Pick Your Poison; CO, CO2, NOx

No matter how you slice it, dice it, chop it, mix it, or even exhaust it, it’s still poison and we release it into the atmosphere every time we fire up that gas guzzling human hauler. As time goes on we continue to destroy the most valuable resource of our very existence.

How polluting are these three gasses and what produces them?

Automobiles by far are the most producing means of these gases and account for:
• 76 percent of the carbon monoxide (CO) in our atmosphere.
• 33 percent of the carbon dioxide (CO2) in our atmosphere.
• 30 percent of the nitrogen oxide (NOx) in our atmosphere.

According to USA.ORG there were roughly 247.4 Million registered vehicles in 2005 in the USA alone. Now combine that statistic with the fact that CO, CO2 and DOx account for roughly 21 pounds of pollutions for every gallon of gas burned, carbon dioxide accounts for approximately 19.6 pounds of the 21 pounds. That is approximately 7.8 billion pounds of pollution exhausted in to our atmosphere every day.

What health effects do they pose on humanity?

Carbon monoxide affects the bloods ability to carry oxygen to vital organs like the heart and brain. Carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide both create adverse effects to the respiratory system. These gases are not only harmful to the respiratory system they pose serious risks to those with weakened immune systems along with other diseases like diabetes, heart disease.

When should we start to worry?

The atmosphere has managed thus far but how much time do we really have before it’s too late? I’m not sure that time is the best cause for concern. We are all aware of the smog issue and most of us have probably seen it firsthand. It’s there, it’s disgusting and we have the ability to stop it but we don’t.

We don’t stop it because we are so caught up in our own fast paced lives that we just let it be. After all it is easier to let someone else deal with it. Once more, what really makes us feel better about it is our ability to justify it as, no matter what we do to clean it up there will be an adverse affect from that method and we will be no better off.

Even if we do try to clean things up what are our options?

Hybrid vehicles are cleaner and are a step in the right direction but most hybrids still average 50 miles per gallon. That is still a lot of pollution emitted in to the earth’s atmosphere.

Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are still fifteen to thirty years out and according to Joseph J. Romm this alternative is not cost effective nor does it pose much cleaner statistics for the atmosphere.

What about the electric car? It was tested in California for five years and according to the people that leased them they were fantastic vehicles. They were aesthetically pleasing with lots of power to get you everywhere you needed to go in a normal days travel. And the best thing about them is they have zero emissions.

How do we get these zero emissions vehicles (electric car) as an option to purchase for use?

There are many ways to possess an electric vehicle but in order for it to become viable the government has to step in and mandate some laws. Laws that force the production of zero emission vehicles. It doesn’t have to be an overnight solution but it does need to start now.

So as a citizen that cares for your environment you will need to write your congress man and plant the seed for zero emission vehicles. Only then will we start to reverse the negative effects we stated well over a century ago.