Pure oxygen, I'm talking about stuff cleaner than Walter Whites. Maybe that was a terrible comparison; however, Breaking Bad is a wonderful show! What this entails is that the EPA is trying to clean up the smog that our industries are producing. This will help prevent cities in the United States from reaching smog levels equivalent to that of cities in China. Not only does this make the air more breathable and delicious, this also helps the local environment. As smog levels rise, this helps prevent solar rays from reaching the earth's surface. This in return, contributes to the lack of nutrients plants need to grow to their full extent. The main focus behind this is to help prevent health issues in the younger population. Smog directly affects your body's internal organs; it is especially dangerous for children since their internal organs are still growing. So this sounds like a wonderful addition to the nation's policies, right?
Yes and no, depending on what perspective you take. Yes, if you are a supporter for going green. No, if you deal with power plants, cars or oil and gas facilities. These corporations plan on fighting this proposal back since this will result with a price tag of 270$ billion dollars. Of course, that number is quite large but these corporations have been preparing for this and also that particular price tag is if the standard is set to 60 ppt rather than the 65-70 which the proposal has set in mind. So now everyone can be happy, or at least satisfied with this proposal. Let's hope that the EPA targets light pollution next, so we can start seeing our beautiful night sky again!
(Courtesy of Thierry Cohen)
If you would like to read more about this proposal by the EPA check out this article about it, here.
Thanks for all the links throughout the article, they were very helpful. I love that the EPA is demanding such a push on air quality as the health effects that have resulted from air pollution have been on the rise for years. Asthma, headaches, and hacking coughs are just a few mild symptoms so I think it is important the U.S. set a standard, especially for countries like China with horrible air quality. Since air is a globally shared resource and has no borders as it is free traveling, it is even more important that all countries begin to lower their own pollution and raise their standards so their air doesn't begin negatively affecting other places as well. Glad to know this is happening, and I appreciate the lovely picture, I too hope to look up and be able to see such a starry night sky!
ReplyDeleteI think that there are many more pressing environmental matters than light pollution. Seeing stars is great but so is drinking clean water, eating healthy foods, and ensuring that we don’t kill off all of the animals that happen to be inconvenient to human progress. I really liked your post and I think it is very exciting that the EPA is attempting to pass measures that will improve our environment and our quality of life! Thank you for bringing this to my attention, as I may not have heard about it otherwise. Well done and good luck with the rest of the course.
ReplyDeleteKrista,
ReplyDeleteThis was a very well informed blog post. I learned a lot about the EPA's stand on air quality. I was not aware that the EPA was still actively fighting against air pollution since the Clean Air Act years ago but I am glad to see that they are. One of my favorite parts of this post was the intro. It was very entertaining and kept me interested enough to read the article. I also liked your images, they are beautiful and really help drive your point home.
Good post Taking the pulse of air quality is very important, as it gives us an understanding of current conditions and possible solutions to countering greenhouse gasses. I do think China and the U.S. can and will provide the change needed at some point. China asked for 40 years, considering it took the U.S. that long to implement air quality control again smog in areas such as L.A. The policy's reduced smog levels by 80% within 10 years, so using this as a guideline China can improve its air quality, and hopefully reduce emissions. The amount of money these two countries gives to emerging nations is intelligent, as they will demand efficient energy and similar methods to improve ones own economy, it is a way to to stop future countries from contributing in the respective manner.
ReplyDeleteFinally! The EPA needs to get on with that proposal quicker than October 2015. Climate change has been a hot topic for most of the 2000's and I think that we need to start doing things rather than simply stating the problem and doing nothing more. I think its great that China and Japan came to that agreement as it is definitely a step in the right direction. I believe that air quality is an important stepping stone in the fight for a greener and cleaner earth.
ReplyDeleteHaha, under pressure is one of my favorite songs. I'm glad the US is taking steps to make their emissions footprint smaller, but China really needs to step up and work on their pollution problem. It affects their citizens as well as the whole world and many alternative sources of energy are cleaner and cheaper than the ones that produce the overwhelming smog in their cities.
ReplyDeleteNice references there! It is interesting to think that companies are so against lowering the level, yes it would be very expensive, however many of these industries get heavy subsidies from the government and huge tax cuts. The cost should be well within a year or two's worth of profit especially if they keep getting funding and tax cuts. Though the EPA is probably making the right choice by making small increments over a huge jump with a longer time line. It will be interesting to see what comes out of their proposal in 2015.
ReplyDeleteI hope the EPA stays vigilant in enacting these new regulations! Its scary to think of health issues for little kids due to the outside environment they live and play in. I like how you mentioned this and also the environmental effect of smog. Hopefully all the industries negatively affected by new regulations will do something to improve their ways of production and standards. Maybe incentives such as tax breaks would help? It stinks that they would have to be enticed but if it makes a change for the better it should be done.
ReplyDelete