Air Pollution Asian Brown Cloud

Air Pollution – Asian Brown Cloud

Good news for Asia’s economy may not mean good news for Asia’s environment.

The dramatic economic boom in Asia has led to new wealth for the people of China and India. It has also led to new environmental problems. One of these is a form of air pollution with an unpleasant name.

Asian Brown Cloud is a vast cloud of smog two miles deep, covering southern Asia. It is a soup of industrial pollutants, carbon monoxide from vehicle exhausts and particles of soot from burning forests and millions of rural cooking fires. It blocks 15% of sunlight, which reduces crop yields. It also creates acid rain, leads to respiratory illnesses, reduces rainfall and causes extreme weather events. Because the cloud is capable of being dispersed rapidly around the world, it may affect a much wider area than just Asia.

Why is this happening? It all boils down to the economy and wood.

The economy in Asia has been growing dramatically. This is great news, of course, because more and more people are producing and trading goods. This means that the people of the region are becoming wealthier.

But a growing economy comes with some down sides.  More production usually means that more factories are running. If they aren’t regulated, exhaust from these factories will create pollution.  More wealth means more people can afford to buy cars. In recent years, people in China and India have purchased more automobiles than Europe, South America, and the U.S. combined. All these new cars produce exhaust, which can contribute to air pollution.

Wood remains the primary cooking fuel for millions of people in Asia. Wood fires are much less efficient than cooking with electricity or natural gas. Burning wood can put a lot of black carbon, ash, and sulfur into the atmosphere – all major components of “Asian Brown Cloud.” Periodic forest fires can make this worse by releasing even more of these pollutants into the air.

Can anything be done about Asian Brown Cloud? Air Pollution – Asian Brown Cloud Yes. Scientists believe that Asian Brown Cloud can be reduced significantly if Asian governments would better regulate factory pollution, reduce pollution from automobiles, and encourage people to use more modern cooking fuels.

Questions

1. What causes Asian Brown Cloud? List three sources of this pollution.

a. ______

b. ______

c. ______

2. What is contained in Asian Brown Cloud?

3. How does Asian Brown Cloud affect the people of Asia? (list 3 specific effects on people)

4. How can air pollution prevent plants from doing photosynthesis? Why is this a problem for the people of Asia?

5. Scientists say that it can be prevented. Describe at least two things that countries could do to reduce or prevent Asian Brown Cloud.