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.
It damages agricultural crops and farm production. Orchardgrass, the dominant forage crop for cattle in the Fraser Valley, is especially vulnerable to the effects of smog, a four-year University of B.C. study has found. Airborne chemicals damage buildings and materials and forests, our major revenue resource. Visibly polluted air affects real estate prices and tourism revenues. Smog also contains greenhouse gases which contribute to climate change.