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POLLUTION SOURCES |
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Air Pollution and Health This page was extracted from Fact Sheets at the ARB's web site |
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Despite significant success in reducing overall pollution levels, air pollution continues to be an important public health problem. Air monitoring shows that over 90 percent of Californians breathe unhealthy levels of one or more air pollutants during some part of the year. Health-based ambient air quality standards set by the California Air Resources Board (ARB) identify outdoor pollutant levels that are considered safe for the public – including those most sensitive to the effects of air pollution, such as children and the elderly. The ARB has set standards for eight "traditional" pollutants, such as ozone and particulate matter. In addition to setting standards, the ARB identifies other air pollutants as toxic air contaminants (toxics) – pollutants that may cause serious, long-term effects, such as cancer, even at low levels. Most toxics have no known safe levels, and some may accumulate in the body from repeated exposures. The Board has identified about 200 pollutants as toxics, and measures continue to be adopted to reduce emissions of toxics. Both traditional pollutants and toxic air contaminants are measured statewide to assess programs for cleaning the air. The ARB works with local air pollution control districts to reduce air pollution from all sources. |
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| What are the health effects of some common air pollutants? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The table below shows the health effects of some of the common pollutants found in our air and examples of some of the sources of these pollutants. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Air Pollution Sources, Effects and Control
This page was extracted from Fact Sheets at the ARB's web site
Where does air pollution come from? How does it effect people and the environment? How can we control, or better yet, prevent it? The following table summarizes the sources, effects, and prevention and control methods for ten of the most important air pollutants in California.
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Pollutant |
Sources |
Effects |
Prevention and Control |
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Formed when reactive organic gases (ROG) and nitrogen oxides react in the presence of sunlight. ROG sources include any source that burns fuels (e.g., gasoline, natural gas, wood, oil);solvents; petroleum processing and storage; and pesticides | Breathing difficulties, lung tissue damage, damage to rubber and some plastics. | Reduce motor vehicle reactive organic gas (ROG) and nitrogen oxide emissions through emissions standards, reformulated fuels, inspections programs, and reduced vehicle use. Limit ROG emissions from commercial operations and consumer products. Limit ROG and NOx emissions from industrial sources such as power plants and refineries. Conserve energy |
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Road dust, windblown dust, agriculture and construction, fireplaces. Also formed from other pollutants (acid rain, NOx, SOx, organics). Incomplete combustion of any fuel. | Increased respiratory disease, lung damage, cancer, premature death, reduced visibility, surface soiling. | Control dust sources, industrial particulate emissions, wood burning stoves and fireplaces. Reduce secondary pollutants which react to form PM10. Conserve energy |
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Fuel combustion in motor vehicles, equipment, and industrial sources; residential and agricultural burning. Also formed from reaction of other pollutants (acid rain, NOx, SOx, organics). | Increases respiratory disease, lung damage, cancer, premature death; reduced visibility; surface soiling. | Reduce combustion emissions from motor vehicles, equipment, industries, and agriculture and residential burning. Precursor controls, like those for ozone, reduce fine particle formation in the atmosphere. |
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Any source that burns fuel such as automobiles,trucks, heavy construction equipment and farming equipment, residential heating. | Chest pain in heart patients, headaches, reduced mental alertness | Control motor vehicle and industrial emissions. Use oxygenated gasoline during winter months. Conserve energy. |
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See Carbon Monoxide | Lung irritation and damage. Reacts in the atmosphere to form ozone and acid rain | Control motor vehicle and industrial combustion emissions.Conserve energy. |
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Metal smelters, resource recovery, leaded gasoline, deterioration of lead paint | Learning disabilities, brain and kidney damage | Control metal smelters, No lead in gasoline. Replace leaded paint with non-lead substitutes. |
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Coal or oil burning power plants and industries, refineries, diesel engines | Increases lung disease and breathing problems for asthmatics. Reacts in the atmosphere to form acid rain. | Reduce the use of high sulfer fuels (e.g., use low sulfer reformulated diesel or natural gas). Conserve energy. |
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See PM2.5 | Reduces visibility ( e.g., obscures mountains and other scenery), reduced airport safety, lower real estate value, discourages tourism | See PM2.5 |
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Produced by the reaction in the air of SO2 ( see SO2 sources), a component of acid rain | Breathing difficulties, aggravates asthma, reduced visibility | See SO2 |
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Geothermal power plants, petroleum production and refining, sewer gas | Nuisance odor (rotten egg smell), headache and breathing difficulties (higher concentrations) | Control emissions from geothermal power plants, petroleum production and refining, sewers, sewage treatment plants |
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