CUE - Enviromental Issues Flashcards
How does atmospheric pollution vary in urban areas? (HICs)
Reliance on fossil fuels decreasing
Use of less polluting energy sources increasing
Air qualitiy in many cities has improved since 1950 as a result
Car ownership increasing congestion
In many HICs there are strategies to limit air pollution eg) “green” modes of transport
How does atmospheric pollution vary in urban areas? (NEEs/LICs)
Many still rely heavily on fossil fuels to meet their energy needs
Increases in industrial activity and car ownership, with a lack of regulation of emissions, mean atmospheric pollution is often severe
In many there has been some progress towards reducing urban air pollution eg) most have phased out lead petrol but progress is slow and health implications are servere.
What are the causes of air pollution?
release of particles and noxious (harmful) gases into the atmosphere - can have a negative effect on human helath
2014, World Health Organisation (WHO) found urban air pollution was 2.5 higher than the recommended levels in about half the urban populations being monitored.
This puts people at risk of serious long-term health problems eg) respiratory illnesses
9 400 Londoners died prematurely from air pollutants in 2010, mainly from exposure to nitrogen dioxide and fine PM2.5 particles
Human activity produces pollutants but it is primarily the weather that determines what will happen once they are released into the air.
During wet or windy conditions, pollution concentrations remain low, either blown or washed away.
During periods of still, hot (anticyclonic) weather, pollution can build up to harmful amounts,
called “pollution episodes”.
