What experience have you had with smog?

Smog

The word smog is derived from Smoke + fog , but a variety of polluting substances in the air reacting in sunlight can cause the unpleasant polluted air that can trigger asthma and can cause tightness of breath even in healthy people. This kind of smog generally occurs in the summer when a slow-moving high pressure area traps the dirty air under its sinking air. Smog need no longer contain either smoke or fog. Whilst smog is most likely to arise in urban areas, it can be blown a long way downwind to affect rural areas, so anyone with asthma or lung problems should take particular care on hot sunny days.

Smog also occurs in winter when a lid of cold air sits on top of a city and traps the polluted air. In winter there is the additional pollution from heating systems; not just fires.

Smog's effect on the lungs has been likened to sunburn on the skin - you may heal from occasional light doses, but repeated or severe exposure can have long-term health effects.

The pollution that goes to make up smog includes nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons from cars and a wide variety of compounds from industrial processes. Chemical reactions fuelled by sunlight produce ozone, among other chemicals. Whilst ozone in the upper atmosphere is useful for protecting us from ultraviolet radiation, in the lower atmosphere it irritates the lungs. Particulate matter from diesel vehicles and dust also add to the mix that makes us cough. Sulfur dioxide from power plants produces soot. Smog also makes it harder for plants to photosynthesize their food and can cause damage that leaves them vulnerable to disease.

There are several things that you can do to avoid making the problem worse:

• use only water-based paints, solvents, glues and varnishes, and if you must use non-water-based ones, seal the lids tightly
• do not light fires
• use public transport in stead of the car where possible (particularly if the journey is 1.5 miles (2.5km) or less) and do not start the engine until you are ready to go, or rev it.
• drive smoothly, without sharp acceleration
• keep your car well maintained so that it burns fuel efficiently
• take care not to spill gasoline

In the USA, the EPA's new "Clean Air Interstate Rule", which covers 28 states, is aimed at reducing smog-producing pollution that crosses state borders. The EPA estimates that implementation of the rule would cut premature deaths by 17,000, nonfatal heart attacks by 22,000 and respiratory ailments from bronchitis and asthma by 700,000 each year. This gives an idea of just how much harm smog does - it's not simply a matter of a dirty haze spoiling the view. Apart from the toll in human misery, it would save a lot of money on medical costs - far more than the measures would cost.

Many large cities and industrial areas are prone to smog, with geography (for instance a city nestled in hills) or climate determining which are worst effected. Coal burning was responsible for London's old "pea-soupers2 (12,000 were killed in 1952), whilst vehicle and industrial emissions are responsible for Los Angeles smog. The 1956 Clean Air Act banned all but smokeless fuels in London which brought an end to pea-soupers, though traffic-fuelled smog still occurs. In some parts of Asia so many fires are set to clear forests that the smog can spread over several countries. China and Hong Kong are badly affected by industrial smog. Some volcanoes can also create their own brand of volcanic smog, called vog.

Global warming is likely to make smog worse because of warmer temperatures, even if we reduce emissions.

L.A. Ports Extend Hours to Reduce Smog

The twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are extending their hours and offering financial incentives to truckers who switch from peak to off-peak deliveries. It is hoped that this will reduce smog by reducing the amount of time that trucks are stuck in gridlock. Truckers worry that they will be tempted to work too many hours. Traffic through the ports increased by almost 40 percent between 2000 and 2004, with most of the increase being from China.

Carmakers set to miss EU emissions goal - paper

Industry newspaper Automotive News says that European carmakers will probably not quite meet their carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions target for 2008, even though emissions are falling. The targets were voluntary, and may need to be replaced by mandatory ones. Factors weighing against decreases are a growth in car ownership, demand for more powerful cars, and heavier cars due to mandatory extra safety equipment.

Crews Make Progress Battling Western Fires

Firefighters are battling a 70,000-acre wildfire in central Arizona and a 17,000-acre fire in Utah. 42 fires are currently active, and about 4 million acres have burned so far this year compared to 4.8 million in the equivalent period last year.

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Mystery Killer Disease Strikes, Chinese Team Studies Mysterious Illness

Several people who had handled sick pigs and sheep have fallen sick in the city of Ziyang in southern Sichuan province, China. Some have died. More cases are being reported in the area. Doctors are trying to find out what the mysterious disease is. The most worrying thing is that some cases appear to have been due to transmission between one person and another. The World Health Organization (WHO) has been warning for some time that if a disease such as bird flu mutated into a form that passed between humans, it could result in a pandemic. They are concerned that not enough information has been received from China. Information has come via Hong Kong which is alert to the dangers of spreading diseases, as in 2003 someone from the Chinese mainland brought severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) to the island killing 299 there.

Barracuda Photo courtesy of NOAA

Hawaiian Teen Recovering From Fish Attack

A Hawaiian man is in intensive care in hospital after being impaled by a fish that he said was a barracuda. It left behind a tooth and a serious liver injury.

Poaching Becoming Rampant on Federal Land

Poaching of fossils on federal land in Nebraska and South Dakota is relatively easy and risk free as there is only one officer patrolling 1 million acres, but there have been some arrests and a recent conviction. Paleontologists have been drafted in to keep an eye out on the ground and at fossil shows, in catalogs and on Internet auction sites.

Maggot Treatment Saves Mich. Woman's Foot

A woman at risk of losing a second foot to diabetes has opted for maggot treatment in an effort to save it after all else failed. The sterile maggots are placed on the wound there and kept on by a bandage. They eat and dissolve infected tissue but spare healthy tissue. They also kill bacteria and produce an enzyme that promotes healing. After treatment the maggots were removed using tweezers and the foot appeared to be healing.

What experience have you had with smog?

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