Hello, my name is Joshua. I am in Grade 6, so I am in the Grade 4-6 category. I am only one person. The hardware tools I used for my project were a digital camera and a scanner. My project is in the subject area of pollution. My project is experimental. As you can see, the language is English. I got the idea from a list of the school projects that had been found on a site. On the sheet, it had "Air Purification Methods" and then I just came up with the idea of my project. In my project I compared two different filters to see which worked the best. The Special Skills I used to make my project was html, and the award that I got for my project was an honourable mention.
Filters are used everywhere where there is a furnace. There are many different types of filters. There are filters with smaller or larger surface areas, there are filters with more or fewer holes, and there are filters with larger or smaller holes. There are even some filters made of metal that you can wash the dust off when they are filthy. Filters are used everyday in our modern lives. Without them, you would be breathing very polluted air every time you were in your house. If you didn't have a filter, you and your family could die of breathing problems occured in the lungs at your house.
Did you know that you spend 80-90% of your life inside your home? That is a long portion of your life. Imagine how it would have an effect on us if we didn't have filters. We work, study, eat, drink, and sleep in our houses where air ciruclation may be restricted. For these reasons, some people think that people suffer more from the effects on indoor air pollution than outdoor pollution.
There are many different sources of indoor air pollution. Tobacco, smoke, cooking and heating appliances, and vapors from building materials such as paints and furniture cause indoor air pollution. Radon is a natural radioactive gas released from the earth, and it can be found concentrated in basements in some parts of United States. Pollution exposure at home and work is often greater than outdoors. The California Air Resources Board estimates that indoor air pollutant levels are 25-62% greater than outside levels and can cause serious health problems.
Smog is a type of a large-scale outdoor air pollution. It is caused by chemical reactions between pollutants derived from different sources, primarily automobile exhaust and industrial emissions. Cities are often centers of these types of activities, and may suffer from the effects of smog, especially during the warm months of the year. For each city, the exact causes of pollution may be different. Depending on the geographical location, temperature, wind, and other weather factors, pollution is dispersed differently.
However, sometimes this does not happen and the pollution can build up to dangerous levels. A temperature inversion occurs when air close to the earth is cooler than the air above it. Under these conditions, the pollution cannot rise and be dispersed. Cities surrounded by mountains also experience trapping of pollution. Inversions can happen in any season. Winter inversions are likely to cause particulate and carbon monoxide pollution. Summer inversions are more likely to create smog.
Another consequence of outdoor air pollution is acid rain. When a pollutant, such as sulfuric acid combines with droplets of water in the air, the water or snow can become acidified. The effects of acid rain on the environment can be very serious. It damages plants by destroying their leaves, it poisons the soil, and it changes the chemistry of lakes and streams. Damage due to acid rain kills trees and harms animals, fish and other wildlife.
The Greenhouse Effect, also referred to as global warming, is generally believed to come from the build-up of carbon dioxide gas in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is produced when fuels are burned. Plants convert carbon dioxide back to oxygen, but the release of carbon dioxide from human activities is higher than the world's plants can process. The situation is made worse since many of the earth's forests are being removed and plant life is being damaged by acid rain. Thus, the amount of carbon in the air continuing to increase. This build-up acts like a blanket and traps heat close to the surface of our earth. Changes of even a few degrees will affect us all through changes in the climate and even the possibility that the polar ice caps will melt.
One of the consequences of the polar ice caps melting would be a rise in global sea level, resulting in widespread coastal flooding.
Ozone depletion is another result of pollution. Chemicals released by our activitites affect the stratosphere, one of the atmospheric layers surrounding the earth. The ozone layer in the stratosphere protects the earth from harmful ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Release of CFC's or chlorofluorocarbons from aerosol cans, cooling systems, and refrigerator equipment removes some of the ozone, causing "holes" or to open up this layer allowing the sun to reach the earth. Ultraviolet radiation is known to cause skin cancer and has a damaging affect on plants and wildlife.
Air pollution can affect our health in many ways with both short-term and long-term effects. Different groups of individuals are affected by air pollution in different ways. Some individuals are much more sensitive to pollutants than others. Young children and elderly people suffer more from the effects of air pollution. People with health problems such as asthma, and heart and lung diseases may also suffer more when the air is polluted. The extent to which an individual is harmed by air pollution usually depends on the total exposure to the damaging chemicals, the duration of the exposure, and the concentration of the chemicals must be taken into account.
Examples of short-term effects include irritation to the eyes, nose and throat, and upper respiratory system infections such as bronchitis and pneumonia. Other symptoms can include headaches, nausea, and allergic reactions. Short-term air pollution can aggravate the medical conditions of the individuals with asthma and emphysema. In the great "Smog Disaster" in London in 1952, four thousand people died in a few days due to the high concentrations of the pollution.
Long-term effects can include chronic respiratory disease, lung cancer, heart disease, and even damage to the brain, nerves, liver, or kidneys. Continual exposure to air pollution may aggravate or complicate medical conditions in the elderly. It is estimated that half a million people die prematurely every year in the United States as a result of smoking cigarettes. Research into the health effects of air pollution is ongoing. Medical conditions arising from air pollution can be very expensive. Healthcare costs, lost productivity in the workplace, and human welfare impacts cost billions of dollars each year.
In many countries in the world, steps are being taken to stop the damage to our environment from air pollution. Scientific groups study the damaging effects on plant, animal and human life. Legislative bodies write laws to conrol emissions. Educators in schools and universities teach students, beginning at very young ages, about the affects of air pollution. The first step to solving air pollution is assessment. Researchers have investigated outdoor air pollution and have developed standards for measuring the type and amount of serious air pollutants. Scientists must then determine how much exposure to pollutants is harmful. Once exposure levels have been set, steps can be undertaken to reduce exposure to air pollution. These can be accomplished by regulation of man-made emissions for transportation vehicles and industry. This is usually done through a variety of coordinating agencies which monitor the air and the environment. At the United Nations, the Atmosphere Management Program carries out worldwide environmental projects. In the United States, the primary federal agency is the Environmental Protection Agency. Many state and local organizations also participate in monitoring and controlling the environment. These include the San Fransisco Bay Area's Air Quality Management District, the Air Quality Management in southern California, the Environmental Protection Agency of California, SmogBusters of southern California, and the Galveston-Houston Association for Smog Prevention.
Prevention is another key to controlling air pollution. The regulatory agencies mentioned above play an essential role in reducing and preventing air pollution in the environment.
In addition, it is possible to prevent the many types of air pollution that are not regulated through personal, careful attention to our interactions with the environment. In the United States, most household products come with instructions about safe use. Building materials should be reviewed for potential harmful effects. Adequate ventilations is also a key to controlling exposure to indoor air pollution. Home and work environments should be monitored for adequate air flow and proper exhaust systems installed. One of the most dangerous air pollutants is cigarette smoke. Restricting smoking is an important key to a healthier environment. Legislation to control smoking is in effect in some locations, but personal exposure should be monitored and limited wherever possible.
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