¨Air pollution kills more than 1,200 children and teenagers per year in Europe, according to a report released by the European Environment Agency (EEA). It also significantly increases the risk of disease later in life. ” This is what Angela Symons said on April 24, 2023, from Euronews in an article called Air pollution is killing 1,200 children and teenagers in Europe each year on April 24, 2023. Air pollution is one of the main problems we are dealing with in this world along with deforestation and global warming. So many people have tried ways to stop pollution, but it looks like we have barely made a mark in the giant blanket of smog covering cities worldwide. There are a few ways that pollution is made, how it is harmful to human and animal health, and there are things we can do to attempt to stop air pollution altogether.

Some major ways our skies are becoming polluted are by car and truck exhaust, volcanoes and wildfires, and fuel or energy factories. According to an article titled Volcanoes by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, on March 18th, 2024, “Sulfur dioxide gas can lead to acid rain, and air pollution downwind from a volcano. These gasses can come from lava flows as well as a volcano that erupts violently. ” Volcanoes erupting are not the only thing that creates uncomfortable breathing air. Wildfires, which burn many trees and let off a good amount of smoke, can give humans and animals health problems. Wildfires create large amounts of smoke, which most people know is not good to breathe. Smoke makes breathing more difficult and can cause lung issues. 

Fuel and energy factories also release lots of carbon dioxide, which can increase heart rate, elevate blood pressure, and even kill someone if too much is breathed in. Oxygen-depleted air is harmful to humans and other animals. Many factories release it during the combustion of fossil fuels to produce electricity. Factories that create energy, like power plants, make energy by using fossil fuels, or nuclear fuels. These all are major parts of the contamination of our air and can make people very sick.

Air pollution from all of these things is harmful to people's health, as it can give us breathing infections, heart disease, and strokes, all of which are uncomfortable and not fun to deal with and pay for. People who already have illnesses like asthma, pneumonia, and lung cancer can get worse by breathing in bad air. If someone gets sick from the pollution, it may take longer than some illnesses to get better if they stay in the same polluted area.  “Air Pollution is harmful to everyone, but especially children. The United Nations Children’s Fund calls climate change a child rights crisis. The organization estimates that 1 billion children worldwide – nearly half of all children – are at extremely high risk of the effects of climate change. This threatens the health of these children now and throughout their lives.”  Said Aimee Cunningham from Science News on August 3, 2023.  “Children’s ongoing development from the fetal period through adolescence is one reason that they are particularly vulnerable to health harms from climate-related effects on the environment.” Air pollution is very harmful to human and animal health, and it needs to be stopped.

 Some of the ways that people are trying to stop Air pollution are by carpooling or not using cars, avoiding burning trash and other materials, and planting trees to help create more air. When Someone carpools or doesn't use their car at all, it slows the emission of carbon much more than if they were to drive everywhere. Walking to work can be difficult for some people, but carpooling with coworkers can help the air more than everyone using cars.

“Burning trash and materials such as plastic and painted or treated wood are harmful to the environment because these materials release toxic chemicals that pollute our air,” says the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, in an article called Environmental and Health Impacts of open burning, “Polluted air can be inhaled by humans and animals, and deposited in the soil and surface water and on plants.” Planting trees can help our environment as well. The website of the EarthDay organization says, “Today, trees absorb one-third of global emissions every year. And when we burn them, all of that pollution gets released into the air. ” Air pollution is bad for the planet and the creatures living on it. 

When our fuel and energy factories, active volcanoes, and car and truck exhaust creates bad air for people, it can be extremely harmful to the living things in our world. There are many ways to put a hold on pollution. We need to work together to get rid of the air that is bad for our world.