ICEH Papers

AIR POLLUTION AND RESPIRATORY ILLNESS

Thiyagarajan, Dr. Mrs. Allirani “Air Pollution And Respiratory Illness” in Martin J. Bunch, V. Madha Suresh and T. Vasantha Kumaran, eds., Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Environment and Health, Chennai, India, 15-17 December, 2003. Chennai: Department of Geography, University of Madras and Faculty of Environmental Studies, York University. Pages 588 – 596.

Abstract:

Traditions in which the value of nature is imbedded merit attention not only because of the role they once played in ancient patterns of sustainable resource use, but because these traditions express fundamental cultural values that remain relevant. An informed appreciation of these cultural values is capable of providing insight and motivation about environmental issues that concern us today. Environmental destruction is not an issue related to quality of life - it is a question of survival. The Rio Summit of 1992 tried to achieve what had been missing 20 years back. lndustrialisation and mega-projects which have given material prosperity to the West are found suspect from the environmental point of view. Opinion is divided not only on global warming and ozone depletion, but also on biodiversity and forest conservation. Air pollution may be simply defined as the presence of certain substances in the air in high enough concentrations and for long enough duration to cause undesirable effects. "Certain substances" may be any gas, liquid, or solid, although certain specific substances are considered significant pollutants because of very large emission rates or harmful and unwanted effects. Two kinds of ambient pollutants are regulated under the Clean Air Act, and characterize five primary pollutants and one secondary pollutant as criteria air pollutants. The five primary criteria pollutants include the gases sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and carbon monoxide (CO), solid or liquid particulate (smaller than ?m), and particulate lead. Ozone (O3) is the secondary criteria pollutant. Although ozone near the ground is a harmful pollutant, in the stratosphere it helps block harmful ultraviolet radiation. Air pollutants associated with certain specific sources and that pose immediate threats to human health are called air toxins or hazardous air pollutants (HAPs). A number of scientific groups agreed that radon causes lung cancer in humans. During the past decade, the morbidity and mortality from adult asthma has been increasing. The success in understanding the environmental problems can properly be viewed in the dictum "THINK GLOBALLY AND ACT LOCALLY." Because of the rapid deterioration in environmental conditions, environmental pollution has emerged as a global menace. Therefore, effective pollution control is the need of the hour. The future generations will praise our foresight, if we cooperate in a global spirit to save the environment of our planet. The hope rests on the actions taken by the present generation towards wise stewardship of the Planet Earth for a better quality of life. May our endeavors continue in this direction.

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