Air Pollution in Mexico City Essay - 1224 Words

Air Pollution in Mexico City Mexico City adds an estimated one million new residents each year, resulting in one million new aggravates to the city’s already abominable air quality (Collins, 119). Over the span of a generation, Mexico City’s air has gone from being one of the world’s cleanest to one of the world’s most polluted, as well as the most polluted in its country. The average visibility in the city is down from almost 100 km in the 1940s to only 1.5 km today, removing the once beautiful landscape of the surrounding snow-capped volcanoes (Yip, 1). More significantly, however, Mexico City’s air problems have resulted in a notable decrease in the health of its residents, particularly its children. There are a variety†¦show more content†¦Other leading causes of air pollution in Mexico City are the nearly 500 factories, refineries, and power plants in the city classified as high polluters. Few factories have properly installed or maintained emission controls, whil e many have none at all. Furthermore, because the price of noncompliance fines is lower than new equipment, there is little incentive for owners to change. Industrial enterprises produce ozone precursors that react in the presence of sunlight to form ground level ozone, which leads to ozone-rich photochemical smog (Collins, 126). Though it is improving, in the late 1990s Ozone levels exceeded acceptable standards 300 days a year (Yip, 3). Suspended particles—all particles in the atmosphere smaller than 20 microns—are also responsible for much of Mexico City’s air pollution, producing the haze and acidic brown rain that falls on the city. Incomplete combustion from sources like thermal generators, boilers, and incinerators is a leading source of particles, as well as vehicle emissions. Particles are also swept into the city naturally from dry beds and dust storms, where the mountain-rimmed basin createsShow MoreRelatedAir Pollution in Mexico City3015 Words   |à ‚  13 Pages Air Pollution in Mexico City Outline Title: Air Pollution in Mexico City I. Introduction General information about the problem: As the vehicle population reached more than 700 million, numerous cities experiencing rapid industrialization started to suffer from air pollution. Some of them reduced the air pollution level; however there are still some that are considered to be the most polluted cities in the world. Introduction of the problem: One of them is Mexico City. AccordingRead MorePopulation in Mexico City758 Words   |  4 Pagespopulation in Mexico City There are parts of the world that have an alarming overpopulation rate, one of these locations is Mexico city which is located in the Federal District, Capital of the Country of Mexico. 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