Environmental ArticlesAir Air - Part III In his 1947 novel, Who Has Seen the Wind?, the late W.O. Mitchell describes the prairie winds thus: "The wind turns in silent frenzy upon itself, whirling into a smoking funnel breathing topsoil…" Not unlike the feeling in your lungs when walking down a Toronto street in mid-July. Or worse, jogging along the boardwalk in the "Beaches" area. During my four-year stint of living in the "Big Smoke" (they don't call it that for nothing, you know), I was often horrified as I watched scantily-clad men and women running down the planks along the waterfront. It wasn't just their cheesy outfits, either. As I looked across the lake, I observed a thick, solid mass of murky brown on the horizon, like a theatrical backdrop. Except that this backdrop was all too real, and all too deadly. Who has seen the wind? Anyone who cared to look. Yet here were these "health nuts," deliberately filling their lungs to capacity with the sticky, smelly stuff spewing from the distant stacks. Either these runners were completely in denial about the crap they were sucking back as part of their "health regime," or I was the last to learn that the smog was in fact some form of vapourized nutrient, perfectly harmless, nay, good for you. Ya, right. I must have missed that in the news. In whining about the degradation of air quality, I'm tempted to parade statistics about the rise of bronchial-related illnesses in Ontario, but hey - why should I? I am one. At 37 years old, two years after moving to the "Big Smog," I succumbed to asthma. This, in spite of being athletic my whole life. At first, I didn't know why I was so short of breath (except of course that I was always trying to hold it, fearing for my health if I actually inhaled). Then, over a period of several weeks, it became so bad I could hardly breathe. That's when I visited the walk-in clinic. The doctor on duty stuck a big tube-thingy in my mouth and told me to exhale. After a few more tests, he announced that I had asthma, prescribed not one, but two "puffers," full of noxious chemicals that paradoxically would get me breathing again, gave me a pill to take immediately, and told me I'd be spending my night in the hospital, as he fully expected me to have a full-blown asthma attack. "What's asthma?" I said. I know all too well the answer to that question now. So - thanks, Toronto, for the souvenir and the education. I went on to tests which showed that I had developed severe allergies, another first for me, and that the main culprits were the various pollutants found in car exhaust. It is one thing to hear the statistics and quite another to become one. Ah, what the heck…here are the statistics. In 2000, Ontario was the third worst polluter in North America, with emissions rising by seven percent from 1998. The prize for holding the bronze medal in the pollution follies (emphasis on "folly"), is 1,900 deaths from air pollution each year in Ontario [according to the Ontario Clean Air Alliance quoting the Ontario Medical Association (OMA)]. Inevitably, thousands of Ontarians are now suffering not just from asthma, but from bronchitis, both of which are associated with air pollution. After I was diagnosed, I was nattering about it to a young salesgirl in a clothing store in the Eaton Centre, and she told me that her (then 18 year-old) boyfriend had died from an asthma attack a mere two months earlier. I went home and packed. Unfortunately, I didn't run far enough. Just a few short years after moving to the Owen Sound area, we began to get our first "air advisories." For the last two summers, they've been a regular feature in the news. Smog. Car exhaust. We can't see it while we're in it, but we sure can feel its effects. "Who Has Seen the Effluent?" might have been a good sequel had W.O. lived long enough to enjoy the effects of increased car pollution. City folks have to deal with vehicle exhaust on a daily basis. By participating in the upcoming "Bike Walk to Work," to be held on May 20 at 8 a.m., Owen Sounders can cut down on their contributions at least for that day, and may even decide to bike to work on a regular basis. Maybe we can work towards developing a bike trail within the city itself. In the rural area, worries include local gravel pit expansions. The Grey Association for Better Planning (GABP) recently wrote a letter to the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) regarding Blueland Farm's request to increase its gravel operation. In their letter, GABP says the effect of 10-12 gravel trucks per hour, 12 hours a day, combined with the asphalt plants and Ready-Mix concrete, would be to dish out a dose of soot and tar to some 400 unsuspecting elementary school kids (especially when they're outside playing in their nearby schoolyard). GABP president Anna Scott, who penned the letter, seems to think that kids wouldn't like the taste of tar on their teeth and the gritty feeling of concrete dust on their face and lips (not to mention what they'd be breathing in). But hey, don't kids eat stuff like gummy worms? And isn't that tantamount to chewing tar? At least the gravel pit wouldn't coat their teeth with sugar. Maybe tar would even hold their teeth together longer. Why can't we study the health benefits, rather than always focussing on the bad? So where do we find solutions to our ailing air? In the Owen Sound area, you can start by checking out the programs and ideas offered by the Grey Bruce Renewable Energy Cooperative (GBREC). These include things like buying Green Tags (investing in and promoting renewable wind energy, for as little as $14/month), buying more efficient light bulbs to reduce pollution and save energy, and having your home evaluated for its energy performance. The Green Tags website claims that the program will result in "…simple, low-cost solutions to improve the operation and comfort of your home." On smog alert days, you'll appreciate that, because home is where you'll be confined if we can't find a way to eliminate the need for these alerts.
Grey Bruce Renewable Energy Coop / Green Tags Ontario Grey Bruce Association for Better Planning (GABP) Energuide for Houses Home Energy Evaluations
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