China is going through an Industrial Revolution not too different from the European and American Industrial Revolution of the 19th century. This revolution took China from a horrible rural wasteland that it is today. The industrial revolution has occurred so much faster with the technological era that has swept the world in the 21st century, and China will be light years ahead of almost every country. This modern industrial revolution has helped China greatly in getting its economy back on track in the mid-20th century but it has also led to major problems in the country and inevitably the world.
Issue
China, like the United States and Europe, is going through an industrial revolution during the massive technological era and the drastic increase in factories, cars, and electricity use has led to huge spikes in pollution. Currently, China has reached “…PM 2.5 particles exceeding 500 micrograms per cubic meter, about 20 times as high as considered safe by the World Health Organization.” said an author for the Huffington Post. Pollution leads to many breathing problems including: asthma, bronchitis, chest pains, pulmonary problems, congestion, and more.
Having asthma myself I can honestly say that smoke is one of the worst things to breathe in and pollution only adds to that problem. The pollution problem has led to drastic increases in air pollution due to many outside factors. The number one problem is the growing need and use of cars in the country.
The mass influx of cars has recently hit the mega-nation and the people of the country greedily bought the biggest, baddest cars they could find. People in China have gained access to the automobile and the great availability has led to the increased spending to buy these luxuries, luxuries that can only be shown off if they buy the largest and flashiest ones. These cars may show off more wealth for the owner, but they are much worse for the environment. Hummers and vans are bought to show friends and neighbors that they have a car they bought with their vast amount of money (even if they don’t have that kind of money).
The increase in Chinese factories and industrial production also led to great increases in air pollution in China’s atmosphere and ultimately the world’s atmosphere. China is no only a huge product manufacturer of the toys people see all the time, but also, with the rise of the tech age, robotics have developed massively in China. This has resulted in massive factories being built that contribute to air pollution by giving off massive clouds of black smoke.
Solution
Although many people have tried to slow down air pollution rates, it may be impossible. Some people have designed air-cleaning bikes, shot rockets into the atmosphere for fake precipitation, and even cans of clean air. The problem in China is huge, and maybe, through some concentrated efforts air pollution maybe we can press the breaks on air pollution. From sprinklers on roofs to fake precipitation, even the craziest efforts should be encouraged. Why not make getting rid of pollution fun?
Here is more information on organizations that are aimed to reduce air pollution.
[Image Attribute: Flickr User mariusz kluzniak]
[Image Attribute: Environmental Blog: enviro.questionsthatmatter]
