Introduction: Air pollution can be defined as the harmful gases in the air that we breathe. Pollution can be caused by natural sources or as a result of human activities. Natural pollutants include: dust, pollen, smoke from forest fires, and bacterial and volcanic action. Nevertheless, human activities are the main cause of air pollution. Major sources of air pollution are industrial (factories and power stations) at 36% and on-road transportation at 26%. Currently, the number of vehicles on roads is constantly rising, leading to producing more pollutants. The most common pollutants in transportation are nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, sulpher dioxide, hydrocarbons and particulate matters. This essay will examine the impacts on human health, the environment, and even the economy that have resulted from these pollutants. It will then evaluate some of the solutions that have been put forward to reduce these harmful emissions. The increase in number of vehicles The situation is that the growth in world population, with the new styles of vehicle that were produced, is major cause of the increase in the number of vehicles worldwide. In the United States, for example, automobiles became synonymous with the free-wheeling nature of life and culture which lead a prosperous household want to have at least two cars (Mondt 2000). In Britain, another example, the number of vehicles, in 2004, rose to reach 29 million vehicles of which 24 million are private cars. Most people use their own cars in short journeys, as create unnecessary pollution. As a result, the amount of vehicle emissions increased with that growth of both population and the number of cars. Air pollution is not a recent problem and was recognized as early as 1966, accordin... ... middle of paper ... ... Works Cited Faiz, A., Weaver, C., S., and Walsh, M., P. (1996) Air Pollution from Motor Vehicles: Standards and Technologies for Controlling Emissions. Washington, D.C.: The World Bank OEE (2006) Energy Use Data Handbook. Natural Resources Canada Mondt, J., R. (2000) Cleaner Cars: the history and technology of emission control since the 1960s. Warrendale, United States: SAE International Pimentel, D. (2007) Pollution Causes 40 Percent Of Deaths Worldwide. Sciencedaily SAE (1994) Developments in Alternative Fuels Technology. Warrendale, United States: SAE international Fuel Economy, Environmental Protection Agency, United States (www.fueleconomy.gov). How stuff works (www.howstuffworks.com). Ministry of Environment (Environment Canada), Government of British Columbia, Canada (www.env.gov.bc.ca) (2001). Waltham Forest, Britain (www.walthamforest.gov.uk).
According to Brinson, “Although the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) declared cars "mobile sources" of pollution, they aren’t the only culprits. Big trucks, bulldozers, ships and boats, trains and even snow-blower 's pollute the air. According to the EPA, motor vehicles collectively cause 75 percent of carbon monoxide pollution in the U.S. The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) estimates that on-road vehicles cause one-third of the air pollution that produces smog in the U.S., and transportation causes 27 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. The U.S. has 30 percent of the world 's automobiles, yet it contributes about half of the world 's emissions from cars.” The United States has began imposing strict regulations on automotive
Cars can cause many different impacts of the environment like pollution to using up our natural resources. Up until the nineteen twenties oil was used in a rather moderate amount, this however would drastically change in those short ten years. With a progressive number of cars finding...
Automobiles play a major role in today's society. Almost every American owns at least one motorized transportation vehicle. Some say they make our lives better by reaching places faster than before. Others say they are a harmful to the environment. Have they made our society better or worse? They may be fast, but do we as humans want our environment to suffer because of time. Face it, cars pollute. And they release destructive chemicals into the air. Air pollution can threaten the health of many subjects in the environment including human beings.
Purchasing a car is one of the hugest or biggest accomplishments that a person can achieve on their own. However, what happens when that purchase turns out to also be the worst decision that was ever made? The purchase was a success and a goal was achieved, but the moment the key is turned and the engine is started the contribution to environmental harm begins. As the car is driven, the gasoline fumes that are released from the car contribute to the other many factors and pollutants that damage the environment. Not only is the purchase now a contributor to the depletion of clean air, but it could also play a part in the depletion of someone’s health. For example, asthma or bronchitis could develop in an adult or child as a direct result of breathing in noxious automotive fumes. Depending on where one lives, there could be strict regulations on air pollution. One must be accountable for any and all contributions made to the demise of what was once a healthy Earth. One must be accountable for his or her own carbon footprint. Some individuals have taken steps to reduce their carbon footprints and cause less harm to the environment by purchasing electric cars.
The growing demand for automobiles in India and Asia will only continue to increase in the coming years, as the world becomes more modernized, and standards of living rise. Already, cars in Asian cities have caused heavy air pollution, with contaminants like particulate matter, acid rain components, and carbon monoxide. These cars will need to be powered by gasoline, which involves the many different climate effects caused by the petrochemical industry, including oil spills and even more greenhouse gas emissions. Finally, the materials required to build these cars will lead to climate effects, in the form of heavy metal leakage and contamination from the mining required to produce the metals. Overall, the increase in cars in Asia will further degrade all the systems on Earth, and have an extreme negative impact on the
Vehicles are responsible for up to eighty percent of air pollution in Mexico. There are close to four million automobiles, buses, and trucks in the city, the average of which is ten years old, and thus in poor repair with ineffective emission controls. Emissions are increased by the excessive traffic compressed into narrow streets with few parking spaces, requiring low-speed cruising (Collins, 125). Even new engines oft...
Air pollution has become a significant problem in the US as well as the world over years. It’s the result of variety of sources like industrial, agriculture, mechanical and transportation. Sadly, transportation which releases a great amount of carbon dioxides, nitrogen oxides and other toxicity is proven the leading cause of air pollution. There are several transportation factors that contribute to air pollution in the US.
When the internal combustion engine was invented, there were a lot fewer people inhabiting the earth, oil supplies were seemingly endless, and air quality wa...
There is no question that pollution from automobiles is a major problem in industrialized countries and is increasing in developing nations. And the number of cars is increasingly rapidly: in the United States, the automobile population has increased 6X faster than the human population and 2X faster than the number of new drivers (Motavelli, 2000). At the same time, the average fuel economy of the 2001 fleet decreased to 20.4 miles per gallon, the same it was in 1980. This decrease is fueled by the growing trend in inefficient SUVs. As over 50% of the USA’s oil comes from overseas, the dangerous level of waste promoted by inefficient vehicles makes this more than simply an environmental issue.
Environmental concerns are driving the automobile’s design and development to comply with governmental rules and regulations. These changes are forcing the manufactures to come up with fuel efficient alternatives and new emission controls with the objective or reducing the negative environmental impact that is damaging the environment.
“1 gallon of gas =24 pounds of global warming emissions” (UCSUSA). Many of the people in our world today don’t understand just how much The Automobile affects us, our lives, and the world we live in. Undoubtedly, the invention of the car has changed our perspective on the different technology created over the past years. However, cars are some of the leading factors towards one of the largest ongoing problems occurring in our world today. That problem goes by the name of global warming. “Since 1990, Transportation has been one of the fastest growing sources of U.S. GHG” (U.S.D.T), otherwise known as Greenhouse gasses. In which most of us know; global warming affects our health, environment, weather, and ultimately our lives. It is a critical issue that continues to grow among this world, and cars nonetheless seem to be the main culprit. In fact, it can be easily said that the Automobiles of our generation can be considered the greatest common factor and one of the leading contributors for global warming. According to the UCSUSA, “Transportation produces almost 30% of all U.S. Global warming emissions.” This is with the exception of jets, planes, or any other type of aircrafts. That being said, the rate for GHG continues to rise and cars continually release toxins into the atmosphere.
Automobiles and its related manufacturing contribute to the degradation of the environment causing great concerns from consumers, governments, policy makers and environmentalists, regarding the economy and global warming. This resulted in market changes, due to new environmental laws, legislations, standards, product requirements and consumer wants. The gasoline engine produces emissions that are deadly for the environment, hence the big race by the automobile producers to develop an efficient alternative fuel/energy for powering its vehicles. Deloite (2014) ‘In 2012, new Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards were released in the U.S. that requires automakers to raise the average fuel efficiency of new cars and trucks to 54.5 MPG by 2025.’ (“Global Automotive Consumer Study”, 2014, p.4) The industry is engaged in research and development to develop more efficient internal combustion engines, electric vehicles (EVs), plug-in hybrids, and vehicles powered by natural gas. The government offers incentives in the form of rebates for the purchase and sale of energy efficient
Transportation needs to be fuel-efficient in an ideal society. Most modes of transportation emit harmful gases into the Earth’s atmosphere. These gases create a large amount of pollution and damage the air quality of an environment. “...elevated levels and/or long term exposure to air pollution can lead to more serious symptoms and conditions affecting human health. This mainly affects the respiratory and inflammatory systems, but can also lead to more serious conditions such as heart disease and cancer” (“Effects”). Pollution is getting worse and needs to be to be prevented. In order to prevent further harm to people, fuel-efficient transportation would be a valid
It is clear that the US consumption of polluting substances like lead, platinum and rubber has dropped due to improvements in the environmental friendliness of auto manufacturing, since these materials have been in use for cars since the 1950s. By replacing materials with those of a lower density has also made an important impact on fuel economy. Studies show that making 10% reduction in mass yields 5% improvement in fuel economy. Indeed, the US automakers in the last 25 years have responded to the government regulations Corporate Average Fuel Economy by changing materials to lighter ones like aluminum and plastics. Newer developments using other components like Magnesium, polymer composites, and ceramics also are helping to make further improvements to fuel
In this modern era, the level of pollution worldwide has been increasing consistently which in turn has brought harm to humans via many different ways. Consequently, the government must find a solution to solve this problem as speedily as possible. However, banning the ownership of private vehicles is not the only and definitely not the best way to decrease pollution. Although carbon emissions from vehicles do contribute towards a significant amount of pollution, banning the ownership of private vehicles in modern day society is unnecessary because pollution can also be caused by many other factors such as bad lifestyle choices on humanity’s part, lack of stricter or enforcement of environmental laws by governments as well as the fact that vehicles are an essential part of modern city life.