Cover Letter

For this assignment, we were supposed to select a topic of our choice and research it to the best of our abilities, following which we were supposed to find evidence to support our claim based on the research of our sources. While writing this paper, I kept in mind my intended audience, which in this case were people who wanted to learn more about the ways we can reduce the effects of air pollution. I wrote for those who sought a further understanding of this topic. So what I did to appeal to them was tailor my language in a way that would be a liking to their appeal. I kept my tone in the paper, sincere and professional. I wanted readers to be able to understand my writing deeply, as this is a topic I strongly care about. And by keeping my tone professional, it would make readers take my work more seriously. By going back and forth between these two tones I realized that how you address your paper matters a lot in how the audience perceives it. Thereby, I thought my tone was appropriate for this paper. Furthermore, I felt my rhetorical choices were appropriate as I felt it would best help the readers understand my paper while keeping it in a simple demeanor. I intended to make sure my audience understood what goes on in the world in terms of air pollution. Therefore, I wanted to focus on making sure my message gets across to my readers. And in the end, I hoped those who read my paper could understand just how big of a problem air pollution is and put together their judgments based on the evidence I collected. 

A meaningful insight I gained through this phase is that when writing a research paper, to prove my argument, I have to make sure I have an abundance of strong, supporting evidence to get my point across. Also, just merely listing evidence wouldn’t be sufficient enough to prove my claim. There is a lot more to uncover underneath these pieces of evidence, and it is my job to explain them. A research essay is essentially portioned off by half of it being evidence from different sources, and the other half is me analyzing those evidence. As I was finishing writing this paper, I realized that I have become better at finding reliable and useful sources. Essentially, in this phase, I gained the knowledge of knowing the importance of how much coordination between your evidence and analysis matters. I now know how prominent and useful it is, which showed me that when writing a paper I should remember this to prove my argument, in the most effective way possible. In the end, I became more effective in analyzing evidence, as I now know a deeper way to analyze evidence.

The concepts and terms that most impacted my learning and writing practices were understanding how purpose, argument, evidence, and audience play a big role in developing a text. The purpose is a leading part of any text, it’s the point I am trying to make to the reader. Evidence is essentially the proof I use to prove my argument, and without evidence, I have an invalid argument. And the audience, from my point of view, shaped how I wrote my text. Based on my audience, I had to choose specific writing strategies that’ll appeal and get my point across to them. Keeping these in mind, throughout my paper I used these concepts and terms to subconsciously make my argument persuasive. From the previous phases, which also occurred again in this phase, I learned that sometimes a lot more is revealed when the focus is not on what the author says but instead on what the author does and how they get their message across while using evidence to back up their argument.

This phase’s assignment has helped me to achieve multiple course learning outcomes, but the best/main being number 3, and 7. Course Learning Outcome 3 is to “Develop strategies for reading, drafting, collaborating, revising, and editing”. I felt I achieved this CLO because, throughout the process of writing this narrative, there were multiple steps I had to do that led to this final piece. I had to read my fellow peer’s papers, write multiple drafts, collaborate with my peers on theirs and my paper, and revise/edit those drafts I did. But, by doing this for every draft and me realizing my mistakes, I knew what to do to improve my paper and in the process gained the skills to fix that for next time. Course Learning Outcome 7 is to “Locate research sources (including academic journal articles, magazine and newspaper articles) in the library’s databases or archives and on the Internet and evaluate them for credibility, accuracy, timeliness, and bias”. I feel I achieved this CLO because at first, I had trouble finding online sources that supplied the specific evidence I needed, but after needing to do this multiple times, I feel like I now know what to do to make this process quicker next time. I learned that what and where you look for your sources matters a lot, as it’s also a factor in the quality of evidence you have. In conclusion, this phase got me to think about how often what we look for is not what we need. It is more so how you use what you find to best fit your situation. In the end, all of these factors helped contribute to making my paper stronger and sound more credible and knowledgeable.

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Examining The Ways We Can Reduce The Effects Of Air Pollution

Introduction

Today in the world, there are roughly 4.6 million people who die every year from the effects of air pollution. As big as this number may seem, this is just a rough estimate that doesn’t even take into account the countless others who face it in their day to day life. Air pollution is defined by the presence of hazardous and harmful chemicals and gases in the air that makes the atmospheric air unfit for routine purposes by plants and animals. It causes changes in the air, which can be physical, chemical, or biological. This can deteriorate the quality of the biotic lives in the environment, making the lives of all kinds difficult. In this essay, I will strive to illustrate the negative effects of air pollution and ways we can combat these effects by listing plausible solutions. 

Effects of Air Pollution

Air pollution can lead to the destruction of the environment as well as the worsening of the health of all animals, including humans. An imbalance in these atmospheric gasses is known to result in global warming, a great threat to the contemporary world. Global warming in turn can lead to the rise of sea levels throughout the world with the melting of ice caps at both the North and South poles. Based on this detail it’s implied how dangerous air pollution is to the environment as it can lead to sea levels rising, which can further cause significant areas of land to be lost. Air pollution is a problem that severely affects those living in large, urban centers and the Third World. Those affected by poor air quality can develop serious breathing and health problems, such as asthma, glaucoma, and osteoporosis. Furthermore, different parts of the world face a more intense case of air pollution when compared to others, and it’s only getting worse in these places. Whether it be a few months from now or years, it will completely change all life as we know it. We cannot underestimate the effects air pollution has on the ozone layer, which largely contributes to the existence of organisms on the planet. We must take the initiative and acknowledge that air pollution is a big concern, and alter our lifestyles accordingly to ensure that the contamination in our atmosphere gets reduced. 

Long Term Solutions and Nature

To guarantee a sustainable planet for future generations, an emphasis on cutting off pollutants at the source, rather than looking at a short-term solution to tide over the problem, should be the main focus. Coordination between places is critical to forge effective and long-lasting solutions. We need to promote ways of lessening the use of fossil fuels and further invest in electrical power and solar power (Sustainable Delhi pollution). Additionally, the following quote hints at alternate ways of reducing air pollution. “The toughening up of vehicle emission standards in some countries and the decline of smoking rates in others, show that policy and behavioral change can lead to dramatic improvements within a generation.” (Ro). This detail exemplifies that the government needs to take an active role in industries by implementing laws and policies, which will successfully lead to the reduction of air pollution. In the modern world, numerous inventions are made daily, such as cars that can drive faster and further, and as a by-product, the factories release waste that comes from the production. We live in an age where it’s easy to spread information, specifically through social media and other such technologies, leading the production method of certain objects, such as cars, to be globalized. The globalization of the production methods can lead to air pollution to increase as numerous companies/industries will utilize the same production methods that release waste as a by-product. To achieve proper and effective control on polluting industries and assisting them with technological solutions, ensuring their implementation, financial assistance at low-interest rates should be made available. Any industry that lacks in taking corrective action should be closed down. We should also promote the use of technologies in the agricultural sector to dissuade them from adopting the burning of agricultural stubble. In other words, we should explore alternate options towards a win-win situation (Sustainable Delhi pollution). Some examples of this would be controlling air pollutant emissions from power plants by adopting tailpipe treatment technologies, installing smog towers at identified hotspots, and giving penalties to construction sites for not following pollution control measures. Efficient waste management includes covering all waste, providing necessary guidance and budget, as well as imposing heavy penalties on the burning of garbage. The reason why the above-mentioned measures need to be taken is especially seen in the following source. “… Air pollution is a global problem, and not only in the sense that it impacts regions around the globe. Toxic fumes arising in one country drift into another. Particulate matter in one country is emitted to produce goods that are consumed in another.” (Ro). Based on this quote, it’s especially seen that unless all countries participate in the usage of the previously mentioned methods, air pollution will continue to be a problem worldwide. From all these details, the readers can understand that since there are problems associated with air pollution, it’s also critical for everyone to follow steps to ensure that air pollution is completely diminished so that all the complications are reduced. 

Air pollution isn’t just a problem for people but nature as well. These are some ways that nature deals with the consequences of air pollution. Throughout, researchers collected public data on air pollution and vegetation on a county-by-county basis across America to understand the effects that trees and other plants may have on air pollution. After some research and experiments, they’ve found out that restoring vegetation to county-level average canopy cover reduced air pollution by an average of 27% across the counties, though this varied by county and region (Nature reducing air pollution). However, their research did not account for the direct effects plants might have on ozone pollution. This is because the data on ozone emissions is lacking. The analysis also didn’t consider whether certain species of trees or plants were more effective at purifying pollution from the air than others. Likely being that certain species of plants might make a difference in air quality because they can absorb more carbon dioxide and other harmful pollutants than others (Nature reducing air pollution). Because of this, adding trees or other plants could lower air pollution levels in both urban and rural areas, though the success rates vary depending on how much land is available to grow new plants and the current air quality (Nature reducing air pollution). Therefore, nature should be a part of the planning process to deal with air pollution, meaning that engineers and builders should find ways to incorporate both technological and ecological systems. Research teams have found that people in the most-polluted, top 25 percent of areas were at least 6 percent more likely to report having glaucoma than those in the least-polluted quartile. They were also significantly more likely to have a thinner retina, a typical change in the glaucoma progression. “Air pollution may be contributing to glaucoma due to the constriction of blood vessels, which ties into air pollution’s links to an increased risk of heart problems…” (Nature reducing air pollution). Through this quote, it’s well understood that air pollution can cause health deterioration, implying the urgency of everyone needing to follow proper methods to reduce air pollution since glaucoma is a side effect of the phenomenon. Additionally,  the sun delivers energy to Earth’s surface in the form of solar radiation in which the amount of sunlight that reaches the surface fluctuates over time. Cloud cover and aerosols particulates like dust or ash in the air can disperse or scatter sunlight, resulting in less of it arriving on Earth (Air pollution Earth’s surface). “Researchers report that the ratio of scattered radiation to global radiation increases with the increase in air pollution levels, meaning that less sunlight is reaching the Earth’s surface. An increased amount of particulate matter prevents the direct incidence of solar radiation to the surface of the Earth and improves the ability of solar radiation in the polluted atmosphere to scatter away.” (Air pollution Earth’s surface). This means that air pollution reduces the amount of energy that is gained from solar panels as it blocks a considerable amount of sunlight reaching the Earth’s surface.  But, as earlier discussed, we can avoid this by “…adding plants and trees to the landscapes near factories and other pollution sources could reduce air pollution by an average of 27%.” (Air pollution blindness). Researchers found that in 75% of the counties, it was cheaper to use plants to mitigate air pollution than it was to add technological interventions, things like smokestack scrubbers, to the sources of pollution.

Short Term Solutions and Benefits

To avoid health risks from air pollution, 1) one should avoid daily walks and exercise at home until situations improve. 2) On top of that, people should also avoid traveling in open vehicles and opt for a closed-transport system such as metro, buses, and cars. 3) Then, get indoor plants as they act as air purifiers and increase the oxygen level in their surroundings. 4) Furthermore, avoid burning garbage and preventing others in the neighborhood from doing the same. 5) One should eat healthy foods to increase immunity. 6) Lastly, using air masks can limit exposure to pollutants but that needs to be chosen prudently (tips protect air pollution). Air pollution is posing a risk to health as several people are complaining about having breathing problems. On top of that, it has been linked to many diseases, mainly those that are respiratory and heart-related. In response to this, experts are suggesting that people use masks and avoid areas with a lot of cars since stubble burning in nearby states and climate change are ameliorating the problem. (tips protect air pollution) Due to these conditions, local businesses are bracing themselves for a draft plan by the federal EPA, which will outline several dramatic measures to reduce air pollution. “Among the most severe strategies expected to be proposed are “no drive days,” which would require residents to leave a vehicle at home one or two days per week; reducing emissions by 20 percent at stationary sources; cutting emissions by 20 percent at airports by reducing flights and ground support equipment or reducing their emissions through more efficient technologies.” (Federal propose air pollution). This is all due to the 1977 Clean Air Act, which required all areas of the country to submit plans for reducing ozone and carbon monoxide and to reach those goals back in 1987. However, Sacramento, Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, and countless other places had needed massive emission reductions that they sought extensions from the EPA to meet the expectations. As mobile emissions from cars and other vehicles were the biggest source of their pollution. (Federal propose air pollution). These areas were honest about their effectiveness, while other areas submitted plans claiming they could meet these attainments even though they didn’t. What people don’t realize is that “Air pollution is made up of particles and gases. Gases include ozone, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and a large group of chemicals known as volatile organic compounds.” (beat air pollution mask?). While these gases can be harmful, research indicates that we should be most concerned about the impacts of fine particles, as they are under 2.5 microns in size. Whether face masks are effective depends on many factors. “Their ability to limit exposure depends on the type of pollutant, the mask itself, and how it’s used. Masks are assigned a protection factor, which is the percentage of a pollutant that the mask does not remove. A protection factor of 10 means that all but 10 percent of the pollutant is filtered out by the mask, assuming that the mask fits tightly on the face.” (beat air pollution mask?). “Moreover, while our exposure to air pollution is typically greater outdoors, we spend the vast majority of our time indoors, where we’re also exposed to air pollutants, including gases and fine particles.” (beat air pollution mask?). Since facemasks are not typically worn indoors, the use of indoor air cleaners that have particle and gas-filtering capabilities would still be needed to provide further protection from pollutants in the air. Although wearing a facemask can be beneficial, it can be difficult for some people. It can be uncomfortable, make breathing seem a bit difficult, and have a feeling of claustrophobia. Furthermore, a facemask is only effective if it provides a good seal around the face. So this poses a problem for “men with beards or who is unshaven as they cannot achieve an adequately tight fit around the nose and mouth.” (beat air pollution mask?). Even though wearing a facemask comes with its fair share of benefits, it doesn’t leave behind the issues that come with it.

As people continue to reduce the amount of air pollution, there will be more benefits not only for people but also for the environment as a whole.  For instance, in the United States, the closure of a steel mill in Utah for 13 months resulted in fewer cases of pneumonia, pleurisy, bronchitis, and asthma by half. This also resulted in school absences being decreased by 40 percent, and daily mortality falling by 16 percent for every pollutant decrease. Furthermore, women who were pregnant during the mill closing were less likely to have premature births. (Dramatic benefits following reduction). “Air pollution is a largely avoidable health risk that affects everyone. Urban growth, expanding industrialization, global warming, and new knowledge of the harm of air pollution raises the degree of urgency for pollution control and stresses the consequences of inaction.” (Dramatic benefits following reduction). Reducing air pollution can result in prompt and substantial health gains as well as financial benefits. Furthermore, “25 years after the enactment of the Clean Air Act, the U.S. EPA estimated that the health benefits exceeded the cost by 32:1, saving 2 trillion dollars, and has been heralded as one of the most effective public health policies of all time in the United States. Emissions of major pollutants were reduced by 73 percent between 1990 and 2015 while the U.S. gross domestic product grew by more than 250 percent.” (Dramatic benefits following reduction). These sweeping policies, affecting a whole country, can reduce all-cause mortality within weeks. Local programs, such as reducing traffic, have also improved many health measures. To address the health benefits further, in Atlanta, Georgia, during the 1996 Olympic Games, parts of the city were closed to help athletes make it to their events on time for 17 days. In addition to helping athletes out, air pollution was also greatly reduced in the following areas. This led to children’s visits for asthma to clinics dropping by more than 40 percent, trips to emergency departments by 11 percent, and hospitalization for asthma decreasing by 19 percent in the following four weeks. (Dramatic benefits following reduction). Showing that if we take the initiative, things can be better.

Conclusion

There are many ways that air pollution affects people, as well as the environment. Many attempts have been made at various levels in society to curb the causes of air pollution. Therefore, it is possible to reverse the problems of air pollution, no matter how severe it may be. Even if there have been a few failed attempts, we are slowly learning from our mistakes, and are taking one step further in a path of a more eco-friendly world. So, let us be responsible for maintaining a safe environment for future generations to come.’

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Work Cited

“Can you beat air pollution with masks?” Down To Earth, 15 Nov. 2019, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A605899090/GPS?u=nysl_me_71_hsfes&sid=GPS&xid=0bebe6f1. Accessed 11 Nov. 2020.

“Dramatic health benefits following air pollution reduction finds American Thoracic Society.” Indianbureaucracy.com, 11 Dec. 2019, p. NA. Gale OneFile: Health and Medicine, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A608161907/GPS?u=nysl_me_71_hsfes&sid=GPS&xid=d581ab1f. Accessed 11 Nov. 2020.

“Air pollution can cause blindness: Study.” IANS, 26 Nov. 2019, p. NA. Gale OneFile: Health and Medicine, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A606767775/GPS?u=nysl_me_71_hsfes&sid=GPS&xid=b7e6a425. Accessed 11 Nov. 2020.

“Nature might be better than tech at reducing air pollution.” Space Daily, 11 Nov. 2019, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A605409745/GPS?u=nysl_me_71_hsfes&sid=GPS&xid=d5e2a312. Accessed 11 Nov. 2020.

Ro, Christine. “Air Pollution Respects No Borders.” Earth Island Journal, Wntr 2020, p. 54. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A610761715/GPS?u=nysl_me_71_hsfes&sid=GPS&xid=51fe635f. Accessed 11 Nov. 2020.

“7 tips to protect you from ill-effects of air pollution.” eHealth, 30 Oct. 2019, p. NA. Gale OneFile: Health and Medicine, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A604182764/GPS?u=nysl_me_71_hsfes&sid=GPS&xid=d94e5437. Accessed 11 Nov. 2020.

“Sustainable, not short-term, solutions needed to curb Delhi pollution.” Food & Beverage News, 7 Jan. 2020, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A610684074/GPS?u=nysl_me_71_hsfes&sid=GPS&xid=5f561ba4. Accessed 11 Nov. 2020.

“Air pollution under clear skies reduces sunlight reaching the Earth’s surface.” Space Daily, 3 Sept. 2019, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A598212708/GPS?u=nysl_me_71_hsfes&sid=GPS&xid=b318ac5b. Accessed 11 Nov. 2020.

Graebner, Lynn. “Federal regulators to propose steps for reducing air pollution.” The Business Journal Serving Greater Sacramento, 14 Feb. 1994, p. 2+. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A15162144/GPS?u=nysl_me_71_hsfes&sid=GPS&xid=eec08371. Accessed 11 Nov. 2020.