of atmospheric concentrations and
deposition, impacts on human health and ecosystems; and costs and benefits of potential
air pollution mitigation strategies taking account of simultaneous implications for climate
policies. She also is the co-founder of Air Pollution Research In London (APRIL)
network and chairs the subgroup on emissions, modelling and measurements. She has
been a member of numerous expert groups and committees, including the Airborne
Particles Expert Group, the National Expert Group on Transboundary Air Pollution, and
the Air Quality Expert Group of DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food & Rural
Affairs). (Professor Helen Apsimon)
In 1988, Helen Apsimon travelled to Hungary, Poland, Czechoslovakia and
Bulgaria to meet with a wide range of brilliant and enthusiastic scientists, two of them are
the Ministers for Environment in their respective countries. Helen learnt about and
witnessed the main air pollution issues facing each country prior to the major political
changes and transition in Europe. Helen was able to facilitating collaboration in the fight
to control air pollution through her Fellowship. (Helen Apsimons Story)
After her Fellowship, Helen Apsimon returned to the polluted Black Triangle
region to work with scientists from the Czech Republic, Poland and Germany to assess
the problems of chemical gases with funding from the European Commission. She also
has the support from the British Council to collaborate with the Jan E Purkyne University

in the north of the Czech Republic in developing an environmental faculty with modern
electronic library facilities. (Helen Apsimons Story)
Role of Control
There are several types of roles of control. People who have control, people who
need the control, people who care about the issue, and people who should care.
Depending on the situation, the roles of control can be different.
Air pollution has been an issue for hundreds of years, plenty of solutions have
been introduced to the issue but have never ended it once and for all. Government
agencies usually have the control of the policies of air quality. People who work for the
government are sent to companies to inspect whether their facilities are up to standard.
Government would also lower the bar in order to achieve a certain purpose. For example,
the GDP of China in 2013 approached 9.24 trillion USD. In order to accomplish this goal,
the Chinese government has had to press the manufacturers to produce products faster.
The negative effect to the country is industrial air pollution has been created and has
covered most of the major cities.
However, air pollution is not well controlled under government agencies, nonprofit organizations should be introduced to the public and should hold authority, because
the people who founded the organization are truly willing to change the situation and
make the country better. Citizens should be able to live in a place without worrying about
their health.
Many organizations around the globe care about air pollution. For example,
Pollution Probe is a Canadian charitable environmental organization that has been
defining environmental problems through research, promoting understanding through
education and pressing for practical solutions through advocacy since 1969. Under their
influences, more and more policies have been introduced to protect human health such as
removing lead from gasoline and limiting greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles, etc.
(About Pollution Probe)
The reason why air pollution is a world issue is because there are no specific rules
to restrict the companies or governments. There are only standards. Governments suggest
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enterprises follow the standards but they do not force them to meet the standard. It is
because part of the profits that enterprises gain will pay to government as tax money and
the more profits enterprises gain, the more taxes will pay to government. Therefore,
government is actually controlled by enterprises; without a certain amount of funds,
government would not be able to function properly.
The governments of developing countries should care more about air pollution.
While developing the country, citizens health is threatened by the toxic gases in the air.
Citizens might challenge the government and protest. Without the support from citizens,
the country cannot operate properly. Moreover, humans are living in the same world;
everyone should care about this issue.

Logic of Evil
There are two types of people in this world, the good one and the bad one. It has
become a common sense of how to determine a good person when a person does
things that are no harm to the surrounding. When a person does things that are bad for the
surrounding, people automatically think this person is a bad guy. Logic of Evil is a way
of analyzing the logic of a bad guy, why is this person do bad things, what are the
benefits can this person get from it, and why does this person think it is a right thing to do
that other people normally consider it as a bad thing.
When considering the evil behind air pollution, one must realize there is different
aspects. It is conceivable to think of the aspects of evil behind why the issue air pollution
has not been solved even though the technologies are advanced enough. Air pollution can
be solved if everyone on this planet is willing to put efforts into the research of finding
solutions. Then, the logic of evil can be explained by the greed of human nature, it has
stopped the species to become a unity. Developed countries have the technologies to help
other countries conquer this issue, instead they sell their outdated technologies to
developing countries, gaining profits from it. Because developing countries have
technologies from the past, they cannot control the issue. They have to put more money
and manpower into the research and create a solution to put it under control. These
countries would be praised by their intelligence and those who have greater power in the
world would think they inspired the developing countries to came up with the idea to
solve the issue and gaining reputation from it.
Analyzing the aspects of evil, the government and enterprises. They are similar to
each other, they all need money and power. Money and power are the two main sources
that keep the government and enterprises running; without money and power, they are
just like a car without gas. The government needs funds to support the entire country.
Running a campaign requires a lot of money, the leader of the country needs to travel
around the country to visit citizens, to collect opinions from them, and to see if they are
agreeing with their government. The Military requires a lot of money too, because they
are the muscle to defend their country, they need funds to train soldiers and to maintain
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facilities. Technologies largely contribute to the country progressing. Enterprises provide

research and skills to develop higher technologies to bring the country to a higher level.
The more technologies are developed, the more advanced the country is. Citizens are the
consumer of technologies, they will pay bills and taxes to get the newest product, that
money will turn into profits for the enterprises, and part of the profits will become tax
money that will go to the government.
The competitions between countries or enterprises is the key element of why air
pollution is a world issue. Every developed country has gone through a time when
industries take priority, because the countries want to evolve, to become greater than
before. Therefore, air pollution is inevitable. If a country wants to be fully developed, it
has to industrialize itself which means produce advanced products. Because of the will to
become highly developed country in the world, these countries start to ignore the rules,
and do whatever it takes to become developed. They start to build more factories which
means they create more pollution, and people start dying because of the dirty air they
breathe everyday. Employers do not care about pollution because all they want is money
to make themselves greater than before.
Based on the aspect of logic of evil, because of the desire to evolve, government
and enterprises are putting efforts on how to make a better country. Air pollution is
inevitable because industrialization involved big part of the evolvement. To make a better
country, government and enterprises ignore citizens health and for those people who
have died for their country will be seen as a sacrifice for the greater good, the will and the
greed has been entrenched in every persons mind to become greater than before.

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Case Studies
China
Peoples Republic of China (PRC), is a country located in East Asia with a
population of 1.4 billion. Covering approximately 9.6 million square kilometers, China is
the worlds second largest state by land area. China is a single-party state governed by the
Communist Party of China, which is located in the capital city of Beijing. It exercises
jurisdiction over 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four directly-controlled
municipalities (Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing), two mostly self-governing
special administrative regions (Hong Kong and Macau), and claims sovereignty over the
Republic of China (ROC), also known as Taiwan, off the southeast coast of the mainland.
(China)
Chinas political system was formerly based on hereditary monarchies known as
dynasties. Since 221 BC, when the Qin Dynasty first conquered several states to form a
Chinese empire, the state has expanded, fractured and reformed numerous times. The
Republic of China replaced the last dynasty in 1912, and ruled the Chinese mainland until
1949, when it was defeated by the Communist Party of China in the Chinese Civil War.
The Communist Party established the Peoples Republic of China in Beijing on October
1, 1949, while the ROC and PRC continue to claim to have the legitimate government of
all China. (China)
China had the largest economy in the world for most of the past two thousand
years, during which it had cycles of prosperity and decline. Since the introduction of
economic reforms in 1978, China has become one of the worlds fastest-growing major
economies. As of 2014, it is the worlds second-largest economy by nominal total GDP
and largest exporter and has the second-largest defence budget. (China)
China is a developing country that has been appearing as a leading world power,
but it has also been appearing as a contributor of air pollution. The air pollution in China
has been reaching its limits and it is getting out of control. The quality of air has had a
deadly public health impact and extreme economic cost in China as well as other
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countries. The main causes behind this environmental crisis has been Chinas exponential
economic growth and industrialization. (Link 1)
Air pollution Crisis
The major force driving China to an air pollution crisis is its recent economic
growth. In 1978, the Chinese government diverted from a planned to market economy,
increasing the average annual economic growth rates by close to 10% by 2010.
Nonetheless, a serious environmental degradation has caused by this economic boost. As
a result of this economic boost, both environmental and human health has been affected.
The following list shows some of the damages that have been brought by air pollution:

Beijing experienced 25 days of smog in January 2013.

People living in northern China lost more than 2.5 billion life years during
the 1990s because of air pollution resulting from public heating systems

powered by coal.
A quarter of Chinas land territory was affected by serious smog in 2013.

As the government has been seeking developmental strategies that are high-growth,
resource-intensive, and export-oriented and can develop the country as quickly as
possible, China has experienced an increase in industrial and municipal waste, vehicle
emissions, and energy consumption. Coal is the major pollutant that taints the air, but also
is the major energy source which China relies on for about two thirds of its energy needs.
Coal is burned by using outdated and inefficient technology in the power plants. As more
and more people start to own cars, low-grade gasoline continues to be used which also
causes air pollution. From the results of industrialization, particulate matter, ozone, and
sulfur dioxide are all involved in damaging the atmosphere. Moreover, marketization and
regional decentralization are the two new economic strategies that have greatly
contributed to the current air pollution crisis. In marketization, the power of decisionmaking has been given to enterprises rather than to the government. Correspondingly,
local government has gained the power of regional decentralization from the central
government. To reduce the incentives of various industrial enterprises, local governments
have executed lenient environmental regulations to internalize economic costs. The crisis
has continued to be out of control because the central government is having a hard time
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reining back in all these added participants after spreading the power to the local
governments when attempting to better regulate pollution. With economic pressures and
decentralization, strong values of growth and industrialization have become deeply
entrenched in more players, exacerbating air pollution across China. (Link 2)
The Impacts of the Crisis
Air pollution in China has a significant impact on public health, economic
success, and countries outside of China. It has become an issue that people living in
China pay close attention to every day.
In China, air pollution has reached deadly levels considering individuals physical
health. Studies have reported a strong connection between exposure to air pollution and
increases in respiratory diseases and premature mortality. The result of pollution has led
to disastrous health impacts since the economic reforms of the 1980s. In 1997, 100,000
premature deaths were reportedly caused by air pollution. By 2002, the WHO reported
that current air pollution levels were responsible for over 300,000 premature deaths
annually. Scientists have shown that the risk of respiratory disease and morbidity
prevalence is corresponded with the outdoor concentration of total suspended particles.
The pollution has also given rise to what are called cancer villages, geographic areas of
people with a greater than expected number of cancer cases. The death rate from lung
cancer has increased by 465% in the past 30 years, and has become the deadliest cancer
in China. Also, there are other health impacts of air pollution such as chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease, weakening of the immune system, and reduction in lung function.
(Link 4)
However, individuals health is not the only impact that has been caused by air
pollution, it has also caused a significant economic loss. For instance, from 1996 to 2001,
Chinas spending on public health increased by 80%, partly from managing the
environments health effects. Air pollution has caused welfare damage, which
encompasses the value of lost labour and leisure. The welfare damage has increased from
$22 billion in 1975 to $112 billion in 2005. Moreover, the pollution has hurt crop
productivity and ecosystems that provide materials that make up many of Chinas built
environments. (Link 4) In relative terms, however, welfare losses from air pollution
13

decreased from 14% of the historical welfare level to 5% during the same period because
the total size of the economy grew much faster than the absolute air pollution damages.
There are studies that have tried to quantify the economic costs of air pollution (e.g.,
Ostro, B.D., Chestnut, L., 1998; EPA, 1999; Holland et al., 2005; Saikawa et al., 2009;
Vennemo et al., 2006; West et al., 2006). One serious challenge faced in estimating these
pollution costs has been associating dollar values with such non-market impacts as lost
lives, biodiversity loss, and landscape degradation. Studies focusing on the negative
health consequences associated with air pollution have the advantage of dealing at least
partially with outcomes that involve economic transactions, such as payment for health
services or the loss of labour and leisure time to combat illness. In the case of China,
there have been several studies at both the local and national levels, that have worked to
quantify the economic costs of air pollution arising from its negative impact on human
health. (Matus, 2011)
Nevertheless, the economic and health costs of the environmental crisis are not
limited to China as they spread beyond the countrys borders. The pollutants within China
have transported to neighboring countries, such as Japan and Korea, through the
movement of wind. Pollutants from Chinas coal-fueled power plants have been shown to
fall as acid rain in Seoul and Tokyo. Air pollution from China has even travelled further,
across the Pacific to the United States and Canada. (Link 4) There is a study of how much
of the pollution reaching the American West Coast is from the production in China of
cellphones, televisions and other consumer items imported to the U.S. In the paper, the
scientists wrote that outsourcing production to China does not always relieve consumers
in the United States or for that matter many countries in the Northern Hemisphere
from the environmental impacts of air pollution. The movement of air pollutants
associated with the production of goods in China for the American market has resulted in
a decline in air quality in the Western United States. The amount of air pollution in the
Western United States resulting from emissions from China is still very small compared
with the amount produced by sources in the United States that include traffic and
domestic industries. (Wong, 2014)

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Energy efficiency and improving air and water quality has become governmental
targets, but none of them have gone as planned. There are ample signs that the leadership
is either unwilling or unable to make fundamental changes. Provincial officials, who
enjoy substantial autonomy, often ignore environmental edicts, helping to reopen mines
or factories closed by central authorities. Overall, enforcement is often tinged with
corruption. (Kahn, 2007)
Chinese leaders argue that the outside world is a partner in degrading the
countrys environment. Chinese manufacturers that dump waste into rivers or pump
smoke into the sky make the cheap products that fill stores in North America and Europe.
Often, these manufacturers subcontract for foreign companies or are owned by them.
As a matter of fact, foreign investment continues to rise as multinational corporations
build more factories in China. The government also insists that it will accept no
mandatory limits of its carbon dioxide emissions, which would almost certainly reduce its
industrial growth. (Kahn, 2007)
Since Hu Jintao became the Communist Party chief in 2002 and Wen Jiabao
became prime minister the next spring, Chinas leadership has maintained consistent
themes. The economy must grow at a more sustainable pace; environmental abuse has
reached intolerable levels. Officials who ignore these principles will be called to account.
Five years later, the economy had not grown at a more sustainable pace but increased
11.9 percent, its fastest in a decade. China burned 18 percent more coal than it did the
year before. It seems that these leaders are either too timid to enforce their orders, or the
fast-growth political culture they presided over is too entrenched to heed them. (Kahn,
2007)
Overall, Chinas air pollution crisis has impacted health, economics, and the
international community. Large and diverse populations are stakeholders in this
sustainability issue. The government is not willing to make a difference because either
they are afraid of whomever may have more financial power than them or being paid off
about ignoring this issue. The trade between China and other countries is unbalanced,
China heavily exports their products but does much less importing. The country has been
busy to produce products but forget how much resources it only has.
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India
The Republic of India, is a country located in South Asia. India is the secondlargest country by area with over 1.2 billion people and the most populous democracy in
the world. (India)
Currently, the Indian economy is the worlds seventh-largest by normal GDP and
third-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP). India became one of the fastest-growing
major economies; it is considered a newly industrialised country. However, it continues to
face the challenges of poverty, corruption, malnutrition and inadequate public healthcare.
India is a federal republic governed under a parliamentary system consisting of 29 states
and 7 union territories. (India)
Indias diverse economy surrounds traditional village farming, modern
agriculture, handicrafts, modern industries, and a multitude of services. The major source
of economic growth is the services, accounting for nearly two-thirds of Indias output
with less than one-third of its labour force. India is developing into an open-market
economy, yet traces of its past autarkic policies remain. In the early 1990s, economic
liberalization measures began and served to accelerate the countrys growth, which
averaged under 7% per year from 1997 to 2011. Indias economic growth began slowing
down in 2011 because of a decline in investment caused by high interest rates and rising
inflation. Growth rebounded in 2014 and 2015, with both years exceeding 7%. (South
Asia: India, 2016)
In 2015, for the first time in the 21st century, India overtook Chinas air pollution
levels. (Pollution in India Higher than China: Greenpeace, 2016)
Last year the World Health Organization published data on pollution around the
world. The report mostly focuses on airborne particles smaller than 2.5 micrometers, also
known as PM2.5. These particles can cause serious respiratory problems, mostly coming
from coal-fueled power plants and car emissions. (Appendix I)
Air quality in Delhi, India has competed with Beijings for the worst in air
pollution rankings, though the problem is not confined to the Indian capital. Air pollution
has become the fifth largest killer in India. Each year there are approximately 620,000
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premature deaths from air pollution-related diseases occurring in India. (Chatterjee, 2014)
A study of 1,600 urban centres from WHO found 13 of the 20 most polluted cities in the
world are all in India. (Appendix II) In addition, smaller cities in India such as Gwalior,
Patna, and Raipur also contain dangerously high levels of particulates, which could settle
deep in the lungs and increase cancer risks. (Kazmin, 2015)
Despite growing urban middle class alarm over dirty air, the government of India
is not willing to take tough action to clean it up. Prime Minister Narendra Modis priority
is promoting economic growth, with an emphasis on manufacturing and new coal-fired
power plants to provide uninterrupted electricity supply across the country. (Kazmin,
2015)
However, Prakash Javadekar, the environment minister, under intense media
pressure admits that the situation is continuously getting worse in Delhi. The only
concrete plan is the completion of two bypass roads around Delhi, which the Supreme
Court ordered to be built a decade ago. India does have air quality standards but no one is
accountable when pollution levels exceed limits. The country does not have any detailed
breakdown of how much each pollutant contributes to poor air quality, yet the main
culprits have not been disputed. Low-quality diesel is used in India and the vehicle
emission standards lag 10 to 15 years behind European counterparts. The construction
boom in urban areas is another contributor. Dust management rules are rarely obeyed
while emissions from informal industries like brick kilns, encouraged by decades of
government policy, are unregulated. Approximately half of Indias population continue to
cook food and keep warm by burning wood, coal, and even cow dung, which all release
high levels of particulates. Diesel generators are used every time when the power goes
off. Coal-fueled power plants, often located in the heart of large cities, such as Delhi, can
be an increasing source of air pollution. In the winters, haze is generated by the burning
of an estimated 500 million tons of harvest stubble in Punjab and Haryana states. Air
quality could be improved by setting up a detailed plan, but the government is unwilling
to confront powerful interest groups such as the car and truck makers, industry, and
farmers. (Kazmin, 2015) Many believe that air pollution will be an inevitable side effect
if India wants to grow as fast in the next three decades as China did in the past three
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years. When asked if coal-powered electricity planned to be cut, Prakash Javadekar

responded: What cuts? Thats more for developed countries. Indias first task is the
eradication of poverty. (Biswas, 2015)
A study funded by the World Bank Development Research Group was carried out
in 1991-1994 to study the effects of air pollution. In the study, the average total
suspended particulate level in Delhi was about five times the WHOs annual average
standard. The study concluded that the impact of particulate matter on total non-trauma
deaths in Delhi was smaller than the effects found in the U.S.A, but found that a death
associated with air pollution in Delhi caused more life years to be lost because these
deaths were occurring at a younger age. Indias Ministry of Environment and Forests
released a report in 1997 reviewing the environmental situation in Delhi over concerns of
deteriorating conditions. About 3000 metric tons of air pollutants are emitted every day in
Delhi, with a major contribution from vehicular pollution and coal-based power plants.
Vehicular pollution is an important contributor to air pollution in Delhi. Indias public
transport systems remain significantly underdeveloped. More and more private cars
congest its roads. India has not joined any negotiations on a green trade deal yet and
continues to embrace coal as a key source of energy. (Biswas, 2015) There are more than
3.4 million vehicles in Delhi based on the Department of Transport, Government of
National Capital Territory of Delhi. (Rizwan, 2013)
In conclusion, environmental policies need to be designed sensitively so as not to
hurt the economy. If the government only sets unattainable standards, or imposes rigid
bans with no suitable alternatives, growth may plummet. People who live in India do not
have enough motivation from the government to generate self awareness to make a
change about the pollution around themselves.

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Chile
The Republic of Chile is a country located in South America occupying a long
and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west.
With 756 thousand square kilometres, Chile has a population of 17.5 million.
Chile was a Spanish colony in the mid-16th century. The Spaniards replaced the
Inca in northern and central Chile, but failed to conquer the independent Mapuche that
inhabited south-central Chile. Although Chile declared its independence in 1810, decisive
victory over the Spanish was not achieved until 1818. Until the 1880s, the Mapuche were
held under central government control. After a series of elected governments, the Marxist
government of Salvador Allende was overthrown in 1973 by a military coup led by
General Augusto Pinochet. Sound economic policies, maintained consistently since the
1980s, contributed to steady growth, reduced poverty rates by over half, and helped
secure the countrys commitment to democratic and representative government. Chile has
increasingly assumed regional and international leadership roles befitting its status as a
stable, democratic nation. (South America :: Chile, 2016)
Chile deepened its long standing commitment to trade liberalization with the
signing of a free trade agreement with the US, which came into effect on January 1, 2004.
Chile has 22 trade agreements covering 60 countries including agreements with the
European Union, Mercosur, China, India, South Korea, and Mexico. In May 2010, Chile
signed the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Convention, and became the first country in South America to join the OECD. (South
America :: Chile, 2016)
Chile is one of the most air polluted countries in the world. The growth of air
pollution in Chile stems from both increased industrialization and environmental factors
that continue to affect the regions climate and are critical to the countrys health. (Berry,
2015)
In 1996, heavy smog surrounded Chiles capital city Santiago. The air quality was
so poor that flu spread violently all over the city. Approximately 3,500 children were sent
to the hospital every day. Three years later, the concentration of smog only continued to
19

increase. The government was forced to declare a city wide environmental emergency
after the records set a new high. On Monday June 22, 1999, the smog once again covered
Santiagos skies, causing the Environmental Ministry to declare an environmental
emergency. Part of the city shut down, closing more than 1,300 factories and forcing 80
percent of the cars in Santiago to cease operation. People crowded in the subway and
underground because they were urged to avoid physical activities outside. (Berry, 2015)
Industrial revolution in Chile has created toxic emissions flooding the countrys
air. Urban cities face the worst pollution because factories are concentrated in urban
areas. The main contributors toward the accumulation of PM2.5 are cars, buses, and
trucks, thermoelectric power plants, boilers, industrial processes, foundries, metallurgic
processes, biomass combustion, firewood heating, agricultural burning, and ammonium
emissions from agricultural processesall a result of increased industrialization in
Chiles main cities, especially Santiago. Winters intensify air pollution, with woodburning stoves producing large emissions into the air. Pollutants from construction zones,
agricultural fields, and dirt roads are sent into the air by vehicle and wind and travel into
the city. (Berry, 2015)
Moreover, the geographic location and climate of Chile also contribute to the
influx of air pollution. For example, Santiago is located in between two mountain ranges,
the Andes and the Cordillera de la Costa, creating a stale air pocket in the valley with
minimal ventilation. The basin landscape of the city traps pollutants in the air and
generated a stagnant cloud of smog around the city. In order to disperse the pollution out
of the valley, the city requires constant rainfall. Each time it rains, pollution levels
decline. Rainfall also keeps the ground moist, since wet sediment cannot be picked up
and circulated through the air. Sadly, drought conditions have continued to exist in Chile
for approximately eight years. Since 2015, the precipitation in Chile has been fewer than
12 millimeters, far below the normal half-year average of over 100 millimeters and
rainfall levels are predicted to continually decrease. In fact, rainfall in Chile will drop 10
percent by 2040 and at least 30 percent by the end of the century according to the Center
for Global Change at Chiles Pontificia Universidad Catlica. (Berry, 2015)

20

The drought has also caused forest fires in Chile. In January 2014, forest fires
ravaged central Chile and especially Santiago. 47 fires were active in the area at the same
time and approximately 30,000 acres of land were burned out. Forest fires have a similar
effect to wood-burning stoves, releasing high toxic smoke into the air and causing
respiratory problems. (Berry, 2015)
The 1994 Environmental Act remains the fundamental policy on environmental
sustainability. The National Commission for the Environment (CONAMA) was founded
through the Environmental Act, an organization equivalent to the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency. CONAMA works to ensure citizens can live in an environment free of
contamination and to preserve and protect nature. It coordinates with the transportation,
health, education, urban, and agricultural ministries, as well as the community, to create
better air quality. However, CONAMA itself does not control the actual regulations;
ministries that are in charge of this determine the limits on emissions. (Berry, 2015)
Overall, Chile still needs a more precise plan to counter air pollution in its cities.
Wood-burning stoves have been banned and new homes are constructed with insulation
and heating infrastructure. In Santiago, 40 percent of transportation has been reduced in
order to cut down toxic emissions, along with restrictions on industrial emissions and a
new focus on enhancing the citys public transportation system. (Berry, 2015)

International Organizations
21

Countries government is not the only solution that can formulate policies or seek
solutions to make air pollution become a less serious issue in the world. There are other
organizations in different countries that are trying their best to make a difference. Some
of the organizations belong to their country and some of them do not belong to any
government agency.
Clean Air Task Force
The Clean Air Task Force (CATF) works to help safeguard against the worst
impacts of climate change by catalyzing the rapid global development and
deployment of low carbon energy and other climate-protecting technologies
through research and analysis, public advocacy leadership, and partnership with
the private sector. (About Us - Clean Air Task Force)
CATA staff consists of senior engineers, MBAs, scientists, attorneys, and
communications specialists. Headquarters is located in Boston, it also operates additional
offices in Washington, DC, Illinois, Maine, and New Hampshire, as well as in Beijing,
China. Science Insider, an online policy news site of science magazine, called CATF a
well-respected public health and environment advocacy group. (About Us - Clean Air
Task Force)
CATF was formed in 1996 with a single goal that is to enact federal policy to
reduce the pollutants from Americas coal-fueled power plants that cause respiratory
death and disease, smog, acid rain, and haze. In 1996, a survey from the CATF showed
that a majority of Americans believed most of their power came from hydroelectric dams
and very little from coal. In fact, in 1996 and still today, coal power provides
approximately 50% of U.S electricity, while hydropower provides only 7%. (About Us Clean Air Task Force)
CATF organized a union of more than two dozen state, local, and national
environmental and public health organizations in a public education campaign to alarm
the citizens of the health and environmental damage caused by factories such as coal
factories, and power plants. These organizations pushed for model policies at the state
level, while CATF commissioned dozens of new studies on coals impactin many
22

cases, studies by the same independent academic experts who advised the US
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the industry itself. In 2005, EPA adopted
rules requiring a 60% cut in health and environmental pollutants from these factories.
Coal plants subsequently were forced to decrease their emissions by about 50%, saving
nearly 13,000 lives per year and avoiding hundreds of thousands of illnesses. (About Us Clean Air Task Force)
CATF also developed the environmental and health communitys science and
technical case for reducing mercury emissions from power plants. Strict mercury
standards will soon be issued by EPA. (About Us - Clean Air Task Force)
In addition, CATF also closely examines the nations diesel engine fleettrucks,
buses, and construction equipment that spew nearly as many lethal pollutants as the
nations power plants. In 2002, the Diesel Clean-Up Campaign began, which targeted
public education events in more than a dozen states as well as a vigorous campaign for
change at the federal level. Many state and federal initiatives have gone forward, with
mandates and funding that will reduce diesel emissions substantially in the next few
years. (About Us - Clean Air Task Force)
Moreover, CATF also helped the world to fight to reduce emissions from marine
ships, which result in 60,000 deaths per year globally. As the lead technical and scientific
NGO appearing before the International Maritime Organization (IMO), CATF helped
raise the emission standards that will reduce up to 31,000 deaths per year in North
America including Canada. (About Us - Clean Air Task Force)

Greenpeace
Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning organization that helps to
change attitudes and behaviour, to protect the environment and to promote peace by:

Creating an energy revolution to address the number one threat facing the

planet.
Protecting the worlds ancient forests and the animals, plants and people
that depend on them.
23

Defending the oceans by challenging wasteful and destructive fishing, and

creating a global network of marine reserves.

Campaigning for sustainable agriculture by encouraging socially

responsible farming
Creating a toxic free future with safer alternatives to hazardous chemicals.
(About Us-Greenpeace)

Greenpeaces headquarters, located in Amsterdam, has offices in more than 40

countries. This organization exposes environmental criminals, and challenges
government and corporations when they fail to live up to their mandate to protect
the environment and the future. (About Us-Greenpeace)

The Health Effects Institute (HEI)

HEI is a non-profit corporation chartered in 1980 as an independent research
organization to provide high-quality, impartial, and relevant science on the health effects
of air pollution. The funds of this organization are mostly from the US Environmental
Protection Agency as well as the worldwide motor vehicle industry. Other public and
private organizations periodically support special projects or certain research programs.
Over 250 studies in North America, Europe, and Asia has been funded by HEI. It
has produced important research to inform decisions on carbon monoxide, air toxics,
nitrogen oxides, diesel exhaust, ozone, particulate matter, and other pollutants. At the
urging of the WHO and countries throughout the world, HEI has extended its
international research to help inform air quality decisions in Europe, Asia, and elsewhere.
(About HEL)

Canadian Connection

24

Air quality in Canada is the third best in the world, but that does not mean all
places in Canada have clean air. (News, CBC, 2011)
Air pollution is a year-round threat to the heart health of Canadians yet a national
poll by the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada has revealed that only 13% of
Canadians have made the connection between air pollution and cardiovascular disease.
Every year, there are approximately 6000 additional deaths in Canada because of short
term exposure to air pollution, and research shows that 69% of these deaths come in the
form of cardio and cerebrovascular disease. (Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada)
Canada also has partnerships and collaborations with other international
organizations on air quality science. Environment Canadas air quality experts expand
their research capacity by collaborating with various organizations in efforts to strengthen
air quality research and development, access a wider range of expertise by participating
in cutting-edge scientific and technical networks, and extend the knowledge needed to
support science assessments, management plans, policies and a wide range of services to
Canadians. Environment Canadas air quality science and research also contributes to
national and international policies on air quality, providing scientific support for decisionmakers to develop effective air pollution control strategies. (Air Quality Science and
Research, 2013)
Canada works with several international organizations to provide help and
strategies on environmental conditions. (Air Quality Science and Research, 2013)

World Meteorological Organization (WMO) working together to

monitor global environmental conditions and stratospheric ozone. A key
element of this collaboration is the World Ozone and Ultraviolet Radiation
Data Centre (WOUDC), operated by Environment Canada for the Global

Atmosphere Watch program of the WMO.

National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA) space-based
monitoring of the environment. Scientists within Environment Canadas
Air Quality Research Division and a NASA scientist are co-authoring a
chapter in the WMO Scientific Assessment of Ozone Depletion, the focus
of the chapter being on observations to date and the understanding of
25

trends/changes in the global ozone, polar ozone, and surface ultraviolet

radiation, including the potential roles of climate change and other non

halogen effects.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
collaborating on science issues and advancements related to air quality
forecasting including improving operational air quality forecasts,
promoting collaborations among air quality forecasting researchers and
practitioners, and nurturing an international air quality forecasting
community.

Solutions

26

Air pollution has impacted health, economy, and politics over decades. Solutions
have been made, but most of them suggest how to prevent and control the amount of the
pollutants that are being released into the air because it is inevitable.
One of the solutions is the government needs to set strict rules about the usage of
hazardous chemical products. Most of the pollutants come from hazardous chemical
products, and some of those products are indispensable which makes them become the
top priority of control the apply amount in order to control the amount of pollutants that
is going to be released into the air.
The government should be serious about the factories that claim they need to use
hazardous chemical products. Those factories should be under strict rules and have to be
supervised, especially for those factories powered by coal. From the previous studies that
have been mentioned, coal is the main energy source for the plants, massive contaminated
air can be released by burning coal. The government should take responsibility to invest
in and seek a new energy source that will benefit the country and the citizens.
Cars also are a factor that can produce huge amounts of pollution. In fact, cars are
now the biggest source of air pollution in most urban areas. The government should set
strict rules for car emissions in order to reduce the greenhouse gases that are produced
during the combustion reaction. In addition, the government should encourage auto
companies to seek the opportunity for electric cars in the future.
Natural disasters can also cause air pollution and that is unpreventable, but to
reduce the amount of pollutants that have been created. The following list shows the
amount of air pollution released can be reduced by

Save energy: Making electricity in conventional power plants generates

pollution. The less electricity required, the less pollution generated.

Save water: Producing cool, clean water needs to be filtered multiple times

and usually require big container therefore needs huge amounts of energy.
Cut out garden bonfires: Cancer-causing chemical can be produced during
the bonfires.

27

Never burn household waste: Burning plastic can release horrible toxic
chemicals into the environment. Inhaled by humans and animals, the

toxins will settle in the body and cause diseases.

Garden organically: Spraying fertilizer can also release chemical products

into the air.

Reduce, reuse, and recycle: Producing new products requires huge
amounts of energy, therefore, pollution is produced.

Appendix

28

Appendix I

Appendix II

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Links
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2.
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http://sites.dartmouth.edu/anth491/
http://sites.dartmouth.edu/anth491/causes/
http://sites.dartmouth.edu/anth491/five-facts-on-the-crisis/
http://sites.dartmouth.edu/anth491/impacts/

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