Urban air pollution: Sources, impacts, and sustainable mitigation strategies for a cleaner future
1 Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs, Environmental Studies, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, USA.
2 Institute of Education, Education, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Osun State, Nigeria.
Research Article
World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, 2023, 20(01), 1298–1313
Publication history:
Received on 03 September 2023; revised on 13 October 2023; accepted on 15 October 2023
Abstract:
Background: Cities around the world have to deal with a big problem: air pollution. This is bad for health and the environment. The main causes of urban air pollution, its many effects, and new ways to cut it down are all looked at in this in-depth study. Because cities are growing so quickly, the number of harmful pollutants in the air has reached a frighteningly high level. This means that fast action is needed from lawmakers, companies, and communities.
Materials and Methods: Many studies, government reports, and publications from foreign groups have been looked over and judged to be adequate for this review. Planned reading of writing from the last 20 years is part of the method. Large cities in different parts of the world are given extra attention by the writers. A full picture of how air pollution changes in towns is shown in this review, which uses data from air monitoring sites, epidemiological studies, and climate modeling.
Findings: The study finds that the main things that pollute the air in towns are making energy, driving cars, and doing industrial work. Particulate matter (PM2.5), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and sulfur dioxide (SO2) are the 3 main types of pollution. There's a lot of proof that they make lung diseases, heart problems, and early deaths more likely. The data show that there is a strong link between the amount of pollution in the air and things like income. Some places are more likely than others to have to deal with the health effects and exposure.
Discussion: The paper takes a close look at how well the current rules and methods for managing air pollution in various city areas work. Some of the new ideas that are talked about are green urban planning, better emission controls, and using renewable energy to clean up the air in towns. The review also talks about how climate change and air pollution affect each other in complex ways. It stresses the need for unified approaches to handle both issues at the same time.
Conclusion: This in-depth look at the subject shows how important it is to clean up polluted air right away by working together. Instead of working alone, communities, companies, and governments need to work together to find long-lasting solutions. These findings show how important strict rules, new tools, and changes in how people act for making big changes in city air quality. Countries need to work together and share their knowledge to solve this global problem and make sure that cities have better, more sustainable futures. This is stressed at the end of the review
Keywords:
Urban pollution; PM2.5; NOx; SO2; Vehicle and truck emissions; Lung and heart ailments; Climate change; And air quality control and legislation
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Copyright information:
Copyright © 2023 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article. This article is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Liscense 4.0