The Rising Ultrafine Particles are Recording History:
Typically, before going outside, people usually look at the weather forecast to see if it is equitable to go outside; however, due to the rising levels of ultrafine particles, citizens of many countries such as Korea need to check the PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations to see if they are capable of going outside. On March 11th of 2021, South Korea has reached its highest level of ultrafine dust particles within two years. Particles have exceeded up to 100 µg/m3, and during recent years, there continually has been a substantial amount of air pollution, especially in Korea. Even before the pandemic hit, a considerable amount of Korean citizens have started to wear masks due to these ultrafine particles having the potential to give people diseases such as cancer. If more significant changes on the rising issue aren’t made, the number is going to rise, harming more citizens not only in Korea but also citizens all over the world.
After looking a little deeper into the issue, curiosity sparked, and I started to investigate the situation outside surroundings around me, and I’ve noticed many substantial changes in the atmosphere these ultrafine dust particles have made. Supposed to the clear sky where there were no PM2.5 particles, the sky was murkier when there was a high level of PM2.5 particles.
These two images compare a day in which the atmosphere is very clear and a day in which ultrafine particles are high
Many experts warn that ultrafine dust particles have a high risk of harming people. As this particles enter our body through our nose and bronchial tubes, it travels all the way to our lungs and sticks to our alveoli. These fine dust particles may stay in our lungs for up to a week, and those particles have the potential to reach our blood. This is going to higher the chance of people getting a cardiac disorder or a respiratory disease.
The Global Response to This Issue:
Ultrafine particles, also known as PM2.5, are inhalable particles that have a diameter of 2.5 micrometers. This is the most harmful air pollution; nevertheless, The United States Environmental Protection Agency has made an effort in ensuring particle levels to protect public health and the environment. Therefore, during recent years, the average PM2.5 concentrations have substantially decreased.
However, although many experts and organizations are trying to resolve this issue, many nations such as India, Pakistan, China, and Africa are still facing many detrimental effects as they are a few of the most polluted places on earth. According to the World Health Organization, about 7 million people have died due to reasons regarding air pollution.
This image shows the global trends of air pollution
Seeking Solutions to This Matter:
According to the World Health Organization, these particles from gaseous precursors include sulfur dioxide, oxides of nitrogen, ammonia, and non-methane volatile organic compounds. These harmful chemicals come from human activities such as the use of anthropogenic sources, consumption of household energy production, and industrial activities. As the levels of ultrafine dust pollution are becoming more substantial, there have been considerable improvements in the global air quality in the past few decades.
According to the Ministry of Environment, one of the topmost priorities of Korea is to take urgent actions to protect the health of people from air pollution. From 2014, Korea plans to reduce PM2.5 emissions by 35.8 % until 2022. In order to reach this goal, some of the primary changes we have to make are changes in power generation, industries, transportation, and our daily surroundings.
To begin with, we need to reduce the use of coal-fired power plants and penetrate new renewable energy. This includes attaining energy from more environmentally friendly sources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, waves, and geothermal heat. These naturally replenished resources will equip an environment with less production of fine dust pollution. Additionally, we need to designate stricter permissible emissions levels to numerous business facilities. Making modifications to our transportation system is also one essential solution. This includes applying more restrictions for driving vehicles and using more environmentally friendly options such as electric cars. Lastly, we need to supply more changes to our daily surroundings such as mitigating fugitive dust from roads.
Commonly, after people check that the particulate matter levels are high, they usually just wearing a mask; however, if this problem is seen from a more logistical point of view, more action needs to be done. Millions of people are dying and we need to take action together. Instead of just wearing a mask, we need to start using more natural sources of energy. We need to use eco-friendly cars. We need to spread awareness. Air pollution is an immense problem that is affecting numerous people around the world, especially in Korea. Right now, we need to take action together.
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