Air pollution is the presence of substances in the air that, by themselves or together with other substances, are harmful to human, animal or plant health. These substances can come from natural sources, such as volcanoes and dust storms, or from human sources, such as chemicals.
Of all the unhealthy dust particles in the air, particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and ozone (smog) cause the most damage to your health.
How can we reduce air pollution?
As citizens we can:
By means of an emissions trading system, the Kyoto protocol aims to reduce CO2 and NOx emissions. CO2 does not cause any health damage, but it is the major problem with the greenhouse effect. NOx, except that it is harmful, is also seen as an indicator. The amount of NOx that is measured somewhere is an indication of all sorts of other common smoke.