China’s remarkable, untrammeled economic growth is causing severe environmental degradation which is bound to have domestic and international repercussions. Joseph Kahn and Jim Yardley, explore this theme through their article “As China Roars, Pollution Reaches Deadly Extremes” (2007) which appeared in the New York Times. This precis aims to summarize the main points of their article.
According to the authors, China’s industries and cars are causing some serious air and water pollution and preliminary statistics by reputed institutions are indeed alarming. According to Khan & Yardley (2007) “outdoor air pollution was already causing 350,000 to 400,000 premature deaths a year” (para 36) in China. Khan and Yardley (2007) also state that “nearly 500 million people lack access to safe drinking water. Only 1 percent of the country’s 560 million city dwellers breathe air considered safe by the European Union” (para 3&4). The authors opine that China’s coal-fired power plants are causing acid rain in SE Asia due to the indiscriminate discharge of noxious gases. The effect has spread to the US too with a report that “much of the particulate pollution over Los Angeles originates in China” (Khan & Yardley, para 8). The International Energy Agency estimates that “China could become the emissions leader by the end of this year” (Khan & Yardley, para 10).
Since 75% of China’s energy needs are supplied by coal-fired plants, they become the primary source of air pollution. A spurt in the automobile industry and increasing car sales are leading to road congestions, which coupled with bad quality of car fuel are the other added factors for the increase in air pollution. The scarcity of water, especially in Northern China poses to be the greatest challenge to Chinese authorities. To counter the scarcity, the authorities have launched a river networking project which is slated to cost over $60 billion. The idea is to harness the excess waters of the Yangtze River to replenish the Yellow River which perennially suffers from lack of water and the formation of silt. Despite the obvious scarcity, conservation of water is not high on the agenda and industries consume enormous quantities of water far in excess of what is consumed by similar industries in the West.
This fast growth of air and water pollution has taken place because of a rapid shift from small-scale private industries to heavy industries which are inefficient. The spurt of growth is not restricted to just the heavy industries but extends to the construction business also where Chinese businesses have built more premises than those found in the United States of America. These buildings lack insulation and require double the amount of energy to heat or cool than similar buildings in the west.
To obviate the effects of pollution, a simple solution could be found in just reducing the overall economic growth so that pollution can be controlled. This course of action is not acceptable to the Chinese leaders as it could lead to social instability and loss of profits for the businesses which in the ultimate analysis could spell the end of Communist Party rule in China. The Chinese government has also shied away from agreeing to accept any compulsory limit on its carbon dioxide emissions. According to their logic, it is the western countries that have been responsible for the maximum emission of carbon dioxide and therefore have to be the first ones to cut emissions. The government has tried to put in some half-hearted measures to reduce pollution with no significant success as the enforcement lacks conviction and is often marred by corruption.
References
Khan, Joseph, & Yardley, Jim. (August 26, 2007). As China Roars, Pollution Reaches.
There are environmental hazards that surround us in one way or another and all of them essentially threaten our well-being or health and there are different ways in which we respond to them. We can be away from toxic, sanctify water before drinking it and shield ourselves from radiation which is harmful but we can not be able to escape from the air. Air is a fluid medium and accepts all contaminants that are injected into it, mix them together and the resulting concoction is delivered into our lungs directly. (Brian, 2005 pp24 par 3-5)
There is variation in our exposure to air pollution depending on the time and the place where we are and the effect is dependant on individual susceptibilities but the fact remains that as long as we live, we have to breathe. In many parts of United States today and other countries all over the world, the environment and human health is threatened by poor air quality but we have high expectations of clean air today than the days before and the damage caused by poor quality of air can be clearly understood than ever before. We can not be able to return to the clean air that existed during preindustrial times but we always aspire to manage the quality of air and avoid any damage to clean air. (Bryan, 2005 pp23 par2-4)
Identifying major parts of the building fabric that contribute to clean air
Hot-list
This helps to pinpoint any new technology that may be useful in future or now in organization or the project that is being worked on. This section consists of list of innovative products, upgraded or improved products that are updated regularly and new organizational or production methods and systems. Hot-list section has new and transferable technology and highlights the features that appeal to construction companies, specifies and designers, owners of the building and end users. At the end, the owner of the building is supposed to judge by himself and tell about his experiences in order to help in giving advice to other people.
Experts help to identify challenges and technology gaps which are investigated in order to help in evaluating suitability of emerging technologies and how useful they can be in ensuring there is clean air in a building. (Chew, 2001 pp45 par1-3)
Fuel cells
The fuel cell technology should be suitable, clean and safe. A fuel cell is electrochemical device for combining oxygen obtained from the air with hydrogen fuel in order to produce water, electricity and heat. Fuel cells are able to operate without combustion and are pollution free because the fuel is directly converted to electricity and can operate at higher efficiencies than the engines that are used for internal combustion thereby extracting large amount of electricity by use of fuel of the same amount. The parts of fuel cell do not move making it quite and source of power that is reliable. It is important to know that fuel cell is today’s technology and not something that will not be used in future. (Chew, 2001 pp47 par 1-2)
RFID chips
Radio frequency identification (RFID) is integrated circuits that have been used for along period of time but they are getting smaller. The MU-chip manufactured in Japan by Hitachi is the smallest in the world and uses frequency of 2.45GHz which is the same as Bluetooth and the IEEE801.11b devices. Its 128 bit Rom is able to identify trillion of objects which are unique and at 0.4mm; it is small to embed it in packing and paper. It can be applied in electronic numbering of documents and products for manufacturing and distribution, tracking, consumption and recycling. It has major impact on construction supply chains, logistical efficiency and maintaining building fabric and installation of services. (Fales, 1990 pp17 par 3-5)
Smart dust
These are autonomous devices used for communication and sensing in space of cubic millimeter. It was developed in the United States at Berkeley and represent convergence of nanotechnology, ICT and biotechnology. These bottle-cap shaped tiny micro-machines are fitted with communication devices that are wireless and measures temperature and light. They are clustered together to create low power networks which are flexible and their applications range from systems that control climate to devices that are able to interact with computers which are handheld. The sensors have wireless devices for communication attached to them. When a building is dust enabled, computers turn off the light and control the climate in the room. (Fales, 1990 pp19 par 2-5)
Terahertz cameras
This technique makes use of terahertz waves or T-rays electromagnetic pulses in order to differentiate between chemicals, various materials and environments. T-rays always characterize materials through measuring amounts of distortions from dispersion, reflection or absorption of rays that pass through up to a detector. For example, the ones that go through materials with uneven texture are distorted into different waveform than the ones passing through material which is more consistent. Terahertz camera help to create a map of areas which are hidden and where moisture is penetrating into the building fabric and help to see through floors and walls in order to detect problems that could have remained hidden until when failure occur. (Madsen, 2005 pp34 par3-5)
Biomimetics
Nature teaches us many lessons and we are able to learn many things from the pattern of nature, from its function and form that makes us consider products and materials that mimic it. Biometric describe a science field where materials can be created from blueprints of nature. For example, in relevance to construction sector of Crystal Palace in 1851, Joseph Paxton beat engineers and architects with his own design that was based on supporting structure of Amazonian water lily pad. The applications ranged from super-strong materials and robotic devices to novel connectors. (Madsen, 2005 pp39 par1-3)
Automation and robotics
Construction robotics and automation concept is hardly new. Advancement in underlying technology and continued research by Japanese led to important breakthrough. The enhancement of construction plant which is existing and equipment through adding devices of low cost to improve control and navigation raised productivity and reduced costs. Further developments involves automated construction site where pre-fabricated components are brought close to the site and manipulated into a position where final fixing is done. This helps to ensure there is supply of clean air into the building and poor quality air is purified. (Bryan, 2005 pp25 par 1-20
Identifying the major building services which could be used to satisfy the environmental need for clean air
Indoor air quality
Good quality of indoor air is the air free from pollutants that may cause discomfort, ill health to the people who occupy it and cause irritation. Relative humidity and thermal conditions influence health and comfort. If the indoor environment is poor, it manifests itself as a building which is sick where some occupants may experience mild symptoms of illness when they are occupying the building. There may be serious problems of pollutants in the long run and permanent effects of ill-health. Much of the time is spent inside the building and this requires considerable efforts to be made focusing on methods that help to achieve indoor environment which is optimum through emphasizing on odor control, energy efficiency and thermal comfort. (Chew, 2001 pp48 par1-4)
Energy aspect
Energy of considerable portion consumed in building is got rid of by air infiltration and ventilation. This has implications which are important at consumer level where it is a must to meet the cost and strategic level where primary energy need and pollution of environment is contributed to. Ventilation is linked closely to concern about quality of indoor air, there is big problem of knowing how much ventilation is required to provide healthy indoor environment.
Since there is difficulty in assessing energy impact of the ventilation, air change in relevance to use of energy is not defined. As a result, there is no adequate datum for developing strategic planning to improve efficiency of energy of ventilation. This difficulty is due to complexity of tasks which has to accommodate various factors like, air tightness in buildings, climate, occupancy patterns and ventilation approaches. (Chew, 2001 pp49 par4-5)
Ventilation design criteria
The ventilation design must satisfy the demand required. This need is met by considering criteria that vary from meeting building regulations to making a plan for maintenance and the replacement. Ventilation system itself needs to be integrated into overall building design in relation to room partitioning, air tightness and accessibility. Wide parameters are involved and there is no solution which is unique to building design of any particular nature. Instead, judgment must be made by designer on each building individual needs. Robust solution ensures comfort and health of occupants and ventilation need according to a given criteria need to be established when the building is at design stage. (Bryan, 2005 pp26 par 3-4)
Ventilation strategies
The needs of ventilation are met using systems and techniques with each of them having advantages, disadvantages and applications. The choice made depends on building type and local climatic conditions. Frequently, competitiveness in price and being unwilling to deviate from minimum specifications of building regulations and codes of practice restricts the choice made and limit innovation opportunity. In order to justify any complex strategy, advantages should be demonstrated in terms of reduced demand for energy, improved indoor climate and payback period which is acceptable. (Fales, 1990 pp18 par1-4)
The contribution of major building services varies depending on different building uses. developers are willing to take on tall buildings due to its high benefits such as higher rent and increased density but high rise developments has a number of challenges like income stream where people refuse to inhabit building until it is completed and therefore developers can only realize full income once the building is completed. Efficiency of the floor area is affected by height because, structural and core zones expand in relation to overall floor plate to be able to satisfy vertical circulation requirement and resist the wind loads. (Madsen, 2005 pp36 par 1-2)
In planning hurdles, significant effort is needed for scrutinizing environmental, architectural and economic impact to help in consultation and planning processes. In procurement strategy, current state of the property and market for construction has been crystallizing procurement strategies for projects which are large and complex. Availability and capability of trade constructors need to be considered through early and continuous involvement of specialists.
Towers take a lot of time to build than buildings that are short. Cost is incurred in developers’ costs, construction and future costs are difficult to predict, regulations changes and demand in the market. There are technical challenges because schemes might vary depending on form and shape but technical challenges that relate to developing towers which are commercially viable in sensitive locations need to satisfy stakeholders. Considering security and safety, pragmatic approach is taken by developers, focus on management issues and ensure there are sensible enhancements to base building. (Madsen, 2005 pp37 par2-3)
References
Madsen D. (2005): Print reading for architecture and construction technology: Cengage Delmar, pp. 34-40.
Fales J. (1990): construction technology today and tomorrow: McGraw-Hill, pp. 17-21.
Bryan T. (2005): construction technology; analysis and choice: Blackwell Pub, pp. 23-26.
Chew M. (2001): construction technology for tall buildings: World Scientific Publishing Company, pp. 45-49.
Environmental management requires that activities that have impacts on the environment must undergo continuous review and improvement. This entails the management of all activities and technologies involved to ensure the environmental performance of an organization or company. Firms integrate environmental issues into their overall operations and management. This ensures that the company conducts its activities within the framework of sustainability and limiting the impacts of those activities on the environment. An environmental management system is an amalgamation of systematic approaches aimed at assisting companies in formulating environmental management policies and utilizing company resources to achieve the goals of corporate environmental responsibility. The EMS is also integral to all management systems such as “organizational structure, planning, activities, responsibilities, procedures, processes, and resources for developing, implementing, achieving, reviewing and maintaining environmental policy.” (Pun, Hui and Lee 2001, p.113) The systematic approach of the EMS helps companies to organize work methodologies or processes integral to their activities. Some of the areas addressed include: “Positive prevention, optimum utilization of resources and cost reduction; Compliance with environmental legislation; Promoting awareness of pollution prevention; Formulating contingency plans; Enhancing training and management and Improving the corporate image.” (p.113).
Environmental management is dynamic and it is concurrent to the existing management strategies and agenda of the company. It is also taken into consideration existing environmental legislation, changes in technology, and market pressures (Environmental Management Systems 2008). Statutes and legislations pertaining to environmental compliance enforce the need to implement environmental management and monitoring of activities of companies that may have an impact on the environment. If companies have environment management policies, the EU IPPC directive mandates that member states must have some form of a regulatory body to ensure that national and international policies on pollution are followed. Article 3.1 of the EU IPPC defined the main tasks of the regulatory body in ensuring the basic obligations of operators are being met (EU Directives 2008, p.12).
Within the context of environmental management, some form of standards must be established. The EU IPPC directives Article 10 require that member states establish the best available techniques (BAT) and environmental quality standards (p.14). It is with these standards that organizations are able to establish environmental management goals in conjunction with their organizational goals and strategies. Emmott (1997) observed that the concept of IPPC is broad in that it covers and addresses pollution problems in three mediums (air, land, and water) (p.1). The intent of considering an integrated policy towards environmental regulation is the possibility of pollution transferring from one medium to another (p.1). The directive also ensures that member states should at least have established some principles that industrial installations should comply with. The principles include making sure preventive measures are instituted against pollution; minimize pollution; avoid waste production and encourage resource recovery; using energy efficiently; ensuring environmental accidents are avoided and if they do occur, implement ways to clean up and prevent contamination (p.2).
Emmott (1997) also mentioned the UK’s integrated pollution control (IPC), which was introduced in the Environmental Protection Act of 1990. UK implemented the integrated system earlier than the EU directive (p.3). In the UK IPC, the best available technique (BAT) was introduced as the best available technique not entailing excessive costs or BATNEEC (p.3). One could observe that both statutes appear to comply with the principles of environmental management but in a broader context. Environmental management strategies that the company or organization may implement voluntarily may be specific to the needs and capabilities of the company. Environment management systems may also be implemented based on the focus of the company in the aspect of assuming corporate social responsibility.
Emmott (1997) observed that both the EU IPPC and the UK IPC made no mention or consideration to use the life cycle approach in decision-making. Whereas, in the environmental management context that companies may adopt, a primary concern in major decisions to manufacture certain products is determining its life cycle. The EU IPPC and the UK IPC were instituted primarily to perform the regulatory nature of pollution control. In the environmental management milieu, some standards or regulations must be established. This enables companies to integrate environmental management systems to gauge the level of success or compliance. Without such measures or enforcement, it would be difficult to assess. The main role of the IPPC statute is to make sure that environmental regulations are followed.
When the world cannot do business, or life, in the same old way, something new must be born. One advantage arising out of the trauma will be the inability of organizations and people to continue in the ecologically blind ways of the current period. The present system is self-destructive and obviously cannot last. Humans are being challenged to find a way of life that does not relentlessly take from the earth. This is how a sustainable economy, which neither poisons nor depletes resources, comes into existence. Politicians will no longer be able to appeal successfully to the lowest common denominator by arguing, for example, that cheap fossil fuels are a rightful part of one’s standard of living or that environmental and labor regulations must be relaxed because there is a recession. It will soon be all too clear that economic and ecological health is inextricably linked.
Adverse environmental changes will gradually push people into developing new ideas and visions about how the future must look. This vision is now becoming pervasive and powerful, with large numbers of people sensing what must be done. People know that there is no future unless it is an ecological future.
It is, therefore, incumbent upon organizations that they function to promote the cleanliness of the environment instead of polluting the land. An example is in British Columbia where the management of organizations is very conscious of the fact that the environment must be chemistry-free. Thus, organizations such as Nathan Printing Services, a full-service printing service, have begun to use waterless inks. Papers are being properly recycled and because of these, the press will be able to attract new customers. Customers commend their good quality and the fact that they are environmentally friendly. (Leibrandt, 2007).
Even schools have become more environmentally responsible. An example is the University of Connecticut that boasts of a green campus fund. School officials are making sure that building projects are constructed according to a set of environmentally sound principles in constructing the building’s impact. There will also be new recycle bins as well as bicycle racks. The Uconn’s Office of Environmental Policy is spearheaded by the school officials and this provides a role model for other universities and companies. Environmental standards are being followed in all its building projects. (Breen, 2006).
In essence, the IPPC must work within the context of environmental management. It ensures that all companies are committed to implementing sustainability standards in their production or business activities. Just as how companies implement environmental management systems (EMS) and making them integral to their overall operations and business strategies, the IPPC must be incorporated in the overall national strategy for environmental sustainability among EU member countries.
Bibliography
Breen, Tom. Uconn looking to become more environmentally friendly. (2006). Journal Inquirer. Web.
Emmott, N. 1997. The Theory and Practice of IPPC: Case Studies from the UK and Hungary and the Implications for Future EU Environmental Policy. European Environment, vol. 7, pp.1–6.
Environmental Management Systems. 2008. Web.
Leibrandt, Tom. (2007). Leveraging Environmentally Friendly Printing for Business Growth.
Pun, K.F., Hui, I.K. and Lee, W.K. 2001. An EMS Approach to Environmentally Friendly Construction Operations. The TQM Magazine, vol.13, no. 2, pp.112-119.
Dangerously high pollution levels shrouded Beijing in smog for several days in Jan, 2013. Poor visibility and 755 air pollution levels as measured by the US Embassy in Beijing shocked all Chinese residents.
Similar data by the American embassy also showed the PM 2.5 had reached an all-time high of 866 microgram per cubic meter, a figure 25 times that of the standard level in US . Local authorities reacted to this even in the following way, they issued containment orders such as requiring reduced construction and engineering activities, restriction on travels by civil officers and reduced outdoor school activities.
Beijing, the mega city capital of China with an estimated population of 20 million has a long history of pollution problems. Sadly to say, but persistent environmental pollution has been brought about by the massive economic growth of the country and which is yet to be sufficiently addressed by successive communist regimes.
Over-reliance on coal for energy, high motorization and poor enforcement of anti-pollution laws have been cited in many areas as the prime causes of pollution .
Air pollution involves having dangerous inhalable quantities of particles of soot, organic compounds, heavy metals, acid aerosols and dust . In Beijing, just like in many other megacities in China, coal, auto exhaust and construction are the major agents of air pollution.
Importantly to note that natural feature mainly geographical and weather pattern and not just emissions also play key roles in the pollution and pollutants levels of the city . High pollution is associated with adverse effects on human health, environment, animal and economic development.
In China, a pollution level is determined from a number of standards specified in the National Ambient Air Pollutant Standards. The particulate matter (PM) is measured on various scales. PM10 and PM2.5 are used but not TSP which was discontinued in 2001 . Heavy pollution in populous areas of Beijing and near by regions such as Beijing- Tianjin-Hebei region has been attributed to high PM2.5 and ozone concentrations.
PM2.5 has been widely used in Beijing during the last decade . To underscore the seriousness of pollution in Beijing, it should be stated that in all measurements in Beijing, the level of PM2.5 has remained exceedingly high compared to the WHO standards . This paper discusses the key aspects of air pollution in Beijing with extrapolation of the same to the rest of China cities.
Beijing is highly pollution and examining the roots, effects and control measures will present a wider picture of the state of air pollution in China. The content is by no means exhaustive and further reference may be helpful. Various factors account for high level of air pollution in the Chinese capital.
These are discussed in the following section. This is followed by the effects and later control measures before conclusion is drawn at the end.
Reasons for high pollution in Beijing
The causes of pollution in Beijing are not far from those of the greater China. They range from heavy industry by products, high population to poor environmental and enforcement policies.Pollution in Beijing was extremely high in the 1990s . However, since 1998, Beijing authorities continuously publish weekly air quality reports for concentration of TSP, SO2, NOx and carbon monoxide (CO) .
Heavy industry
Massive industrialization over the years has been a key marker of the impressive economic growth China has experienced the past decades. Throughout the last two decades heavy and high tech industries have replaced traditional “cleaner” financial and service one . These include steel, petrol, automobile, as well and chemical producers.
The top pollutant producing industries in descending order of ranking are electricity, cement, transportation and warehousing .These industries release dangerous particulate matter, gases, volatile compounds and aerosols into the air. Industries insatiable need for energy has overstretched the available sources. To date, coal remains the primary source of energy for majority of industries in Beijing.
In fact, coal account for 70% of all energy needs in China. In 2010 Beijing alone spent 27 metric tones of coal . Burning of coal and release of its untreated byproducts adds a lot of CO2, SO2 and soot in the air. SO2 emission has been on the increase in Beijing and other cities in China .Chemically, the combustion of coal accounts for 90% of SO2 air emissions, and over 70% of dust, nitrogen and CO2 .
Comparison of coal use, SO2 emission and GDP in China
Figure 1. Total coal consumption, national SO2 emissions, and GDP in China during 1995-2006.
Between 1997 and 2005 alone the increase was 12%. Industrialization in Beijing can be understood from its contribution to the national GDP. Together, with the cities of Shanghai and those in the Pearl River Delta region such as Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hong Kong, it accounts for about 20% of the GDP.
Although heavy industrialization is the major source of pollution in Beijing and most China, its development has been necessitated by the high population that calls for constant jobs and improvement of livelihood. The following section examines the role of high population in regards to pollution.
Figure 2. Energy production and emission of major pollutants.
Huge population
Today, China is the most densely populated country in the world. At the start of this decade, its population stood at over 1.2 billion persons. This presents a serious challenge in tackling various forms of pollution. However, even though the country shows a 60% urbanization 60%, the biggest part of the population still lives in rural areas.
Notwithstanding, this implies constant pressure on the government to create jobs and provide utility services. Meeting these demands obviously comes at a cost. It is known fact that the astronomical growth in GDP in China has been instrumental in lifting millions of Chinese out of poverty.Fast growing cities continue to attract huge number of people from rural areas in search of jobs.
The urban population grew by about 20% between 1980 and 2005 . In Beijing alone, the population currently stands at over 20 million from 15.4 million in 2005 .Overall, the population of Beijing has witnessed an annual rise of about 2% since 1990s . High population translates into more use of solid fuels and coal . Furthermore, despite great economic progress, biomass fuel and coal is still heavily relied on in rural areas.
High population has contributed to air pollution in many ways. First, high ever-swelling urban population calls for more housing leading to intensive construction thus compounding air problems. Secondly, massive urban expansion leads to differences in surface temperatures between the main city center and far flung suburban and decrease in relative humidity.
This sets perfect condition of accumulation of particulate matter and development of smog in the area. The tall buildings also interfere with moving of air thus clogging the atmosphere pollutants.
Lastly, High urban population also led to increased demand and usage of auto transport leading to increased vehicular emissions . Between 1999 and 2005, the number of vehicles in Beijing increased from 1.39 million to 2.65 million . The next section details the impact of high number of cars on air pollution in Beijing.
Number of cars
Motorization in Beijing has grown relatively fast in similar pattern to swelling city population and growth in economy . Continuous growth of number of vehicles and resultant emission are an impediment to efforts in improving urban air quality .
Fig 3.Growth in vehicle numbers in Beijing between 1989 to 2009.
Beijing has experienced a steady increase of about 13% in number of vehicles to reach over 5 million today. The bulk of this is personal vehicles and efforts are underway to lessen it through establishment of various public mass transportation systems.
This astonishing increase has brought with it challenges in tackling air pollution in the city. In this regard, various investigators has identified motor emissions are key facilitators of air pollution in the area. Emissions from vehicles has been cited as sources of high CO, NOx, Volatile organic compounds and ozone in central and downtown in Beijing.
Less planting of trees
Availability of land is a key catalyst of economic industrialization many forested regions have been cleared to set up factories. This has reduced the forest cover of Beijing to just below 1 %. The end result of this is increased suspension of particulate matter in the air and poor sequestration of carbon compounds and other emission from the atmosphere.
Inefficient pollution control
Despite apparent political will to tackle air pollution, control measures set out are yet to reduce air pollution levels to even just below international standards. The State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) and its successor Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP)goals of time-based cuts in major emissions has not produced little improvement.
A notable effort is the 10 stages emergency control measures launched by the Beijing government in 1998. The gains of this initiative have been erratic, partly affected by ballooning vehicle number and the city population.
Further evidence of challenges in addressing environmental degradation is from the fact that Beijing has twiced postponed the nationwide rollout of vehicle-emissions standards despite the lagging of fuel-quality standards. In addition, emission rates remain relatively high above world standards.
A good example is NOx emissions. NOx emissions have actually increased within the last decade despite effort to lower it. Wang & Hao (2012) attribute this to slow and/or halted control legislations. MEP has estimated the NOx is over 22mt, a level far above that of United States and Europe.
The installations of low NOx burners (LNB), as required by law seem not to have produced any reductions. According to a report by the Washington-based Center for strategic and InternationalStudies (CSIS) (2008), a major impediment to pollution control implementation in Beijing has been the lack of connection between the central and local authorities.
Beijing efforts to cut dangerous emission is thwarted by local authorities who disregard pollution legislation in favor of emissions control.
Fig. 4 Emission of SO2, NOx and TSP (total suspended particle) in china, 2000-2010.
In Beijing, NOx has been associated with the 20% rise of nitrate aerosol in PM2.5 and ozone between 2000 and 2008.
PM emissions standards have produced mixed effect pointing to the fact that success in cutting dangerous emitted require concerted effort. For example, while PM emission standard requiring adoption of technologies such as installation of electrostatic precipitators (ESP) and fabric filters have produced reduction in some industries ,this has been cancelled out by high PM from traditional steel, cement and aluminum industries.
The level of PM10 in Beijing has oscillated between 114-127 g/m3 between 2005 and 2010, way above the 40 g/m3 of European Union’s air quality standard.
High pollution in Beijing and greater China has produced the common effects recorded elsewhere touching on human health, environment, animals generally the growth of affected cities. The next section details each of these points
Effects of high pollution
Health effects
Massive industrialization in China has produced proportionate decline in environmental quality in most cities. Beijing is no exception. Highly polluted outdoor air is associated with 300,000 deaths, 20million cases of respiratory infection and an annual health budget of over 500 billion Yuan representing roughly 3% of the gross GDP.
Data by WHO also indicates that approximately 450,000 premature deaths are due to the used of solid fuels in homes. Most of the health problems have been traced to coal combustion. Some of the health effects of air pollution include reduced fetal and child growth, pulmonary diseases (e.g. asthma), development abnormalities, and risk of cancer.
Studies have shown that the most affected are fetuses,infants and young children due to greater absorption and slower toxic elimination by their bodies. Studies have also shown the yearly mean density of respirable particles in Beijing and other megacities such as Shanghai to be around/over 100µg/m3 , a concentration nearly four times of comparable cities such as New York and Tokyo.
This may explain the high number of respiratory problems common in Beijing, where face masks are easy to spot.The European Space Agency (ESA) considers Beijing to be one of the Chinese cities with the worst levels of NOx that seriously damages the lungs. It is difficult to estimate the actual mortality and other health problems due to air pollution in China because the local government does not reveal real data to the public .
Poor air quality is scarring would-be inhabitants and contributing to abandonment of the city by expatriates. John Pomfret, aWashington Post writer when asked why he moved back to Los Angeles Jokingly said “for the air”. Although there are no statistical figures of the impact of this migration, it illustrates the dire nature of air pollution in Beijing and other Chinese megacities
Environmental effects
The environment has been a major casualty of severe air pollution in China. Statistics from the MEP for 2010 indicate that 50.4% of monitored Chinese cities suffered from acid rain during that year alone. According to the same report areas with heavy pollution and low PH (<.4.5)precipitation increased for the 1995-2010 period. Acidic rainfall can bring about skin infection, corrosion of building and impairment of plants growth.
A noted trend in recent years is that Beijing and other northern cities such as Tumen, Chengde, and Shangluo have recorded PH of below 5.6. In general, acid rain problems has escalated in the last two decades with 30% of Chinese territories experiencing acid rain pollution since the 1990s.
China has overtaken the United States as the largest emitter of greenhouse gases (Wang & Hao,2012; Ma, 2013).Since 2006, China has led the world in CO2 emissions and together with the USA account for about 40% of global emissions . This has resulted in increased external pressure for China to assume greater role in curbing global warming.
For example, heavy use of coal and other fossil fuels that during the process of burning release greenhouse gases is the main source of the global climate changes. Recent extremely severe winters attest to these claims. Apart from CO2, China also releases huge amounts of methane, an important greenhouse gas whose source is rice paddies, landfills, coal mines, and a number of natural sources.
Marine and ecological effects
Particulate matter gets soaked with precipitation and finds way into water bodies. Heavy metals particles may also enter animal ecosystem through general sedimentation. These occurrences alter the ecological balance of marine habitat by affecting the PH, light penetration, aeration and density of water.
Death of marine animals arises when their breathing systems get clogged by particulate matter and from poisoning. From the water bodies the pollutants may find their way into the food chain through human consumption of fish and other marine animals. A large shoal of floating dead fish has become a common sight in water bodies around Beijing.
Country/city economic development
Mitigating the problems and causes by air pollution is an extremely expensive undertaking. Billions that would otherwise been channeled to grow the economy are spent on health costs, technologies to cut harmful emissions and related areas.. In spite of scarce empirical data, the benefit of lessening respiratory illness in children was estimated at 3.5 billion dollars over the period 2002-2011.
No example illustrates this better than the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Organizing committee has to spend billion to improve the quality of air and increase the number of “blue sky” days.
High air pollution in Beijing has also drawn sharp criticism from outside and pressure to adopt tough measures which may interfere with local economies. Today China is still under pressure to sign Kyoto Protocol to cut greenhouse emissions and meet targets set for top carbon emitters.
Suggested pollution control measures
Reducing air pollution is critical to the welfare and progression of Beijing. Although authorities have made commendable strides in cutting harmful emission, a lot still remains undone. Curtailing and reducing major emissions will require concerted efforts at individual, governmental and organization level.
Individuals residing in the city should be encouraged to plant more trees, use more public transport, and develop a deep sense of environmental consciousness. This is necessary as by 2010, the total number of vehicle in Beijing stood at 4.87million.
Encouraging the use of public transport can lower emission of CO, hydrocarbons, NOx and particulate matter from motor vehicles. Additionally, Investigators have also identified automobiles among the top agents of air pollution in Beijing. Therefore, future air pollution intervention measures need to consider expansion and revamping of public transportation system as a key mitigating factor.
As China become more industrialized farming and related activities such as planting trees continue to loose attention. This needs to be reversed. Authorities should encourage planting as green plants sequester excess carbon from the environment. In addition some plant can act as reservoir for heavy metals, decreasing their concentration in the atmosphere.
Authorities also need to encourage and instill and instill a deep sense of environmental consciousness among residents. Such measures have been shown to be beneficial in western countries that once faced similar pollution problems.
The central government is continually rolling out ‘cleaning’ technologies and regulations geared towards reducing air pollution in Beijing and the rest of China. This has included flue gas desulfurization (FGD) system that all coal-fired plants are required to use . The adoption is encouraging given that by 2010 over 81% of such plants had already installed FGD.
Coal washing compliance has also increased by an impressive 15% between 2005 and 2010 . A tremendous control of PM has been achieved in Beijing through policy and standards implementation. The 2003 PM emission standard (GB 13223-2003) requires PM concentration in flue gas to be less than 50mg/m3.
Installation of electrostatic precipitators and fabric filters in coal units with generation capacity of over 600W resulted in decrease of PM2.5 of between 7%- 69% from 1990 to 2005 in different sectors. However, this gain from technological measures was reversed in the later part of the decade due to an explosive growth of high PM emitting industries such as steel, cement and aluminum.
In Beijing, the PM10 remains relatively high fluctuating around 114-125 g/cm3 from 2005 to 2010 . While these traditional approaches are indispensable, the actual solution may lie in promoting energy efficiency and renewable energy sources.
This intervention approach is to ensure that fewer pollutants are produced from sources. In all respects, Beijing needs to considerably reduce its overreliance on coal, the primary source of air pollution and the main driver of its industries.
Past experience has shown that localized actions and policies do not produce lasting reduction in emission primarily due to infiltrations from outside. Therefore, future efforts to cut high emission in Beijing need to take this into account.
A comprehensive approach would seek to address various pollution problems including acid precipitation, ozone, particulates, and greenhouses gases. To this end, regional air pollution modeling and networks should be encouraged. This will help craft better forecasts, regulation and emergency systems
Anti-pollution organizational practices
Beijing could borrow from foreign standards regulating vehicle emissions. Being the capital city, Beijing has to implement the phase emission standard to those in Europe. Encouragingly, Beijing enforced phase 4 emission standards in 2008 and 2009.
This control measures are vital in decreasing the overall fleet average emission factors in the city. Indeed, studies have shown that the implementation of phase 1-4 emission standards since 1995 has resulted in annual decrease of fleet –average emission factors of CO,HC, NOx and PM10 in light duty cars by 12.5%, 10.0%, 5.8% and 13.0% respectively.
Conclusion
Air pollution is a serious problem in Beijing. Massive industrialization has brought with it catastrophic levels of pollution to the city. The dire situation of air quality has earned Beijing the embarrassing label of the pollution capital of the planet. The single most important source of pollution is coal. Combustion of coal leads to increase in various carbon compounds in the air and is the precursor to many greenhouse gases.
The primary driving factors of pollution in these like are no different from those elsewhere. They include presence of heavy industries, huge population, high number of personal car and general inefficiency in pollution control by government and local authority bodies.
High rate of pollution has caused a number of problems in the city including, high incidence of respiratory diseases and contributed to immigration abroad by foreigners and locals. On the other hand, the problems has negatively impacted the environment through acid precipitation, interfering with plant growth and increasing levels of greenhouse gases that have been associated with the global warming phenomenon.
Animal sanctuaries have also been unpurified leading to imbalances in their ecosystem and frequent deaths. The effects of severe air degradation havebeen felt on the economic development of the city. This is because huge invested have to be made to mitigate the harmful effects brought about by the emissions.
Whereas efforts in past two decades to contain air pollution in Beijing have produced commendable results in mitigating their negative effects, a lot of challenges still remain. With industrialization yet to peak in the city, current mitigation measures are poised to get diluted by upcoming industries, especially those traditionally associated with high particulate matter content.
However, current measures should continue to emphasize more vegetation planting, greater use of public transport system, and enhancement of environmental consciousness.
The city also needs to adopt more cleaner and renewable sources of energy such as solar and significantly cut it’s over reliance of coal as the primary source of energy. It is equally important for the government and local authorities to work in tandem in implementing emission regulations and policies. Otherwise, reduction in air emissions will not be realized anytime soon.
Millman, A., Tang, D., & Perera, F. P. (2008). Air pollution threatens the health of children in China. Pediatrics, 122, 620. Web.
Wang, S., & Hao, J. (2012). Air quality management in China:Issues, challenges ,and options. J of Env Sc, 24(1), 2-13. Web.
Wu, Q. Z., Wang, Z. F., Gbaguidi, A., Gao, C., Li, L. N., & Wang, W. (2011). Numerical study of contributions to air pollution in Beijing during CARE Beijing-2006. Atmph Chem & Phy, 11, 5997-6011. Web.
Wu, Y., Jiewang, R., Zhou, Y., Honglin, B., Xinfu, L., Ebinhe, K., et al. (2009). On-Road vehicle emission control in Beijing: Past ,present and future. Environ. Sci., 12, 322-345.
Zhang, J., & Smith, K. R. (2007). Household air pollution from coal and biomass fuels in China: Measurements, health impacts, and interventions. Environ Health Perspect, 115, 848-855. Web.
Zhang, J., Mauzerall, D. L., Zhu, T., Liang, S., Ezzati, M., Remais, J. V., et al. (2010). Enviromental health in China: progress towards clean air and safe water. Lancet, 375, 1110-19.
“Waste by Wendell” is about the rot in the contemporary America resulting from neglect. The author laments on how pollution is affecting the society; furthermore, it seems that people are not concerned. He attributes the social and economical challenges in the society to garbage disposal methods. In this article, Wendell is advocating for awareness and self-responsibility of all members in a community (Berry, 2010).
More of concern is that the garbage composed of non-biodegradable matter such as industrial wastes is disposed in Kentucky River. From the article, “Waste”, industries are contributing to pollution and this is ascribable to reluctance and greed by authorities. Therefore, he insists that people should take action as neglecting the situation surmounts to aggravation of the problem.
Argument
The foremost argument of the writer is on a concern for the setting. According to Wendell the society has neglected its duty of caring for the environment, thus aggravating challenges like unemployment that are directly related to environmental issues. He asserts that individual responsibility will reverse pollution and if not looked into future problems will emanate from garbage disposal.
He questions what people are for, and to him it seems that nobody cares. In the article, most of the environment issues like waste control are left to farmers. There should be devised an approach for controlling waste in the surroundings especially near rivers.
According to Berry (2010), the contemporary society is concerned with personal interests without taking into account communal values. He supports working as a team when taking measures concerned with waste disposal. Assumption is that modernization is leading to an increase in pollution. Manufacturing industries are answerable for disposing non-biodegradables such as electronic and other industrial wastes into the ecosystem.
Therefore, according to the author, emphasis is on sustainability, and the interest of the existing society should not compromise on the wants of upcoming generations. He considers water an essential resource for growth and development of communities.
Since, they assist in carrying out agricultural activities such as farming and in addition, water is for domestic consumption. The author asserts that farmers are the chief casualties of pollution as they directly depend on the environment.
This argument has influence from the writer’s background of engaging in farming. To him the issue seems to be worsening as time progresses due to neglect by members of the community. He laments whilst being nostalgic when describing his environment (Berry, 2010).
Wendell attributes these environmental challenges to greed by individuals and authorities. To him the country people contribute to some of the challenge realized by the societies in rural America. People have the capability to handle environmental issues by controlling environmental waste.
Counter Argument
The authors views somewhat reflects on real situations in contemporary societies. However, stating that economical challenges are attributable to populations can be an exaggeration. It is obvious that societal problems do not result from a specific cause; instead, they are from a combination of factors.
Instead of lamenting at the situation, the author should have initiated an awareness program to handling this environmental challenge. Furthermore, Wendell does not state the positive benefits of manufacturing activities and instead he chooses to discuss on their negative effects.
To him the society is at risk whereas this fails to augur well with other members of the society; that is why he states that in the title “what are people looking for?”
Conclusion
The author intends to create awareness to the society by highlighting on the challenges experienced in the contemporary America. He cites his community as the major victims of their activities and lifestyles.
During his stay in Ohio, he is realizing an increase in challenges, which he attributes to neglect by the members of the society. In addition, the author insists that manufacturers have to encourage responsibly in order for the societies to benefit.
Besides, an effective method for waste disposal is necessary. From the article “waste”, assertion is that Wendell is an environmental activist concerned with the encountering the challenges affecting Americans.
Reference
Berry, W. (2010). What are people for?: Essays. Berkeley, CA: Counterpoint.
The degree of water pollution in the Los Angeles Metropolitan area is very high. This has led to its watershed having some of the most polluted water in the country. If the situation is left unattended, the quality of water in the watershed can be expected to get even worse as the metropolitan experiences population growth and greater industrial activity.
Action therefore needs to be taken to contain the problem of pollution, which has caused the Los Angeles Metropolitan watershed to be one of the worst water sources in the US. To alleviate the problem and consequently limit its social consequences in the metropolitan area, the following solutions can be implemented.
Solutions
Growing Plant Cover
An increase in the plant cover in the metropolitan area can help mitigate watershed pollution. At the present, impervious structures dominate the LA Metropolitan area and the amount of plant cover is negligible. Action should be taken to counter the negative impact that impervious structures have on the water quality in LA’s Metropolitan watershed.
Since it might not be possible to remove the existing or prevent the future construction of impervious structures, a feasible solution could be to increase the number of plants and trees in the urban settlement. Pincetl declares that for cities to remediate some of their own environmental impact, they will have to make use of nature’s services (43). Increasing plant cover is one solution that can yield immediate positive results in the urban setting.
To begin with, planting more trees and plants in the cities will help mitigate pollution by using the natural purification capability of plants. Plants can absorb pollutants such as heavy metals, which are present in the water, therefore performing natural purification. The water quality is therefore increased due to the purification process of plants and trees. In addition to this, plant cover will reduce the level of runoff that gets into the city’s storm drains.
Dallman and Spongberg confirm that plants are capable of absorbing some of the water that flows as runoff during downpours (232). As such, a lower volume of contaminated water will make its way into the watershed area. Implementing this solution may be hampered by the lack of empty land in the Metropolitan area to be used for planting trees.
This challenge can be overcome by making use of the available space at public parks and household backyards to plant trees and vegetation (Pincetl 43). Such action will enable the city to enjoy the environmental benefits of plant cover without foregoing the convenience that impervious structures offer.
Protecting Catchment Areas
A solution that proposes to bring significant reduction in the rampant pollution currently experienced in the Los Angeles Metropolitan watershed must consider the protection of the wetlands in the area. Due to the increase in population within the Los Angeles Metropolitan, wetland areas have been arbitrarily destroyed. Urban developers, who convert the wetlands into commercially viable land through recreation, have been the primary cause of this destruction.
Policy makers can take steps to mitigate or even reverse the loss of the wetland areas. To mitigate these losses, the authorities should impose laws that stop developers from tampering with wetlands. Such laws would ensure that the existing wetland is protected from human destruction. The wetlands would therefore perform their function as natural filtration systems therefore ensuring the increase in the quality of water in the LA region.
However, solely protecting the existing wetland habitats will not be sufficient. As it currently stands, only a fraction of the original wetland remains after the rampant destruction done to this habitat over the course of the last century. Measures therefore have to be taken to increase wetland habitats in California.
The pollution in watersheds can be alleviated by restoring degraded streams that supply the water to the watershed. Little asserts that there is a link between the quality of water in urban supplies and remote rural watersheds (37). Most policy makers have failed to appreciate this link and little attention has been paid to the water source.
Due to this disconnect, there has been rampant degradation upstream. Officials in the LA Metropolitan region should pioneer projects to improve upstream land and river systems. Such drives would include a decrease or an end in commercial logging in water catchment areas. In addition to this, there should be a significant increase in the area of land earmarked as an ecological reserve.
Local Land Use Policies
Another effective solution is to implement targeted local land use policies to encourage land uses that are beneficial to the watershed ecosystem. The prevalent pollution of the Los Angeles watershed has been caused by the land use change that has occurred over the decades. Langpap, Hascic and Junjie declare that land use change is the most pervasive force driving the change and degradation of watershed ecosystems in urban settlements (684).
Controlling the land use in the region might lead to the reduction of watershed pollution. Research indicates that the land use choices induced by policies can have an effect on watershed health (Langpap et al. 685). Therefore, authorities should implement local land use policies that are aimed at providing incentives for land uses that have a positive impact on the water quality.
Specifically, local authorities should “identify land uses, which have the largest impact on watersheds, and then implement policies that have the largest effects on those land uses ” (Langpap et al. 698).
It has been demonstrated that incentive-based policies such as preferential property taxation of farm and forest land are effective in bringing about water quality improvement in watersheds. By implementing the incentive-based policies in the LA Metropolitan region, a significant reduction in the land uses that have a negative impact on water quality will be observed in the watersheds.
Intentional Infiltration
Controlling the urban storm water runoff that occurs due to the widespread availability of impervious surfaces in the Los Angeles Metropolitan region is necessary for solving the pollution problem. Intentional infiltration of storm water to recharge groundwater can be used to mitigate pollution of Los Angele’s watershed by storm water runoff. Storm water runoff is one of the most important sources of pollution to watersheds.
Dallman and Spongberg document that the increased volume of storm water runoff that results from the impermeable urban landscape has contributed significantly to the deterioration of the water quality in Los Angeles’ watershed (232). Capturing the urban storm water runoff effectively reduces the pollutant loads that surface water deposits to the watersheds. Through Intentional infiltration, most of the pollutants are sifted off before the water reaches the groundwater aquifers.
Studies have consistently shown that even without pretreatment of storm water runoff, the groundwater contamination potential from surface infiltration is low to moderate (Dallman and Spongberg 234). The reason for this is that the soil is able to filter off most of the pollutants before the water reaches the groundwater aquifers.
Sediment and associated particulates settle out on the surface while heavy metals are either attached to soil particles or they degrade by microbial processes in surface and subsurface soil layers. However, to remove the risk of storm water runoff polluting underground aquifers, simple pretreatment processes such as settling or filtration through vegetation can be employed.
In addition to solving the pollution problem experienced by LA’s watershed, intentional infiltration of storm water will help increase the volume of water available for consumption. As it currently stands, the existing water supplies are in sharp decline, while the level of consumption is increasing.
At the present, the Los Angeles region only captures a small portion of the storm water runoff for groundwater recharge. By capturing more storm water runoff for infiltration, the region would be able to significantly decrease the pollution to the watershed area while at the same time substantially increasing local groundwater supplies (Dallman and Spongberg 233).
Stringent Industry Regulations
Dealing with the industrial waste problem is integral to decreasing pollution in the LA Metropolitan Watershed. Industrial waste not only contributes to a significant volume of the entire water pollution, but it also accounts for the deadliest pollutants introduced into the LA Metropolitan watershed (Woodard 51). Arguably, the most effective solution to the industrial waste problem is implementing extensive and stringent laws against water pollution by industries.
Currently, the State of California has imposed some laws that limit the types of pollutants that industries can release into the water system. The California State regulations forbidding the pollution of surface water and groundwater are important and they have contributed to the decline in industrial pollution over the decades (Woodard 51).
Since there are stiff penalties attached to pollution, companies endeavor to avoid discharging toxic substances into the environment. However, the current laws are ineffective in mitigating the watershed pollution currently experienced in the LA Metropolitan area. Authorities should increase the minimum purity level of all discharges from industries. Dischargers should be required to treat wastewater to a higher degree, therefore ensuring that most of the hazardous wastes are removed.
In recognition of the negative effect that micro-debris play in the pollution of watersheds, greater regulations should be imposed on the industries that produce this plastic as waste. The current restrictions on plastic waste disposal allow industries to dump large quantities of plastic in the watershed area.
The California Water Resource Control Board should impose regulations on the disposal of plastic that are less than 5 millimeters in diameter. Industries should be required to stop micro-debris and pellets into the water system. Such a move would have a monumental impact on the water quality in the watersheds since plastics make up to 99% of the debris washed up on Californian beaches.
Conclusion
Solving the water pollution problem in Los Angeles Metropolitan’s watershed is a matter of great urgency. This paper has proposed some of the ways in which pollution can be contained therefore improving the quality of water in the region. From the discussions held in this paper, it is clear that both point and non-point sources of pollution must be considered in order to mitigate pollution in the watershed. Once implemented, these solutions will ensure that Los Angeles Metropolitan is able to enjoy high quality water from its watershed.
Works Cited
Dallman, Suzanne and Martin Spongberg. “Expanding Local Water Supplies: Assessing the Impacts of Storm water Infiltration on Groundwater Quality.” Professional Geographer 64.2 (2012): 232-249. Web.
Langpap, Christian, Ivan Hascic and Wu Junjie. “Protecting Watershed Ecosystems through Targeted Local Land Use Policies.” American Journal of Agricultural Economics 90.3 (2008): 684-700. Print
Little, Jane. “Flowing from forests to faucets.” American Forests 106.1 (2000): 36-40. Web.
Pincetl, Stephanie. “From the sanitary city to the sustainable city: challenges to institutionalising biogenic (nature’s services) infrastructure.” Local Environment 15.1 (2010): 43–58. Web.
The heightening issue of air pollution has brought many impacts on the environment. Almost every aspect of human life depends on the environment, and for that reason, any harm caused to the environment can trigger many ramifications throughout the range of normal human activities. Indeed, one of the ultimate trade offs here can be observed from environment matters and unemployment issues.
Although it is important for countries to take environmental requirements as a priority, it is obviously clear that employment matters come first in many regions. According to a recent report by the Environmental Protection Agency, unemployment consequences associated with environmental issues are minimal compared with the overall rate of unemployment.
It is also clear that there is a direct connection between inflation and the environment as humans continue to elude environmental-related matters due to high rates of unemployment. As it would be observed, there has been increased attention by the government to save jobs for the people, while neglecting quality environmental standards.
Delays on the plans to establish and implement effective automobile emission standards have constantly been delayed in an attempt to give the automobile sector enough time to come up with effective solutions to the overwhelming issue of chemicals and substance emission (Edmunds, 1977).
Over the years, incremental costs for both government and industry have been realized in the control of heightening effects of air pollution. Direct impacts of air pollution on environment have also contributed to immense health effects upon the global populations. Various studies have linked particulates and pollutants to various health conditions and higher mortality rates.
For instance, synthetic chemicals and other substances emitted into the atmosphere as waste products are said to be the major cause of various cancers affecting humans today. The long-term supply of energy, minerals and land has seriously influenced the future of the American people as far as environmental impacts of air pollution are concerned. As a matter of fact, high levels of energy are required to sustain the bulging U.S. economy.
The current high growth rates have contributed to high concentration of particulates and pollutants in the atmosphere owing to the population’s over reliance on various sources of energy.
The same applies to the aspect of land use in the U.S., which has shifted to higher density in housing as a result of the higher growth rates that are observable today. These high-density developments around the urban centers are likely to change the way Americans live, most likely taking them backwards instead of placing them ahead of others (Edmunds, 1977).
Despite being among the more resource-rich countries globally, America lacks sufficient commodity reserves in terms of minerals to cater for its cumulative demands. In that case, a number of key commodities and resources from across the border would be needed to sustain the country’s economic growth. This high demand of minerals has reminded the Americans of the value of recycling their inadequate materials.
Even though this will greatly alter industry usage habits, it is also likely to generate increased costs. It is obviously clear that our lifestyles and living habits in all aspects of life are rapidly changing.
This certainly comes as a result of great confusion on what to choose between the basic essentials of life and the quality of our environment. There is a high demand for basic materials and resources for economical use yet there is limited supply of such expectations in the U.S. and other Western countries.
This, however, has led to increased prices for commodities and substances in these countries. In this regard, it would be important for any plans aimed at conserving energy and minimizing pollution to be prioritized. This will play an effective role in making the U.S. self-sufficiency in matters regarding resources and key commodities.
Reference
Edmunds, S. (1977). Environmental impacts: Conflicts and Trade offs. California Management Review, 19(3), 5-9.
The history of air pollution dates back long time. References of air pollution in history can be found as early as 61 A.D. when Seneca, a roman philosopher mentioned heavy air in his notes. Miasma, a medical theory, popularized in the middle ages and prevailed until mid 1800s. It was the proposed explanation of cholera, which spread in London and in Paris. Miasma, regarded to be a toxic vapor or mist that is composed of particulate decayed matter, spread illnesses and was identified by its pungent, foul smell due to rotten material. Its prevention by sanitization and cleaning of the body and matter was proposed. Believed to be spread by air, cholera was accounted to the presence of a toxic miasmatic concentration. Mid-nineteenth century English Sanitary reforms are credited to the miasmatic theory, which helped in enhancements in sanitation and reduced occurrence of cholera (Wark, Air Pollution: Its Origin and Control, pp. 67-70).
Main body
Smoke, containing carbon monoxide as a key component, causes carbon monoxide poisoning with the aid of hydrogen cyanide and phosgene. Smoke inhalation, noxious and/or irritating, causes loss of consciousness. Moreover, it can cause back draft, flashover and even hinder visibility. The worst disaster caused by this property was the Worcester Cold Storage Warehouse fire in Worcester, Massachusetts on December 3, 1999. Owing to the remarkable similarity of each floor, the firefighters became disoriented due to the intense smoke. Increased energy needs required the burning of some materials like coal or wood, the byproduct of which is smoke. From the times of industrial revolution, smoke pollution was a concern and continues to be one with vehicles and industries replacing coal and wood. Various measures have been taken ranging from banning the use of coal to alternate sources of energy and implementation of more efficient methods is still a vital subject of study for environmentalists.
Smog literally is a combination of smoke and fog. Smoke, traditionally produced as a byproduct of coal burning, dangerous enough by just itself can be more hazardous with mixture of sulfur dioxide causing classic fog. However, for modern smog smoke from coal has been replaced by auto and industrialized emanation and undergo reactions facilitated by sunrays forming resultant pollutants, which in turn mix with the primary emissions to form photochemical smog. Smog effects industrialized cites which are polluted by smoke and sulfur dioxide due to the presence of large numbers of industries. London faced its most intense episode during the December of 1952 and this incident is termed the Great Smog. Killing 4000 people in four days and 8000 in the aftermath it caused the introduction of the Clean Air Act, which provided smokeless zones and eventually lessened the sulfur dioxide levels (Davis, When Smoke Ran Like Water: Tales of Environmental Deception and the Battle Against Pollution, pp. 103-4).
The concern of global warming, the increasing average temperature of the Earth since the mid-20th century, is attributed to the raise in atmospheric greenhouse gases owing to human actions. The phenomenon cannot be explained by natural causes alone. Human activity from that period onwards has amplified the concentration of assorted greenhouse gases, resulting in intensified radioactive impelling from CO2, methane, troposphere ozone, CFCs and nitrous oxide. An increase of 36% and 148% of CO2 and methane respectively has been noted since the origin of the industrial revolution during the mid-1700s. Indication that worldwide warmth will remain increasing has caused some nations, corporations and individuals to take measures to restrain global warming. Some environmentalists suggest a limited fossil fuel manufacture due to a links between fossil fuel production and harmful greenhouse gas emissions (Turner, Workbook of atmospheric dispersion estimates: an introduction to dispersion modeling, pp. 114-5).
In conclusion, we may say that the advent of human race has had an adverse effect on the environment. Historic evidences indicate that the increase in smoke, smog and other forms of air pollutions during the industrial revolution in the eighteenth century has eventually led to the concern of global warming. Man’s negligence to those factors then has become a problem that threatens to slip out-of-hand in the twenty-first century.
Works cited
Davis, Devra. When Smoke Ran Like Water: Tales of Environmental Deception and the Battle Against Pollution. Basic Books, (2002).
Turner, D.B. Workbook of atmospheric dispersion estimates: an introduction to dispersion modeling (2nd Edition ed.). CRC Press, (1994).
Wark, Kenneth & Cecil Francis Warner. Air Pollution: Its Origin and Control Addison-Wesley, (1998)
In an economically competitive world, most countries around the globe constantly compete to attain the top position in the international market in order to reap the benefits that come with such progress. For this reason, most countries insist on industrialization with some showing more zeal as compared to others through political policies.
Although industrialization has been a big part of global economic growth since the end of the Second World War, it has also played a significant role in increasing the number of environmental risk factors such as pollution. Such risks result in a bittersweet experience for most economies, as although the process generates economic gains; its effects on the environment often lead to the loss of the same gains or more.
This concept results in a dilemma for such governments when choosing between making policies that give developmental success and those that protect the environment. China is among the many world countries experiencing such a dilemma, which makes it one of the best choices to explore in determining the economic effect of industrial pollution on a country.
Although China’s problem is more recent than that of most other countries, the potential economic devastation that industrial pollution is causing is significantly higher due to several factors.
This paper gives a brief overview of the problem in China especially with regard to air pollution, its impact on the Chinese economy, some of the steps that the government has taken to combat the problem, and the effectiveness of such policies. The paper also considers possible solutions and explores the outcomes of the solutions on the country’s economy and overall position in the global market.
Overview of the problem
China is indisputably the most populous nation around the world and it has approximately 1.3 billion people residing within its borders, out of the world’s approximately eight billion people. Some of its largest cities, which in turn create attraction points for most multinational businesses, include its capital city, Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong.
Although the country’s land area makes it the second largest country in the world, the large population living within the country means that the amount of land area available per individual is much smaller than in most other industrialized countries in Asia and the West (Chan 385).
One of the greatest advantages that such a large population affords the state is the generation of a sustainable labor force, which makes industrialization realizable. Countries such as Saudi Arabia have often had to adjust their international trade policies to attract expatriates to the country to supplement their insufficient labor force for the ultimate progression of their economies.
Secondly, the large population offers a ready market for industrial products, thus reducing the country’s need to depend on the international market for sales and consumption.
Regardless of the numerous advantages that the large population presents to China’s economy in terms of progression of the industrialization process, there are also disadvantages with the main one in this case being industrial pollution. According to reports by the Reuters, about seventy percent of China’s industrial energy is dependent on coal, which explains the high rise of air pollution within the past eight years (Stanway par.8).
The World Bank’s estimates from studies conducted in the year 2013 indicate that more than 10 ten out of the 20 most polluted cities in the world are in China and that the country holds the record for the World’s largest carbon emitter, with forty percent of China’s rivers experiencing pollution from industrial and agricultural waste (Stanway par.9).
The report from Reuters indicates that only three out of China’s seventy-four cities are compliant with the county’s pollution standards and adds that the pollution menace continues to grow, with cities such as Beijing and Shanghai experiencing heavy smog thus reducing visibility and creating a mobility hazard for motorists (Stanway par.4). Apart from presenting a danger to motorists, the smog threatens the respiratory and cardiac health of residents.
A report by Green Peace East Asia indicates that according to the World Health Organization (WHO), pollution in the country’s major cities increases the risk of asthma and ischemia due to pollution levels that breach WHO air quality guidelines (Green Peace East Asia par.14).
Of greater interest to this paper in terms of economic impact is the effect that such diseases have on the young adult population, which serves as the country’s largest percentage in the labor force. Although the government of China has indicated its support for pollution reduction, especially air pollution, and stated various steps that it is taking in its policymaking, the problem still poses a threat to the country’s economy as similar efforts in the past have failed to bear fruit.
Economic effects
Reduction of the labor force
One of the most notable effects of industrial pollution within the country is a reduction of the labor force. According to a WHO report that the organization published in the South China Morning Post on 25 March 2014, about seven million deaths in the globe are resultant of pollution (Wei par.8).
The organization states that the death toll has doubled within the past eight years with China being one of the most affected countries with a death for every seven deaths in the world. In the same news piece, the WHO also mentioned an article by a former health minister Chen Zhu in which he explained that air pollution causes more than three thousand deaths in China on a yearly basis (Wei par.9).
Industry workers are prone to the immediate effects of pollutants, especially air pollutants, and thus they risk their health the most. However, the size of the country’s population increases competition for existing jobs thus ensuring that industry owners have enough laborers at all times coupled with reducing the need to attend to health risks that accompany the employment opportunities.
In addition, the government’s revenue gains from the industries, fast technological development pace, and reputation as one of the world’s leading countries in technological advancements has resulted in laxity with regard to oversight of industrial operations, which has led to aggravation of the situation over the past eight years (Gallo 36).
The impact of the government’s laxity to address the concerns of workers in industries regarding their health has largely existed in the form of management teams in such industries using employees in the same ways they use renewable resources, without regard on the lives of the workers or those of the families depending on them. Therefore, even though some people still opt to work in such industries to earn their income, the numbers keep on reducing, as more people die every year due to exposure to pollutants.
Apart from the reduction of the labor force due to deaths of industry workers, the pollutants also result in deaths in other areas of the country through air water and soil pollution, thus reducing the number of able-bodied adults likely to work in such industries. For instance, as mentioned earlier, the smog situation in major cities is, according to health experts, responsible for rising cases of respiratory and cardiac diseases among adults and children residing in these areas (Wei par.11).
Although it is possible for such industries to get laborers from areas outside those specific regions, the cost would be higher for the industries in terms of employment expenditure, the processes would be longer, and the people fewer as compared to obtaining the same man-power from within the cities. In addition, widespread pollution in the rivers, soil, and air in the country means that the number of children that grow up healthy enough to work in such physically demanding careers keeps on dwindling every year.
Aside from the various illnesses that result in deaths and reduction of the labor force available for jobs in industries and other professional environments, fewer people opt to work in industries due to the awareness of the effects that pollution has on workers and people residing in areas near industries.
In most instances, governments encourage young individuals with innovative abilities to establish industries through support of infant industries, provision of tax incentives, provisions for longer periods within which to enjoy monopolies, and promotion of products on their behalf.
However, research shows that people are more willing to work in environments in which they feel safe (Florczak 62). In the book, Improving Safety Culture, Cooper (12) explains that employees are more productive in environments within which they feel safe.
Essentially, safety culture concerns the management of safety in the workplace and reflects attitudes, perceptions, beliefs, and values that employees share regarding the maintenance of safety in the workplace in the performance of their duties (Duffey and Saull 26). Cooper (19) adds that companies with a reputation of high safety standards attract a good employee base and spends less in employment expenditure due to the availability of a large variety of trained employees with varying skill sets.
In contrast, companies without elaborate safety cultures create unfriendly environments for their employees in which they struggle to focus on completing their tasks while safeguarding their health (Cooper 43).
In the light of the above explanation, although the population presents an advantage to company owners in China, the rise of international markets has created an alternative for most educated adults within China with the ability to work in various sectors of the economy. Therefore, the Chinese economy risks losing its labor force to safer countries in terms of pollution coupled with losing revenue from its industries.
Fewer foreign investments
Secondly, the pollution crisis presents China with the risk of reductions in foreign investments. Early forms of international trade mainly involved import and export of goods and services. However, the practice of establishing extensions of corporations in other countries has become increasingly common in the modern world, thus leading to the rising number of multinational and transnational corporations.
The dynamic presents numerous benefits for the host countries as well as companies that choose to embrace the move as their investment method of choice.
For instance, unlike instances in which companies have to hire out other companies in foreign countries for investment purposes, the establishment of personal branches allows companies to reap maximum profits, reduces expenditure in terms of import and export costs, and allows the companies to benefit from government incentives. The host governments benefit from increased employment opportunities, increased tax revenue and a cheaper source of skill importation (Lieberthal 2011).
One of the main evolutions in international trade, especially with regard to multinational corporations, is evident in human resource management (HRM) practices. HRM practices involve the creation of organizational culture in aspects such as employer-employee interactions, recruitment and selection, employee development, and performance management.
Due to globalization, most of these cultures are similar for most companies worldwide, thus resulting in less need for some practices, some of which include importation laborers into foreign countries in which foreign corporations seek incorporation. For a country with high literacy levels, government support for innovation, industrial development, and large population, international trade is a resource that the government should seek to exploit.
However, despite the benefits, such potentialities results in government’s laxity in terms of foreign investment, poor management of local industries, and lack of oversight from the government, which create room for foreign corporations to take over the economy, thus leading to strict policies for such companies (Florczak 95).
Ultimately, in a bid to protect local industries and the country’s ranking in the international market, the government finds itself in a position where it needs to forego revenue benefits for the sake of the protection of national industries, at the risk of discouraging foreign investors.
Additionally, even in instances where the government does its best to support foreign investments in order to grow its economy like the one that the Chinese government does, policies affecting other trade factors reduce the likelihood of achieving success. For instance, one of the most important determinants for companies when establishing expansion strategies is the financial burdens that such expansions place on the companies’ budgets, rules of operation, and the local culture of the region.
In China’s current state, pollution presents a variable in terms of expenses as companies have a responsibility to ensure that their employees work in a safe environment, which in most cases means that they have to formulate policies and create mechanisms that ensure the safety of their employees, regardless of the state of the country’s health safety policies.
Although the government’s safety policies may not include installation of high-end air and water filtration systems, companies have to consider the costs of such installations for their employees. One of the benefits of international trade is that companies have a variety of countries within which to establish their branches and high cost countries do not rank highly in their choices.
Another factor that reduces chances of foreign investment from multinational corporations is the high rate of employee turnover that pollution causes. Poor health and loss of lives due to pollution reduce employee productivity and subsequently lead to low corporate revenue resulting in fewer investments. According to management expert, Mintzberg (75), most prudent managers prefer employees who can work for consistent hours and efficiently for purposes of reliability.
Reliability is crucial, especially for multinational corporations as they experience challenges operating simultaneously between two or more environments while conforming to the rules and cultures of the environments as compared to national corporations (Mintzberg 76). Stakeholders in such corporations need assurance regarding returns on their capital investments in the same way the corporations need assurance on profits in their new ventures.
Although it is usually difficult to guarantee circumstances regarding such trade resulting in profitable business interactions, successful companies ensure reliability of output by treating their employees as human capital. In the book Maximizing Profitability with Safety Culture Development, Florczak (106) posits that even though investing in the improvement of employee skill sets is a good idea for most companies, high employee turnover limits the returns on human capital investments, thus resulting in losses.
Ultimately, as is the case with any other form of investment, expenditure on investments that yield little profits for companies result in losses, thus reducing the urge for companies to keep reinvesting (Florczak 108).
Since multinational corporations insist on training employees on skills specific to their line of operation for efficiency, the high likelihood for high employee turnover rates in China makes the environment unattractive for foreign multinational corporations to establish branches in the country. The high rates make the establishment of branches in China unsound for investments.
In international trade, a country’s reputation carries a lot of weight in the determination of whether other countries choose to take advantage of investment opportunities.
Some of the factors that contribute to unfavorable investments include the ability of a country to comply with international standards in terms of operational policies, some of which include safety policies, political stability, tax incentives, and the ability for such states to comply with the principle of reciprocity with regard to business relationships with individual states.
Although China may still attract investments in certain areas of its economies, the industrial sector is likely to suffer from fewer investments due to the reputation of such business concerning effects on lives in areas where the industries exist.
Possible solutions
Most solutions that the Chinese government needs to explore in its quest to alleviate the pollution problem involve the formulation of new policies, alteration of the existent ones, or the elimination of the policies currently in place regarding the issue. In order to achieve real change, the government has to comply with the rules that govern the concept of change leadership.
Although the theoretical formulation of changes in the policies is easy, the actualization of such change often presents challenges to most leaders, some of which are unpredictable. One of the most significant challenges that the Chinese government would face in the change implementation process is finding a balance between furtherance of industrial development and addressing health safety concerns.
Some of the most essential steps in the achievement of change leadership include the creation of awareness regarding the need for change, development of an adoption plan, and assimilation of changes into the current system and reviews that ensure that such changes address the issue concisely and provide room for effective implementation.
The government should also establish a change management system to ensure that the implementation of change occurs systematically, thus allowing room for any modifications where necessary. Change has to occur at two levels simultaneously, viz. personal level and organizational level.
Lack of progress in the adoption of change at one of the levels hinders the project of the alternate level thus defeating the purpose of the entire process (Fullan 49). For instance, in China’s situation, the change has to occur at the corporate level where individual companies adopt institutional changes in addition to the government level implementation of changes.
Solution 1: Increased oversight on industrial operations
In 1979, the Chinese government implemented the Environmental Protection Law that is currently in place. The framework of the law carries stringent measures that aim at reduction and elimination of pollution in the country. However, the country’s hunger for industrial development has seen the country’s leadership overlook breaches of the law in favor of revenue benefits from industrial growth.
The Chinese government needs to create new laws that concentrate on the oversight process or amend the old laws to incorporate more stringent oversight requirements. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the United States is a good example of a government policy that specifically targets an increase in oversight policies in order to avoid breaches in the law for public policy reasons.
The American government implemented the Act in response to the financial crisis that hit the country due to poor oversight on financial institutions leading to a scenario that saw some of the leading credit institutions experience bankruptcy.
In order to salvage the situation at the time, the government spent billions of dollars in bailouts and implemented various policies, key amongst them the Sarbanes- Oxley Act, which calls for compulsory audits and a change of the primary auditor every time a company’s audits are due for financial institutions, especially those with lending powers. The Chinese government can borrow a leaf from this example by implementing personalized oversight laws specific to the industrial sector.
Solution 2: Restrictions on development of new industries
Another alternative worth exploring is the restriction of development of any new industries. The main benefit that this move presents to the country’s industrial sector and government is the negation of any further aggravation of the current crisis. The move saves the government the need to keep changing its policies in order to accommodate new growth while formulating new strategies to cater for increasing pollution levels.
However, this solution is likely to result in stagnation of progress in industrial development, which is one of the core revenue earners for the government. The government should explore other options to supplements the tax revenue that it is likely to lose in the process.
For instance, the government can capitalize on selling innovation through investment in human capital. In addition, the government should improve oversight, as this solution does not resolve the current pollution crisis appropriately in terms of reduction and elimination of the problem.
Solution 3: use of change leadership to overhaul current policies
The third solution for the government is the creation o brand new laws governing industrial development and health safety strategies. Even though this solution has a great chance of success, considering the failure of past regimes to resolve the problem, the cost of implementation would be high. This solution requires utter commitment from the government and individual industries in order to achieve success, which is often difficult to achieve without conflict with the current regime.
Conclusion/Recommendations
Industrial pollution in China has hit unprecedented levels. Due to the pollution, the country risks losing workforce and reduced foreign investments. In view of the above information, the most feasible way for the achievement of sustainable change for the Chinese government would be the adoption of the first solution.
The main advantage that this solution presents to the leadership is that change is gradual. The government thus has the ability to implement changes at a manageable pace without resorting to drastic changes likely to scare off present investment. The downside of this solution is that it would take some time before significant changes are visible.
Works Cited
Chan, Kam. “Misconceptions and complexities in the study of China’s cities: Definitions, Statistics, and Implications.” Eurasian Geography and Economics 48.4 (2007): 383-412. Print.
Cooper, Daniel. Improving Safety Culture, New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2001. Print.
Duffey, Romney, and John Saull. Managing Risk, Chichester: John Wiley & Sons, 2008. Print.
Lieberthal, Kenneth. Managing the China Challenge: How to Achieve Corporate Success in the People’s Republic, Washington D.C.: The Brookings Institution Press, 2011. Print.
Mintzberg, Henry. Mintzberg on Management, New York: Simon and Schuster, 2008. Print.
I am writing to you concerning the burning environmental issue, namely the pollution of the desert areas with the domestic waste. I would also like to suggest the possible waste solutions to improve the existing situation.
Historically, desert was devastated to a great extent during the Gulf War and certainly, this fact cannot be written off. But the future of this fragile ecosystem depends on those people who inhabit the country, and it is a debt of honour to preserve it. I am myself of opinion that, if you do not interfere right now, a sad end is in store for the desert.
Obviously, the given problem might seem not that important if to observe the general environmental situation of the country, which is extremely close to that of the environmental catastrophe, but as an ordinary citizen, who is not indifferent to the state of the planet and concerned with the legacy we will leave to the next generations, I have chosen the sphere in which individuals can help the authorities. Hopefully, after careful consideration of my proposal you will take into account some of the suggested ideas.
According to Kuwait Times from Friday, October 12, 2012 desert areas around Kuwait are suffering from the great environmental damage which is caused by the campers who thoughtlessly leave their garbage in the place which is said to be the important part of Kuwait’s cultural heritage and natural habitat for numerous animals, birds and insects.
As it is reported, after the camping season is over, campers are to remove their tents from the desert, but many disobedient representatives of this group are reluctant to follow the order (Fattahova). It is regrettably stated by the eyewitness that desert’s sands are covered with litter as far as eyes can see.
However, the behaviour of campers is out of control today as the corresponding law has not been approved yet. Let me notice, that flora and fauna of the desert are endangered by the toxic substances which different types of waste contain in them.
It should be underlined that you cannot come across majority of the species among those present in desert anywhere else. Few people will dispute that the desert is vital for biodiversity.
Needless to say, that the substances which are not decomposed represent a particular worry for the ecosystem. All the provided reasons confirm the importance of taking measures as soon as possible.
The obvious beginning point is to mention the fact that Kuwait is going through the tough period which is connected with political, economical and environmental issues. The latter one was the main subject of the analysis. Taking into account the current state of the desert areas, several options were obtained which could be put into practice.
First of all, all efforts should be applied to approve the decree according to which campers are not only to remove their tent at the end of the camping season but the waste left behind, as well. More than that, people should be aware of the fact that they will be definitely penalized for any violation of the law.
Experience of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) evinces that it is prudent to establish cleanup authorities to negotiate with people or companies to clean up the site after them (Laws & Regulations).
Then I would like to point out that organization of a thorough cleaning of the desert areas by volunteers could help authorities a lot. Such call might meet an overwhelming response of those citizens who care about the environment of this country. The practice of the UAE could be adopted in Kuwait.
As it is reported, “An online call for a desert clean-up by Foreign Minister Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan was all it took to touch hundreds of hearts and bring together organizations, volunteers, young and old to participate in cleaning up desert areas across the UAE on Friday and Saturday” (Sherif).
The commendable actions of the Municipal council, cleaning the desert areas, should be specially pointed out. Heavily preoccupied with the work connected with the tents removal, this organization makes their contribution to the process of transformation of the Kuwaitis desert areas from environmental disaster into the safe site (Fattahova).
In addition, such simple measure as putting up ‘no littering’ signs could be essential and valid option used as the warning and reminder for people who is going to spend their time in the desert.
Another idea is to ask mass media to join the so-called campaign. This will definitely be a fruitful cooperation. As an example I would like to provide the case of the local newspaper from the UAE, namely Gulf News, whose staff is known for their environmental orientation. The following statement is provided in the article entitled “UAE desert to get clean touch on Friday”:
The newspaper launched the ‘No to Plastic Bags’ campaign four years ago in response to hundreds of camels and gazelles dying in the desert after eating plastic bags. Readers, environmentalists and businesses from around the UAE swung into action.
Gulf News channelled this energy into the ‘Go Green’ campaign. And, in a bid to reduce the use of plastic bags, Gulf News distributed 200,000 free jute bags to subscribers’ (Sherif).
Permit me to observe that it is also possible to promote a healthier environment on TV and radio exploiting famous media faces.
Furthermore, the entire attitude of everyone in the country has to change. It seems to be connected with the civic awareness and education.
As it is asserted, “environmental education encourages inquiry and investigation and enables the learner to develop critical-thinking, problem-solving, and effective decision-making skills” (Pandey 169).
The Environmental Monitoring Information System of Kuwait (eMISK) was established to make the geo-environmental database available to the public at large (eMISK Overview).
It should be called a good and promising start and the next step is to establish the proper waste management, co-working with various recycling companies, encouraging them to take part in the national struggle for environmental safety.
In conclusion, I would like to stress that it is perfectly clear that putting the environment in order is a long-term project, but just that very case could be the reason to accept any helping hand.
The whole point of these observations is that contamination of the desert areas is the problem that could be solved if working in tandem – government and society. The unanimity is the force that can remove mountains. I hope that if the above measures were taken the problem would be dealt with.
