Breathing poison: fighting for the right to clean air
The average human consumes 10 litres of air per minute and takes 20,000 breaths per day. Breathing should be life-sustaining but, according to the World Health Organisation, 3.2 million people are dying from air pollution every year.
With 90% of the human race consuming polluted air every day, and the natural environment unable to cope with increased emissions, it’s time to wake up to our smoggy reality. Director-General of the WHO, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, says that marginalised people bear the brunt of the burden. Air pollution is no longer just an environmental concern. It’s also a human rights one.
Air pollution involves the release of hydrocarbons and organic pollutants such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrogen gases into the atmosphere. While these gases have natural sources including bushfires and volcanos, the vast majority is human induced. Burning coal and crude oil for the mining, manufacturing and utility industries has resulted in 91% of Australia’s total air pollution. All emission sources have a degree of local, regional, and global consequences and therefore, whilst individual consumer choices can have a positive effect, this issue demands collective systemic solutions.
Some air pollutants are considered direct, meaning they are an immediate product of human actions, whilst indirect ones come from by-products chemically reacting with the environment. Both sources have minimal human health consequences in low doses but, Paracelsus, the 16th-century scientist, once said, “dose alone makes a poison”. Whilst Paracelsus wasn’t specifically referring to air pollution, Daniel Vallero highlights an important idea from this sentiment; dose impacts response. The takeaway here: too much of anything is a bad thing. And that’s exactly the pickle we’re in.
Whilst the big polluters, China, US, and India, need to do their fair share of emission reduction and atmosphere remediation, other contributing countries cannot ignore their impact either. Every nation must actively reduce their emissions and clean up pre-existing pollution. A coordinated global effort will minimise further health risks in local, marginalised communities, and contribute to a greater global effort against global warming.
Whilst some countries have made vast and measurable improvements in air quality, 90% of air pollution-related deaths are in low and middle-income countries. This speaks to the vast economic disparities between countries, with 40% of the world lacking access to clean cooking fuels and air-filtering technology. A similar economic disparity is occurring within Australia, with 90% of pollution facilities located in low and middle-income suburbs.
Doctor Ben Ewald, from Doctors for the Environment Australia, says that pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide can cause asthma, lung disease, cancer and birth defects. Smeltingin Victoria has been estimated to reach a population of 470,000 people, whilst projects in New South Wales cover 1.7 million people. This has contributed to over 4,000 Australians dying each year due to air pollution-related health conditions. And without immediate action, it’s only going to get worse.
Thankfully, there is a wide range of proposed and implemented solutions. Sadly, change isn’t happening fast enough. We must demand clean air as a human right. To fight for your rights to clean air:
Monitor air quality
Support local air quality monitoring initiatives, or demand that your local government implements one, to determine how dangerous the air quality is in your neighbourhood.
Identify sources of air pollution
Start by looking at your personal day-to-day behaviours. How often are you driving? What types of energy are you supporting when you choose your bank, insurance, and energy providers?
Big corporations are the driving force behind national decisions of what energy we use.
Research what your state government is doing to transfer to renewable energy. What are their policies on air-filtering and anti-pollution?
Engage your network
Share your findings with friends and family. Do they realise the impact of the air quality in their region? Are they aware of the current legislation and environmental policy? An empowered and educated community leads to an empowered and educated response.
Demand a national action plan
According to the Australian Conservation Foundation, coal-fired power stations and the mining industry are the biggest emitters in Australia’s most polluted areas. And yet, Australia has no binding national air pollution standards.
Sending a letter and petitioning local and state government are effective community-driven ways of demanding systemic change. This is important for creating legislation that tightens polluting restrictions on large industry players.
Support creative solutions
With rapid technological advances, we are becoming more creative and capable of dealing with pollution problems. One example of this innovation is the development of titanium dioxide paintwhich is applied to architecture and footpaths. Titanium dioxide speeds up the process of photolysis, which draws nitrogen oxides out of the atmosphere and converts them into nitrate salts. New research claims that nitrogen pollution can be reduced by up to 38% on London streets. Similar titanium technology is being applied to clothing and washing detergents. Investing in, and supporting these projects means that we can more quickly integrate solutions into our everyday lives.
Whilst the situation is dire, our ability to change things and clean up our mess isn’t.
As Ed Begley Jr. once said, “I can’t imagine a right more basic than the right to breathe clean air. We’ve debated for years how that might be possible. Now that we know it is, will we have the courage and the conviction to get there?” Yes. Yes, we do.
Originally published on the Humanitarian Changemakers Network.