The Effects of

Air Pollution
on Chinese
Health
Terry Crawford
and
Eian Lomash
 Personal Reflection

We chose this topic because we do not like to see our

Chinese brethren get affected by their own air. Were
prepared to take Social Action against the suffering of
the Chinese people, because if one of us suffers, we all
suffer.
Air Pollution - Whats the Problem?

Air pollution is a severe problem one that we ignore at the risk of our health and
our economy. Because of the Clean Air Act, we as American citizens do not have to
worry about developing illnesses from the air. However, smog hangs heavy over
Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong, where children grow up with asthma and other
respiratory illnesses.

In Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Xian, pollution levels in all four cities exceed
World Health Organisation (WHO) air quality guidelines. This means higher health
risks to the cardiovascular system, cerebrovascular system and an increase in the
probability of cancer and premature death
What Could
Happen Later? Out of all the countries in the world, China by far has
the worst air pollution. As of today, we are only seeing
the short term effects which only affect the Chinese
citizens. Eventually the long term effects will come into
play and affect all of us. The pollution will eventually
spill into other countries impacting their environments
as well as impacting our atmosphere and other
biological sources that are required for all of life to
maintain on the Earth.
Facts and Furious
In 2010, out of 113 cities surveyed by China's environmental protection
ministry, a third of them failed to meet national air standards.
Out of the top 20 most polluted cities in the world, China has 16
About a fifth of urban chinese people breathe heavily polluted air
Many cities smell of high-sulfur coal and leaded gasoline
Only a third of the 340 cities that are monitored meet China's air standards
2 Facts, 2 Furious
760,000 people die prematurely each year in China because of air and water pollution, according to a 2007
World Bank report.
Air pollution in Chinas cities cause 350,000 to 400,00 of these deaths and another 300,000 die because of
poor-quality air indoors. Also, 60,000 of these deaths are due to poor-quality water, according a Financial Times
article.

Nationwide, cancer rates have surged since the 1990s to become the nations biggest killer. In 2007, the disease
was responsible for one in five deaths, up 80% since the start of economic reforms 30 years earlier, the Guardian
reports.

Chinese farmers are almost four times more likely to die of liver cancer and twice as likely to die of stomach
cancer than the global average, since most of the dirtiest factories are in rural China. This has sparked the birth
of cancer villages around factories according to a study commissioned by the World Bank reports the Guardian.

There have been few epidemiological studies to validate such claims, but the scale of such reports highlights the
growing fear of pollution. Last year, investigative journalist Deng Fei, posted a widely circulated Google map
showing more than 100 cancer villages. More recent reports suggest the number could be over 400.
Facts five
Cities are filled with heavy smog because of heavy industry, metal smelters,
and coal fired power plants
These industries spew out tons of carbon, metals, gases and soot into the
air
They get 80% of their electricity and 70% of their total energy from coal
much of which is polluting high-sulfur coal
To run the factories, heat homes, and cook meals for a day takes around 6
million tons of coal to run.
Environmental Impact- The Tokyo Drift
China's neighbors, including Japan and South Korea, have also expressed concern over acid rain
and smog affecting their native populations. In May 2013, government officials of the three
countries added air pollution and climate change to a list of diplomatic issues for the region to
solve. Moreover, a recent study reported that emissions from China's export industries are
worsening air pollution as far as the western United States.

The damage has also affected China's economic prospects as it continues to pursue resources and
pump investment into other countries. Its close economic partners, particularly in the
developing world, face costly environmental burdens attached with doing business with China,
note CFR's Economy and Michael Levi in their book on China's quest for resources, By All Means
Necessary.

The pollution in China causes water and food supplies to become contaminated. An estimated
90% of irrigation water is polluted. The waste in the air fills rivers with sludge.
 Greenpeace East Asia
Climate change is of critical concern to China:
it is the world's largest greenhouse gas emitter,
and many of its people are vulnerable to the
impacts of climate change, from glacial melting
to droughts and flooding.

Greenpeace is campaigning for climate

solutions that will help us prosper without
damaging the planet. By switching to
renewable energy and protecting our forests,
we can protect our world for future generations.
T
The Popes Encyclical on the Environment

The climate is a common good, belonging to all and meant for all. At the
global level, it is a complex system linked to many of the essential conditions
for human life.Human beings too are creatures of this world, enjoying a
right to life and happiness, and endowed with unique dignity. So we cannot
fail to consider the effects on peoples lives of environmental deterioration,
current models of development and the throwaway culture.
http://www.catholic.
- Pope Frankie, Laudato si
com/blog/jimmy-akin/pope-
franciss-environmental-
encyclical-13-things-to-know-
Principles of Social Justice

Stewardship: we are all called to be caretakers, protectors & guardians of

the Earth

Solidarity: we are one family, despite geographical distance were our

brothers and sisters keepers

Common Good: the ability of individuals & the community to thrive

Solutions
Alternative energy solutions that reduce fossil fuel and coal consumption reduce the amount of
pollutants being added to the atmosphere.
Biomass energy, wind energy, solar energy, geothermal energy, hydroelectric energy
The Chinese government could enact a fossil fuel consumption regulation or quota, forcing firms
and citizens to seek out alternative energy solutions
Engage in further research into products like solar panels and wind turbines to make them more
cost- and time-efficient
This would allow for more public support for alternative forms of energy, thus reducing the
burden of change for the government
Government policies supporting alternative energy and its research may be expensive
for taxpayers, but a publicly-led movement would be more permanent and cheaper in
the long run
Gas Masks Plague the Streets
Selling air to chinese
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=
0jPTjC17FI
The End
 Bibliography
Haerens, Margaret. Air Pollution. Detroit: Greenhaven/Gale Cengage Learning, 2011. Print.

"BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | China 'buried Smog Death Finding'" BBC News. BBC, 03 July 2007.
Web. 23 Mar. 2016.

"Pope Francis's Environmental Encyclical: 13 Things to Know and Share." Pope Francis's
Environmental Encyclical: 13 Things to Know and Share. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.

"Reduce Air Pollution: In China." Greenpeace East Asia. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.

Greenpeace.org