The people's voice., 1959-02-13

were MUCH more QeaQly Cndn Cno un-
burned particles of coal and oil. Now
modern science has shown that these
are the really serious menaces to
health and comfort; and new fuels,
chemicals and other noxious fumes in
recent years have multiplied the prob
lem many fold.
Most of the new effluent gases are
invisible. Some of the most deadly
cannot even be sensed by smell. Under
the best conditions, they probably act
as slow and insidious poisons affect
ing to some degree the health of mil
lions of persons. Those suffering from
chronic ailments, such as heart condi-
tions and respiratory diseases, prob
ably are the most severe sufferers.
Some authorities are now con-
vinced that air pollutants, acting
over long periods of time, cause
more lung cancer than smoking to-
bacco, indeed may be the principal
cause of this ailment.
damage which these air pollutants
cause has been withheld from public
knowledge for fear citizens would act
Historically and demand restrictive
laws that would be unwise, and per-
haps unfair to some of the industries
polluting the breezes.
NEED FOR EDUCATION
But the experts assembled from all
parts of the United States in Wash
ington last November at the first Ma
tional Conference on Air Pollution,
called by the U. S. Public Health
Service, were virtually unanimous
that little could be done to save us
from this menace unless the public
were much better informed regarding
its dangers, methods of abatement,
cost in human health and discomfort,
and damage to property.
AS matter of fact, much more
abouts the physics and chemistry of
what happens in the atmosphere as a
result of pollutants needs to be
known. Fortunately excellent research
is rapidly providing information. But
we already know enough to take con-
siderable action; and in some places |
such action is being taken. This is
particularly true in Los Angeles,
where the smog problem has become |
serious in recent years.
While the long-range dangers of
air pollutants still are only matter
of informed guess work, the short
range dangers have been well docu-
mented in at least four instances
which occurred in the Meuse Valley
of Belgium, in Donora, Pa. and in
London, England, in 1852 and 1856.
FOUR FATAL EXAMPLES
The Muese Valley is a highly in
dustrial region in which the smoke
stacks of many mills belch their fumes
into the atmosphere. There was a
heavy fog in December 1880 which
hung closely to the valley when the
occurred. 1t pressed the
air containing industrial pollutants
close to the ground. Sulphur dioxide
from the chimney stacks probably
was the chief william in this case. The |
result: probably at least so deaths {
and many illnesses.
Donora, Pa., also is In hlghly IN
region. In the month of S
October, 1948, there was also what I
5he technicians called an Inversion"
situation in the atmosphere. Heavy }
air was pressing upon fog-saturated I
over layer of air. Eighteen deaths S
occurred in cases known to be the {
.ause of air pollution. A study made '
by the United States
Public Health Service showed that a
almost half of the people of Donora !,
we're made i'll by the air condition.
Recently a restudy of the data col I
ected at the time was made by DR..
Anthony Ciocco of the University of
1t showed that persons p
Effected by the atmospheric condi- l,
ions of the 1948 episode suffer from =
functional diseases at present to ',
onsiderably greater extent than those :,
Who had not been exposed to, or af- u
ected by, the death-dealing smog of y
en- years earlier. :
Overwhelming evidence of the dis
ster which can arise from air pollu- u
ants was given by the London episode .
f December So, 1852. In that case ii
he death of about 1000 persons were