Air Pollution in China

China's environmental protection ministry published a report in 2010 which showed that about a third of 113 cities surveyed failed to meet national air standards. According to Chinese government sources, about a fifth of urban Chinese breath heavily polluted air. Many places smell like high-sulfur coal and leaded gasoline. The air quality of Beijing is 16 times worse than New York City.

One of the main causes is the many industries, metal smelters, and coal-fired power plants which causes smog. This spews tons of carbon, metals, gases, and soot into the air. However, these industries are essential for China’s fast- growing industries. Sometimes you can't even see building a few blocks away and blue sky is a rare sight. In Shanghai sometimes you can't see the street from the 5th floor window.

 Beijing on a good and bad day

Especially in urban areas like Beijing and Shanghai, where more industries are situated at, air pollution and smog in are sometimes so bad that the airports are shut down because of poor visibility. Once the airport shuts down, many problems will arise as there is an inconvenience in transport. Many people will not be able to travel out of China that way, and this delays their activities. Also, if the airport shuts down because of air pollution, the productivity and efficiency of the people will be affected. Also, the working force who cannot travel according to their schedule will be greatly affected and as this leads to economic decline.

The amount of airborne suspended particulates in Northern China is almost 20 times above the considered safe level. This results in many people getting lung cancer in areas like Benxi where there is the highest rate of lung cancer in China. To add on, many people, especially men, in China smoke. Smoking which might result in lung cancer plus the serious air pollution could be detrimental to the country’s health in general. 300,000 die each year from ambient air pollution, mostly from heart disease and lung cancer, the leading cause of death in China. An additional 110,000 die from illnesses related to indoor pollution from poorly ventilated wood and coal stoves and toxic fumes from shoddy construction material. In addition, these numbers are expected to rise.

The countries air is in such a bad state that the engines of Chinese airlines have to be overhauled and replaced more frequently than elsewhere because operating in Chinese air corrodes the turbine blades faster. This also means that a lot of revenue has to be invested into the consequences of air pollution which is a disadvantage to China.

The air pollution also affects tourism in negative ways. Before the 2008 Olympics found that 74 percent of the Chinese interviewed said they were concerned about air pollution. in lanzhou, where breathing was almost equivalent to smoking two packs of cigarettes a day

Pollution in New York

1) Water pollution

A cause of the water pollution is the sewage water. It doesn’t take much storm water to overwhelm the city’s sewer system and the overflow is then pumped into New York Harbour. Much of the waterfront and public beaches are unsafe after storms because the runoff contains building sewage combined with dirty water from the streets.

This shows that New York city’s sewage system is not effective as it overflows quickly and discarded into the New York Harbour. If possible, capital should be invested into improving the sewage system so it will not overflow so easily. Also, as the sewage water affects the public beaches and waterfront after storms because of the discarded dirty water, this would mean that many outdoor activities such as sailing or surfing would have to be stopped because of unsafe waters. This not only causes activities to be delayed or cancelled, it also effects the efficiency and productivity of the people. More importantly, this water pollution affects the environment as well as the overflows damage fish habitats and impair navigation.

To tackle this problem, increased tree and vegetation planting which has the potential to decrease the harmful effects of runoff were planted to deter the overflow problem.

2) Air pollution

Air pollution in New York City is an environmental threat which contributes to an estimated 6% of annual deaths. This significant air pollution problem causes premature death for many people and a negative impact onto the New Yorker’s health as well. Ozone, or smog, is the biggest problem. It is caused by sunlight interacting with vapours released from motor vehicles, factories and fuel-burning sources. Fine particulate matter is another culprit, and it is caused by ash, soot, diesel fumes and chemical emissions.

This causes health problems as the particulates burrow their way deep into the lungs and cause asthma, chest pain, wheezing and cancer. The many health problems caused would cause the developed city of New York to face a greater population decline if the problem of smog is not cleared.

Responding to this problem, MillionTreesNYC, an environmental program that combines the expertise of community groups, volunteers and government agencies, is introduced to solve pollution problems in the city. Trees reduce street temperatures and clean city air of the dust and pollutants that contribute to respiratory illness. The tree canopy in NYC helps offset the harm of global warming. Green spaces also encourage the city’s residents and visitors to get out and enjoy the beauty and wildlife of the city.

The City of New York will plant 70% of trees in parks and other public spaces. The other 30% will come from private organizations, homeowners, and community organizations.

Parks (street trees)	220,000
Parks (reforestation and landscape), other agencies, and zoning regulations	480,000
Private Partners	300,000
Grand Total	1 Million New Trees

Pollution in New York

1) Water pollution

A cause of the water pollution is the sewage water. It doesn’t take much storm water to overwhelm the city’s sewer system and the overflow is then pumped into New York Harbour. Much of the waterfront and public beaches are unsafe after storms because the runoff contains building sewage combined with dirty water from the streets.

This shows that New York city’s sewage system is not effective as it overflows quickly and discarded into the New York Harbour. If possible, capital should be invested into improving the sewage system so it will not overflow so easily. Also, as the sewage water affects the public beaches and waterfront after storms because of the discarded dirty water, this would mean that many outdoor activities such as sailing or surfing would have to be stopped because of unsafe waters. This not only causes activities to be delayed or cancelled, it also effects the efficiency and productivity of the people. More importantly, this water pollution affects the environment as well as the overflows damage fish habitats and impair navigation.

To tackle this problem, increased tree and vegetation planting which has the potential to decrease the harmful effects of runoff were planted to deter the overflow problem.

2) Air pollution

Air pollution in New York City is an environmental threat which contributes to an estimated 6% of annual deaths. This significant air pollution problem causes premature death for many people and a negative impact onto the New Yorker’s health as well. Ozone, or smog, is the biggest problem. It is caused by sunlight interacting with vapours released from motor vehicles, factories and fuel-burning sources. Fine particulate matter is another culprit, and it is caused by ash, soot, diesel fumes and chemical emissions.

This causes health problems as the particulates burrow their way deep into the lungs and cause asthma, chest pain, wheezing and cancer. The many health problems caused would cause the developed city of New York to face a greater population decline if the problem of smog is not cleared.

Responding to this problem, MillionTreesNYC, an environmental program that combines the expertise of community groups, volunteers and government agencies, is introduced to solve pollution problems in the city. Trees reduce street temperatures and clean city air of the dust and pollutants that contribute to respiratory illness. The tree canopy in NYC helps offset the harm of global warming. Green spaces also encourage the city’s residents and visitors to get out and enjoy the beauty and wildlife of the city.

The City of New York will plant 70% of trees in parks and other public spaces. The other 30% will come from private organizations, homeowners, and community organizations.

Parks (street trees)	220,000
Parks (reforestation and landscape), other agencies, and zoning regulations	480,000
Private Partners	300,000
Grand Total	1 Million New Trees

Major oil spills.

1. Gulf War, 1991

Location: Kuwait
Gallons: 240 to 336 million

How It Happened:
As Iraqi forces retreated from Kuwait during the first Gulf War, they opened the valves of oil wells and pipelines in a bid to slow the onslaught of American troops. The result was the largest oil spill history has seen. Some 240 million gallons of crude oil flowed into the Persian Gulf. The resulting oil slick spanned an area just larger than the size of the island of Hawaii.

The Cleanup:
Coalition forces managed to seal off some of the open pipelines using smart bombs, but most recovery efforts had to wait until after the war. At that point 25 miles of booms (orange ropelike products that contain the oil that is floating on top of the water) and 21 skimmers (machines that separate oil from water) were deployed in the gulf, mostly to protect the water intakes of desalinization, industry and power plants. Together with vacuum trucks, about 58.8 million gallons of oil was recovered from the gulf.

The largest oil spill the world has seen exacted little permanent damage on coral ecosystems and local fisheries, according to a report by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission at Unesco. The study concluded that about half the oil evaporated, one-eighth of it was recovered and another quarter washed ashore, mostly in Saudi Arabia.

 

2. The Torrey Canyon Oil Spill

When: March 18, 1967
Where: Scilly Isles, UK
Amount spilled: 25-36 million gallons

The Torrey Canyon was one of the first big supertankers, and it was also the source of one of the first major oil spills. Although the ship was originally built to carry 60,000 tons, it was enlarged to a 120,000-ton capacity, and that’s the amount the ship was carrying when it hit a reef off the coast of Cornwall.

The spill created an oil slick measuring 270 square miles, contaminating 180 miles of coastland. More than 15,000 sea birds and enormous numbers of aquatic animals were killed before the spill was finally contained.

Toxic solvent-based cleaning agents were used by Royal Navy vessels to try to disperse the oil, but that didn't work very well and instead caused a great deal of environmental damage. It was then decided to set fire to the ocean and burn away the oil by dropping bombs.

 

 

Question that Ms J posted to us on 130712.

With reference to examples. how sustainable are the national efforts to reduce pollution compared to international efforts?

 

1. Environmental Economics and the Economics of Pollution Control

Environmental economics views the real economy in which we all live and work as an open system. This means that in order to function, the economy must extract resources (raw material and fuel) from the environment, process these resources, and dispose of large amounts of dissipated and/or chemically transformed resources back into the environment. The process starts with the extraction of resources, which can be exhaustible (fixed in overall quantity) or renewable ( resource grows through time). Pollution is waste that has been disposed off in the air, in water or on land, and that reduces the value of those resources in alternative uses. Resource depletion and environmental pollution are key factors in determining the natural capital of a nation and achieving sustainable development.
 Environmental economics uses cost-benefit thinking to deal with environmental problems and issues. Benefits and damage assessments are used to integrate the un-priced but valuable functions of natural environments into cost-benefit analysis of real world projects, and to illustrate the kinds of economic damage done to national economics by resource depletions and pollution.  
Empirical evidence indicates that after substantial amount of polluting emissions have been reduced, extra waste reduction is much more costly than previous reductions. There is a point beyond which the costs of further reducing pollution by far exceeds the increase in social benefits and what people are willing to pay. The benefits of pollution control are measured by the reduction in damages caused by pollution to human health, and to material, natural and agricultural resources.

2. Mechanisms to achieve pollution reduction

Production or consumption of goods and services often results in costs or benefits to people other than the buyers and sellers. For example, if an industry disposes of wastes in a stream, it imposes costs to people who want to use the stream for other purposes, such as drinking water. People who live in that municipality will have to pay to clean up the water if they want to drink it. The cost of cleaning the stream is a hidden cost of the production of goods by the industry. This hidden cost, which will be assumed by taxpayers, is referred to in economic terms as a negative externality.
Free market transactions are usually unregulated in the sense that there is no mechanism for charging polluters a fee to correct for the damage done by their emissions. Once society has decided on an acceptable level of environmental quality, it is necessary to adopt measures that will change the behavior of producers and consumers. This could be achieved through government intervention, by setting command and control regulations and market-based incentives.
For example, air pollution episodes in major cities across the United States, led to the United States government to the establishment of strong emission standards for industry and automobiles. The Clean Air Act of 1970, empowered the federal government to set emission standards that each state was required to enforce. The Clean Air Act was revised in 1977 and in 1990 to include incentives to encourage companies to lower emissions of chemicals responsible for the production of acid rain. The Act today identifies 189 pollutants for regulation.
Similarly, by early 1970s water pollution had reached crisis proportions in the United States. Congress responded in 1972 by passing the Clean Water Act, whose main objective was "to restore and maintain the chemical, physical and biological integrity of the Nation’s waters." "In order to achieve this objective it is hereby declared that, consistent with the provisions of this Act —

(1) it is the national goal that the discharge of pollutants into the navigable waters be eliminated by 1985; (2) it is the national goal that wherever attainable, an interim goal of water quality which provides for the protection and propagation of fish, shellfish, and wildlife, and provides for recreation in and on the water be achieved by July 1, 1983;
(3) it is the national policy that the discharge of toxic pollutants in toxic amounts be prohibited."

It should be noted that in the case of air and water pollution, the damage is done because they are open access resources. This is why the phenomenon of global climate change has come about, which has motivated governments to act.

Regulatory and Incentive-based Policies
The techniques used by regulatory agencies, such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to control pollution range from charges for the right to pollute to regulations that impose limits to the amount of a pollutant. Among these are the following:
Emission Charges
Emission Charges are prices established for the right to emit a unit of a pollutant.
Example: In the United Sates industrial polluters pay effluent fees for the right to dump waste in municipal water treatment plants.
Advantage: Directly internalizes a negative externality by pricing the use of the environment to dispose of waste.
Emission Standards
Limits established by government on the annual amounts and kinds of pollutants that can be emitted into the air or water by producers or users of certain products.
Example:
EPA places limits on the number of grams/mile of hydrocarbons, nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide emitted per automobile. The automobile industry satisfies these standards by equipping cars with catalytic converters. In turn, this device raises the cost of cars.
Disadvantages:

- Allow emission of less than the standard free of charge;
- Firms are restricted in the method of compliance;
- Does not take into account differences among firms;
- Does not take into account differences among regions.

Pollution Rights
A government-issued permit allowing a firm to emit a specified quantity of polluting waste.
Example: Michigan's Air Emissions Trading Program.
Advantages:

- Pollution permits are tradable at free market prices.
- Regulatory authorities can control the amount of pollution by limiting the number of certificates.
- Provides a choice: purchase permits and pollute or reduce pollution and save the cost of permits.
- Provides an incentive to reduce emissions in order to sell previously purchased pollution rights.

  3. Reducing Pollution at the Global level

We have addressed techniques to control environmental pollution at the national level. In some instances, however, pollution is the result of activities at the global level and nations may be required to implement international agreements that address current pollution practices. As environmental problems become global in scope, international cooperation is needed to solve them. International and regional organizations may play a key role in developing a consensus on what types of collective action should be pursued. Although the role of international organizations is extremely important, one should not forget that environmental problems require action at the national and local levels.
An example of a global environmental issue is the depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer, which will increase exposure to solar UV radiation, thereby increasing the incidence of cancer and cataracts.

Regarding the Eyjafjallajökull irruption :)

The 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull were volcanic events at Eyjafjöll in Iceland which, although relatively small for volcanic eruptions, caused enormous disruption to air travel across western and northern Europe over an initial period of six days in April 2010. Additional localised disruption continued into May 2010. The eruption was declared officially over in October 2010, when snow on the glacier did not melt. From 14–20 April, ash covered large areas of northern Europe when the volcano erupted. About 20 countries closed their airspace (a condition known as ATC Zero) and it affected hundreds of thousands of travellers.
Seismic activity started at the end of 2009 and gradually increased in intensity until on 20 March 2010, a small eruption started rated as a 1 on the Volcanic Explosivity Index.
Beginning on 14 April 2010, the eruption entered a second phase and created an ash cloud that led to the closure of most of Europe's IFR airspace. Consequently, a very high proportion of flights within, to, and from Europe were cancelled, creating the highest level of air travel disruption since the Second World War.
The second phase of the eruption started on 14 April 2010 and resulted in an estimated 250 million cubic metres of ejected tephra. The ash plume rose to a height of approximately 9 kilometres, which rates the explosive power of the eruption as a 4 on the Volcanic Explosivity Index.
By 21 May 2010, the second eruption phase had subsided to the point that no further lava or ash was being produced. More seismic activity was produced.
By the morning of 24 May 2010, the view from the web camera installed on Þórólfsfell showed only a plume of water vapour surrounded by a blueish haze caused by the emission of sulphurous gases.
Due to the large quantities of dry volcanic ash lying on the ground, surface winds frequently lifted up an "ash mist" that significantly reduced visibility and made web camera observation of the volcano impossible.

Due to this massive volcanic eruption. about 500 farmers and their families had to be evacuated. The river water temperature also increased about  6°C, which was thought that this rise in water temperature is related to the eruption nearby and is affecting part of the drainage basin. The thick layer of ash that has fallen on some Icelandic farms and pastures at Raufarfell has become wet and compact, making it very difficult to continue farming, harvesting or grazing livestock.