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Tuesday, September 7, 2010
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Environment
Breathe Easier
- The average vehicle emits roughly 4 tonnes of pollutants into the air we breathe every year.
- 75% of the pollutants that form city smog come from vehicles; smog seriously aggravates respiratory and heart problems.
- Your vehicle produces about 3 ½ times its weight in carbon dioxide every year. This is a major contributor to global warming.
- Vehicle emissions contribute to the continued depletion of the ozone layer, which can lead to skin cancer and other serious health problems.
- News flash! Idling is not good for your engine. Contrary to popular belief, idling is not an effective way to warm up your vehicle, even in cold weather.
- Idling for more than half a minute burns more gas than it takes to restart your engine.
Smog is not just a problem in very large cities like Los Angeles or Mexico City. In 2005, Montreal experienced 66 days where air quality dropped below acceptable levels, threatening our health.
Smog is not limited to summer months. Winter smog is a significant problem, with the longest recorded smog period being recorded between January 31 and February 8, 2005.
| Consider this: If every driver of a light duty vehicle avoided idling by five minutes a day, collectively, we would save 1.8 million litres per day of fuel, almost 4500 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, and $1.7 million in fuel costs everyday (assuming fuel costs were $0.95/L). |
Children are particularly vulnerable to air pollution because they breathe faster than adults and inhale more air per kilogram of body weight. Air pollution can lead to the development of asthma and other respiratory diseases.
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Consider this: if you are idling in front of your child’s school, you could be spewing poisonous fumes directly onto the playground. Your child could be breathing in the toxins released by your vehicle.
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Deadly Toxins
Motor vehicles generate three major pollutants: hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides and carbon monoxide.
- Hydrocarbons react with nitrogen oxides in the presence of sunlight and elevated temperatures to form ground-level ozone. It can cause eye irritation, coughing, wheezing, and shortness of breath and can lead to permanent lung damage.
- Nitrogen oxides also contribute to the formation of ozone, as well as to the formation of acid rain and water-quality problems.
- Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, deadly gas. It reduces the flow of oxygen in the bloodstream and can impair mental functions and visual perception. In urban areas, motor vehicles are responsible for as much as 90% of carbon monoxide in the air.
Health Canada estimates that more than 5000 Canadians die prematurely each year because of air pollution, while thousands more become ill.
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Last update:
Monday, June 25, 2007
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