Air Pollution in El Monte
AIR POLLUTION
- This pollutant is a non point source, mainly caused by automobiles
- Since El Monte is surrounded by three major freeways, it is constantly being exposed to emissions
- According to the EPA's AIQ on LA county, Ozone and PM 2.5 have been rising within the past five years
- As shown in the image above, there is an increasing amount of days with unhealthy air for the general public and for sensitive groups.
- A total of 241 days of unhealthy or worse air in El Monte, for this year only ("Air Quality", 2020)
- Health impacts of poor air quality
- Carbon Monoxide: Low blood oxygen level, cause dizziness, confusion, unconsciousness and death
- Lead: Neurological effects in children and cardiovascular disease
- Nitrogen Dioxide: Respiratory diseases worsen
- Ozone (ground): Chest pain, coughing, throat irritation and airway inflammation
- PM: Particulate matter is sometimes so small that it can enter your lungs and blood stream.
- Sulfur Dioxide: Respiratory problems
- Nitrogen Dioxide in El Monte has been on average higher than the mean of the state of California and US for more than 10 years. ("Environmental Protection", 2020)
- A total of 10,000 people in El Monte have asthma, this is about 10% of the population ("Health Assessment Unit", 2015)
- Compared to 2011, it was 4,00 about 4%.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
- Lung disease that prevents airflow and causes respiratory problems
- The average percentage of COPD ER visits in LA county is 2.9% per 10,000 individuals (Harrington at el., 2019).
- El Monte exceeds this amount, as of 2015 the average COPD ER visits per 10,000 individuals is 12.2% (Harrington at el. 2019).
- El Monte is the city my immediate family and I live in and this issue is important to me because it affects everyone in my community; my friends and family. It's the air we breath everyday, at all times. It makes me sad to think that the air that gives me life will eventually be my downfall as well. My grandparents who are 70 years old have weak lungs and bad air pollution is not helping them live any longer. I chose this issue because it affects what I hold close to my heart, my family. After learning all this information I want to do all I can to prevent further damage to my community's air quality.
References
https://air.plumelabs.com/air-quality-in-el-monte-ca-mqFF
https://www.epa.gov/outdoor-air-quality-data/air-data-daily-air-quality-tracker.
http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/ha/LACHSDataTopics2011.htm
Harrington, M.J., Newark, C., & Fenton, J. (2019). 2019 Community Health Needs Assessment. Emanate Health
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