http://www.sundayherald.com/news/newsi.hts?section=News&story_id=13816 Sunday Herald - www.sundayherald.com 22 January 2001
Car fumes a bigger killer than crashes on the roads Study finds 2000 Scots a year die from air pollution Publication Date: Jan 21 2001 Air pollution from vehicle exhausts kills 2000 people every year in Scotland - five times more than die in road accidents - according to an authoritative new report from St Andrews University. The tiny sooty particles and nitrogen dioxide gases spewed out by petrol and diesel engines hasten the death of the elderly and the sick by making it more difficult for them to breath. The pollution could also restrict their blood flow, causing strokes and heart attacks. "This is the shocking and alarming hidden cost of road traffic which people are not aware of," said economics professor Felix Fitzroy, one of the authors of the study. "And it is probably only the tip of the iceberg. Many of those who die are suffering from chronic illnesses caused by a lifetime's exposure to pollution." The revelation comes after the government warned that pollution in Scotland could reach dangerously high levels this weekend because of the recent cold weather. The Department of the Environment said that elderly people suffering from heart or lung conditions could suffer, and urged motorists to avoid using their cars. If the forecast is accurate, people will die as a direct result of the pollution, particularly in those cities worst affected . The St Andrews study - the first to provide a rigorous statistical estimate of pollution deaths in Britain - reveals that from 1992 to 1997 more than 1400 people were killed by traffic fumes in Edinburgh, while 800 died in Glasgow. The study calculates the number of deaths caused in 13 British cities over six years to 1997 by five pollutants that come mostly from transport - tiny particles, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide and ozone. It then estimates that up to 20,000 throughout Britain die every year because of the pollution, of whom about 2000 are likely to be in Scotland. According to the Scottish Executive's statistics, the number of people who were fatally injured on Scotland's roads averaged 394 a year between 1992 and 1997. Fitzroy pointed out that the pollution death rate tended to be higher in smaller cities, perhaps because of higher population densities. The number per 100,000 who died every year in Swansea was 68, in Southampton 64 and in Edinburgh 53. This compared to 22 in Glasgow, 17 in Birmingham and 16 in London. The difference between the two Scottish cities could be due to the higher density of people and traffic in Edinburgh, or to the possibility that Glasgow's monitoring system does not record the city's real pollution levels. "Everyone is aware of the cost of petrol and the cost of congestion. If you live on a main road you will be aware of the nuisance of traffic noise. If your kid has asthma, you may perceive that there is a problem," stated Fitzroy. "But people generally don't realise the real cost of air pollution. Politicians need to take this into account. They need to invest more in public transport to give people alternatives to their car." Ken Donaldson, an air pollution expert from Napier University in Edinburgh, said that evidence from around the world suggested that pollutants cause a significant number of deaths. "It is difficult to believe, but all the data and all the research that has been done points to this being the case." Although the precise mechanisms by which this happens are still under investigation, some dangers are clear. Pollution can inflame lung tissue and hamper breathing, posing obvious problems to those with acute respiratory conditions such as bronchitis or emphysema. Research also suggests that pollution can thicken the blood and alter the heartbeat, making people more vulnerable to strokes and heart attacks. Some estimates suggest that a 10 micrograms per cubic metre increase in the concentration of polluting particles is enough to cause a 1% rise in the death rate, Donaldson pointed out. The British government's Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollution recently released a report which suggested that the total cost of particle pollution to Britain could be as high as £60 billion. Two other new studies from abroad provide further disturbing evidence of how air pollution can harm health. In a four-year survey of 3000 schoolchildren around Los Angeles, researchers in California have discovered reductions in lung capacity of up to 4% among children from the more heavily polluted areas. "The results suggest that exposure to air pollution may lead to a reduction in maximal attained lung function, which occurs early in adult life, and ultimately to increased risk of chronic respiratory illness in adulthood," they concluded. Friends of the Earth Scotland pointed out that other pollutants in fuel, such as benzene and 1,3-butadiene, are known to cause cancer which could add to the number of deaths. "These studies together reveal the horrendous toll in human lives and financial costs which air pollution imposes on Scotland," said the environmental group's head of research, Dr Richard Dixon. "The major problem is our over-reliance on the private motor car. The Scottish Executive has promised action but its air quality strategy is months behind schedule and the government continues to fund major road projects like the M74 extension. We have spent a lot of money trying to tackle deaths from road crashes. Now let's get serious about tackling the hidden deaths also caused by road vehicles." The Executive accepted that air pollution did cause premature deaths and illness. But it stressed in a statement that it was working hard in partnership with local authorities and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency to combat the sources of pollution and reduce its impact on human health and the environment. The first management area aimed at improving air quality had just been declared in Edinburgh, and other local authorities were "nearing completion" of their air quality assessments. The executive was encouraging public transport, cycling and walking, and had invested over £90m in bus priority measures, park-and-ride schemes and other public transport initiatives. An Executive spokeswoman predicted that improvements in vehicle technology and fuel quality should cut polluting emissions to half of their 1997 levels by 2010. "Air quality is improving," she said. "But there is still more to be done." Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html To unsubscribe, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
