Green Innovations
Freeway Pollution: A Bigger Problem Than You Think
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Freeways and large highways are in essence the lifeblood of our modern societies. They help to transport millions of people and billions of tons of goods from place to place every year throughout the world. For those that live near a freeway, it can be a major annoyance to have to listen to and watch countless vehicles stream by on a daily basis. Yet that’s only a minor inconvenience in the grand scheme of it all. One would think that asphalt and cars and trucks couldn’t add up to much by way of affecting our health, but new data suggests that freeway pollution travels further than we originally believed it did, which in turn has the ability to damage not just the health of those living near freeways, but those who live downwind from them as well.
Range Of Pollution
You may think that you are safe from freeway pollution if you live a good mile or two away from a freeway, but that may not be the case. A recent study conducted by the University of Southern California (USC), the University of California, L.A. (UCLA) and the California Air Resources Board indicates that the pollution from thousands of autos can hover and travel a long ways. If you have never visited California, it is in essence a giant state with a gigantic freeway/highway system that caters to millions of drivers daily. Obviously, this collection of autos produces massive amounts of pollution that gathers up in the famous smog clouds that encircle L.A. in the warm summer months.
The above-mentioned team studied how far pollution from Interstate 10 in Santa Monica travelled at all hours during the day. They found that pollution from this particular section of freeway travelled roughly ten times further than originally suspected. Specifically, pollution from Interstate 10 in Santa Monica extended more than 1.5 miles downwind from the freeway itself. They also discovered pollution levels to be highest in the early morning hours, typically a few hours before sunrise.
Your Health And Freeway Pollution
Those living next to or within a few miles of a freeway or highway may be at a higher risk for certain diseases and health issues in comparison to those who do not live near freeways. This danger is especially amplified for pregnant women and their unborn babies. Pregnant women living within a few miles of a freeway or highway are twice as likely to deliver “very preterm” (less than 30 weeks). For those who make it past 30 weeks, there is a 30 per cent greater chance that they will deliver from 31 to 37 weeks (preterm).
For others, there is a greater likelihood of developing afflictions such as asthma, heart disease, cancer and other various diseases that shorten our life spans.
How To Protect Yourself
In theory, the California study’s results should apply to those living near major freeways and highways throughout the world. After all, the climate may be a bit different in Santa Monica, but unless you are living in a place where wind is minimal, you may very well find that you are being exposed to a lot of pollution from busy freeways. Nevertheless, there are a few things that you can do to minimize your exposure to the massive amounts of pollutants from autos.
If at all possible, try to keep your windows closed at night. This can be hard depending on the time of year, but by doing so you are protecting yourself from the highest levels of pollution in concern to the time of day. If you are an early morning person and like to exercise or be outside during those hours, it is best that you limit your time outdoors. If worse comes to worst, go to the gym or take a short ride to a local park to take care of your early morning running.
On The Road
On a side note, if you travel freeways or highways daily, it is a good idea to keep your windows up. Modern cabin filters can help to filter out a fair amount of the pollutants that spew from other autos.
Hopefully as technology advances and autos spew out less and less toxic pollutants, people residing near busy freeways and highways will face fewer health risks.
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