But air pollution is not simply an annoyance. It affects our ecosystem, our health, our economy and contributes to climate change. Air pollution harms the ecosystem. Snow high on the Coast Mountains on the Lower Mainland's northern border has been found to contain more copper and zinc than allowed under federal guidelines for the protection of freshwater aquatic life. Airborne contaminants find their way into streams and rivers, affecting bottom-dwelling organisms, fish and shellfish, and the birds and wildlife that feed on them.
Air pollution is a known but so far unquantified source of marine pollution.
Poor air quality compromises the health of the residents of the Georgia Basin. This component of smog has been related to premature deaths, increased visits to hospital emergency rooms, restricted activity days for seniors and people with respiratory problems, and medical symptoms such as chest discomfort. The other main component of smog is ground level ozone. Tests of 58 farm workers in Abbotsford over two summer months revealed lung capacity declined by about five per cent the day following exposure to ground level ozone, according to a 1997 report. Polluted air harms the economic well-being of the Basin.